Den Haag is an international city that houses many non-profits and international organizations. It is home to several embassy's and various government entities.
Carrie and I had recently attended 'International Day', which is a day to learn more about some of the organizations that are working hard to make our world a better place for all of us. Various embassy's and entities open their doors to the general public on this day. They share insight and perspective on what it is they do and why they do it.
Eurojust is an organization that neither Carrie nor I, had ever heard of until this day. We were lucky enough to participate in a presentation that oriented us with the reason why this organization was created and what it is they do.
This organization was created in 2002 "to enhance the efficiency of national investigating and prosecuting authorities when dealing with serious cross-border organized crime within the European Union. Its mission is to support and strengthen coordination and cooperation between national authorities, and to bring criminals quickly and effectively to justice". Yes, the United States is attached to Eurojust.
What does this really mean? An example was given where a car was crossing the border, from Spain and into France, when it was stopped and inspected by police. Several bank notes were found in the vehicle. As it turned out, this was only the 'tip of an iceburg'. The French governing authority had contacted Eurojust to share a suspicion that the bank notes might be part of a broader and more complex crime. While the French judicial system could have handled this as an 'isolated incident', Eurojust's involvement resulted in multiple countries working together to 'take down' the more complex and cross-border drug and crime ring, which these bank notes were later determined to be a part of.
The following is taken directly from the brochure received in the orientation at Eurojust's coordination centre.
"Each of the EU Member States sends a senior representative to work at Eurojust in The Hague. These National Members are experienced prosecutors, judges or police officers of equivalent competence who carry out Eurojust's mandate to coordinate the work of the national authorities at every stage of criminal investigation and prosecution, resolving the challenges and practical problems arising from the differences between the legal systems of the Member States."
Additionally,
"WHAT EUROJUST DOES
Eurojust handled 1441 cases in 2011, with particular focus on crimes identified as priorities by the Council of the EU: terrorism, drug trafficking, trafficking in human beings, fraud, corruption, cybercrime, money laundering, and other activities related to the presence of organized crime groups in the economy.
Eurojust held 204 coordination meetings in 2011, bringing together national judicial, investigatory and prosecuting authorities from Member States and, where appropriate, third States. At these meetings, casework issues are resolved and plans for operational actions such as simultaneous arrests and searches are developed.
Eurojust provides direct support during operational action days. Eurojust's experts meet in a coordination centre and, as the day of action unfolds, they assist in ensuring the admissibility of evidence in different jurisdictions, the drafting of European Arrest Warrants and other judicial assistance requests.
Eurojust's key roles and powers include responding to requests for assistance from competent national authorities of the Member States. In return, Eurojust can ask the Member States to undertake investigations or prosecutions of specific acts.
Eurojust helps to resolve conflicts of jurisdiction in cases where more than one national authority is in a position to undertake an investigation or prosecution in a particular case. Eurojust facilitates the execution of international judicial instruments such as the European Arrest Warrant. It also provides funding for the setting up and operational needs of Joint Investigation Teams."
Needless to say, we were very impressed with what we had learned and we are extremely appreciative of Eurojust's efforts to ensure our safety and well-being here in Europe.
For more information... click here... http://eurojust.europa.eu/Pages/home.aspx