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Federal Police
12 June 2008
Media Release
Protecting the world's children on agenda at AFP
conference in Sydney
Law enforcement representatives from 47 countries have gathered in Sydney
this week to discuss and develop strategy on combating crimes against
children at an Interpol meeting hosted by the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty said the 26th Annual Interpol Specialist Meeting
on Crimes Against Children was timely as it followed the resolution last week of
Operation Centurion which led to more than 100 Australians being charged
with accessing child pornography images online.
"Operation Centurion is a good example of why a global law enforcement
approach is needed to combat this type of crime, with the images of abused
children from a website in Europe accessed by people in 170 countries,"
Commissioner Keelty said.
“The knowledge, experience and expertise shared by law enforcement
agencies this week will assist in the development of better practices to combat
these crimes proactively rather than reactively," he said.
Commissioner Keelty said the three-day meeting, which began on Tuesday,
had been very productive and informative.
“Member countries of Interpol attend these conferences to keep up to date
with new trends and developments in child protection issues, and by hosting
the meeting the AFP has placed itself in a better position to remain vigilant and
stay ahead of those who wish to perpetrate such crimes,” he said.
The meeting covered a range of topics, including serious violent crimes against
children, commercial exploitation and trafficking of children, sex offenders and
internet-facilitated crimes against children.
The AFP sponsored 20 partner agencies within the Asia Pacific Region to attend
the meeting, which historically has had limited attendance from Asia-Pacific
countries. These countries include Thailand, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Timor
Leste, PNG, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Laos, Malaysia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and
Bangladesh.
Minister for Home Affairs Bob Debus will provide today's closing address which
is open to the media at 4pm Dockside at Darling Harbour.
Media enquiries
AFP National Media Team (02) 6275 7100
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