A Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) on criminal matters was officially signed by Le Minh Tri - Prosecutor General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy (SPP) of Vietnam and Joaquim Verissimo – Minister of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs of Mozambique on December 3, 2018 in Maputo. The signing was witnessed by Carlos Agostinho Rosario - Prime Minister of Mozambique and Tran Quoc Vuong - politburo member and permanent member of the Central Committee’s Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam.
The signing of a cooperation agreement between Le Minh Tri - Prosecutor General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy (SPP) of Vietnam and Joaquim Verissimo – Minister of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs of Mozambique
The MLAT signed will significantly contribute to strengthening bilateral cooperation to combat transnational crimes, including wildlife trafficking crimes between the two countries. It will become a reliable and essential mechanism for executive and judicial agencies of Mozambique and Vietnam, including police, prosecutors and judges, to support one another effectively during investigation, prosecution and conviction of criminal offences.
Following with this remarkable signing ceremony, WCS has also facilitated a meeting between SPP’s leaders and the Attorney General’ Office of Mozambique (PGR) on December 3, to discuss implementation of the newly signed MLAT and other activities under the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two agencies in August 2017.
The successful MLAT signing has marked another significant milestone of the trusted partnership between WCS and SPP, with meaningful support from the Partnership against Poaching, implemented by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the German Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), and the UK Government through the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.