AG/RES. 1563 (XXVIII-O/98)

THE PREVENTION OF AND WAR ON CRIME

(Resolution adopted at the third plenary session, held on June 2, 1998)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN the report of the Permanent Council on improvement of public safety and security (AG/doc.3718/98);

CONSIDERING:

That, in resolution AG/RES. 1490 (XXVII-O/97), the General Assembly instructed the Permanent Council to study and analyze the report presented by the General Secretariat pursuant to resolution AG/RES. 1380 (XXVI-O/96); and

That, pursuant to the mandate in resolution AG/RES. 1490 (XXVII-O/97), the General Secretariat presented to the Permanent Council, through its Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs, a proposal for the establishment of a "Special Program of Support for National Efforts in the Prevention of and War on Crime"; and

RECALLING the Declaration of Montrouis: A New Vision of the OAS, which sets forth the intent "to foster an exchange of experiences in the prevention of and war on crime and to study possible measures to improve public safety,"

RESOLVES:

1. To instruct the Permanent Council to continue its consideration of the topic of the prevention of and war on crime.

2. To instruct the Permanent Council to prepare the agenda and set the date for a meeting of government experts, in accordance with resources allocated in the program-budget and other resources, to facilitate a broad hemispheric discussion that will set the parameters and guidelines for addressing inter-American cooperation in these areas and provide a basis on which the OAS may develop a multilateral program in this area, and to convene that meeting as soon as possible.

3. To instruct the Permanent Council, in coordination with the General Secretariat, to consult and meet with experts from think tanks and multilateral agencies specializing in this field, in preparation for the meeting of government experts, and to request the Secretary General to identify and submit to the Permanent Council a list of experts.

4. To request the General Secretariat to prepare a report on relevant international experience in this area and, in particular, on United Nations crime-prevention and crime-fighting efforts, so as to identify further measures that might be taken in the inter-American context.

5. To instruct the General Secretariat to seek assistance and support-including financial assistance-from other multilateral organizations, such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), as well as OAS permanent observers, in designing and executing the proposed activities.

6. To instruct the Permanent Council to report in due course to the General Assembly on the fulfillment of this resolution.