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CICTE of the OAS to Debate in its Annual Meeting Ways to Combat Crimes that Finance Terrorism

The Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE) of the Organization of American States (OAS) will hold on Thursday and Friday its Fourteenth Regular Session, during which the 34 member states of the Organization will analyze mechanisms designed to counter criminal activities carried out by terrorist groups to finance their activities, and to improve responses to terrorism through the strengthening of criminal justice systems in the region.

Looking ahead to the CICTE meeting, the Secretary General of the OAS, José Miguel Insulza, called for coordination between the countries of the region to “ensure that our frontiers don’t hinder our efforts to find and eliminate the sources of financing of terrorist groups.” In addition, the OAS leader highlighted that “strengthening our justice systems is the best way to break the criminal networks that have created these groups to carry out their illicit activities.”

The Inaugural Ceremony of the event will feature the participation of the Assistant Secretary General of the OAS, Albert Ramdin; the Chair of CICTE and Permanent Representative of Colombia to the OAS, Andrés González Díaz; and the Executive Director of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee, Jean-Paul Laborde. The ceremony will be open to the press and will be broadcast live on the OAS Website.

The annual meeting of CICTE will bring together high level experts and authorities from the region in the field of combating terrorism; national, international, regional and subregional organizations; and non-governmental organizations to debate two central themes: “Cooperating to Counter the Criminal Activities that may Exacerbate the Threats of Terrorism,” and “Strengthening Criminal Justice Responses to Acts of Terrorism.”

These discussions will enable member states to explore the ways in which they can enhance their effectiveness against terrorist groups by strengthening their criminal justice systems and focusing on the criminal activities that facilitate, fund or accompany terrorist activity.

The main purpose of the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE) is to promote and develop cooperation among member states to prevent, combat and eliminate terrorism, in accordance with the principles of the OAS Charter, with the Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism, and with full respect for the sovereignty of states, the rule of law, and international law, including international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and international refugee law.

CICTE works in five areas: border controls, legislative assistance and combating terrorist financing, protection of critical infrastructure, strengthening of strategies to deal with emerging terrorist threats, and international cooperation and collaboration.

The plenary of the meeting will elect the new Chair and Vice Chair of CICTE, as well as the Rapporteur of the Fourteenth Regular Session.

WHAT: Fourteenth Regular Session of CICTE

WHEN: Thursday, February 20, 09:00 to 17:00 EST (14:00 to 22:00 GMT) and Friday, February 21, 09:00 to 17:45 EST (14:00 to 22:45 GMT)

WHERE: Simón Bolívar Hall
Organization of American States
17th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20006

Reference: E-052/14