On October 10, 2023, in Can Tho City, Wildlife Conservation Society, Viet Nam Office (WCS Viet Nam) in collaboration with the Department of International Cooperation and Mutual Legal Assistance on Criminal Matters (Department 13), the Supreme People's Procuracy (SPP) and the Prosecutors professional training school in Ho Chi Minh city (HPS) organized a four-day training course on “Wildlife crime & prosecution skills in the handling of wildlife-related cases”. This is the first course in a series of the three thematic courses of the Wildlife Crime Leadership Initiative in Viet Nam - Phase 2 (WCLI-2) for prosecutors.
Participants in the training, Can Tho, October 2023
The training sessions were delivered by experienced lecturers and experts on criminal law, criminal investigation, criminal prosecution, criminology, international cooperation and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters from Ha Noi Procuratorate University (HPU), HSP and the SPP’s Department 13. Twenty participants who are prosecutors, and assistant prosecutors from People’s Procuracies of 14 provinces/cities, including Lai Chau, Lang Son, Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Ha Noi, Quang Binh, Ha Tinh, Nghe An, Da Nang, Dak Nong, Binh Phuoc, Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh and Kien Giang, and young lecturers from HPU and HPS attended the training course.
Group discussion, Can Tho, October 2023
The training program was divided into two parts. The first part covered an overview of the situation of illegal wildlife trade (IWT) in Viet Nam, the international and national legal framework on wildlife protection, provisions of criminal law, international cooperation and legal mutual assistance in criminal matters on handling wildlife crime. The intensive part focused on enhancing the participants’ skills to conduct public prosecution in the handling of criminal cases with specific notes related to wildlife cases as well as applying mind maps in the analysis and presenting wildlife-related cases to the courts.
The training course is also an opportunity for the participants to improve their professional skills, strengthen the peer-to-peer relationships, exchange of good practices and experiences in solving difficulties and loopholes in handling IWT cases.
In the next quarter, the twenty participants will continuously attend the two remaining thematic training courses on “Leadership and Organizational Management skills” and “Evidence in the handling of wildlife-related cases” and develop their personal action plan on counter wildlife trafficking.
The WCLI-2 is implemented by WCS Viet Nam and funded by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), United States Department of State.