Justice across borders
I return from Abu Dhabi deeply grateful for the opportunity to represent our country, for the trust placed in our delegation, and for the lessons, partnerships, and friendships gained along the way.
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I return from Abu Dhabi deeply grateful for the opportunity to represent our country, for the trust placed in our delegation, and for the lessons, partnerships, and friendships gained along the way.
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I had the honor and privilege of representing our country as Head of Delegation to the 15th United Nations (UN) Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice held in Abu Dhabi last weekend.
The UN Crime Congress brought together governments, justice practitioners, international organizations, experts, and civil society from around the world to confront a reality that is increasingly difficult to ignore: crime no longer respects borders.
Cybercrime, scams, trafficking in persons, online sexual exploitation, and other transnational crimes can involve perpetrators, victims, platforms, financial transactions and evidence spread across multiple jurisdictions.
The response, therefore, cannot stop at national borders. It requires strong institutions at home, and stronger cooperation across countries.
For the Philippines, our participation was an opportunity not only to share what we are currently doing, but also to listen, learn, and bring home lessons from the experiences of others.
As part of the country’s “Pledge for Justice,” the Philippines committed to developing, through the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Council (CICC), a National Cybercrime Prevention and Suppression Plan and Strategy by 2027.
We also committed to strengthening cybercrime reporting, scam verification, threat detection and disruption, information-sharing, digital forensics and AI-enabled monitoring and analytics through 2031.
These are more than international commitments. They must translate into reforms that make communities safer and justice more responsive to the realities people face every day.
I was particularly grateful for the opportunity to deliver our country statement and chair a general meeting. These responsibilities allowed me to represent not only our institutions, but the people whose experiences remind us why access to justice must remain at the center of our work.
I was especially proud to share the Philippines’ experience in expanding people-centered justice, including our Katarungan Caravans, which are concrete efforts to bring justice-sector services closer to communities and make institutions more accessible to people who may otherwise struggle to navigate the system.
Abu Dhabi reinforced another important lesson: justice is never the work of one country or office alone.
I was proud to share this experience alongside colleagues from the Department of Justice, including Executive Director Hanna Manalili of the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking and Executive Director Mae Flores of the National Coordinating Council against online sexual abuse or exploitation of children, as well as our partners from Napolcom, the CICC, the Philippine Permanent Mission in Vienna, and the Philippine Embassy in the United Arab Emirates headed by Ambassador Alfonso Ver.
Our participation also gave us an opportunity to strengthen partnerships and advance the Philippines’ candidature to the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice for the 2028–2030 term.
I return from Abu Dhabi deeply grateful for the opportunity to represent our country, for the trust placed in our delegation, and for the lessons, partnerships, and friendships gained along the way.
Most importantly, I return with a simple but powerful reminder: Justice may begin at home. But in a world where crime crosses borders, justice must cross borders, as well.
