JIMBARAN, 3 May 2024 – The 3rd Senior Officials’ Meeting of the Central Authorities on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (“3rd SOM-MLAT”) and 9th ASLOM Working Group Meeting on ASEAN Extradition Treaty (“9th ASLOM WG on AET”) concluded with significant progress, as convened on 29-30 April and 1-3 May 2024, respectively, in Bali, Indonesia.
The five-day meeting was hosted by the Ministry of Law and Human Rights of the Republic of Indonesia, and attended by all ASEAN Member States (AMS) and the ASEAN Secretariat. Representatives of Timor-Leste also attended the meetings as observers.
The 3rd SOM-MLAT was the first SOM-MLAT to be held in-person since the elevation of the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters into an ASEAN Treaty in 2019. The meeting discussed SOM-MLAT’s current works in facilitating the mutual legal assistance in criminal matters among AMS, as well as issues relevant to the implementation of the ASEAN Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (“ASEAN MLAT”).
At this meeting, the Guidelines for Accession to the ASEAN MLAT by Non-ASEAN Member States (“Guidelines”) were successfully adopted and will be submitted to the ASEAN Ministers/Attorneys General Meeting of the Central Authorities on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (“AMAG-MLAT”) for its intersessional endorsement. A template of an Instrument of Accession to the ASEAN MLAT which will be signed by the acceding State, upon the completion of procedures and necessary legal requirements under the Guidelines, was also adopted at the meeting.
The 3rd SOM-MLAT also discussed progress on the development of Model Templates for MLA Request under the ASEAN MLAT which is currently undertaken by the SOM-MLAT Working Group on the Model Template on Mutual Legal Assistance Request with the support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The Model Templates are expected to ensure uniformity, simplicity, effectiveness, and smooth implementation of the ASEAN MLAT to assist AMS in requesting and rendering MLA under the ASEAN MLAT.
The 9th ASLOM WG on AET completed the fourth reading of the draft text of the AET and agreed on several articles at the meeting. Meanwhile, the ASLOM WG on AET is expected to finalise the text of AET by the end of this year. Once the AET is concluded, it will further enhance ASEAN’s capacity to combat transnational crimes.
Mr Cahyo R. Muzhar, Director General of Legal Administrative Affairs, Ministry of Law and Human Rights, in his capacity as the Chair of the 3rd SOM-MLAT and 9th ASLOM WG on AET, conveyed his sincere appreciation for the active participation and support of all AMS States and praised Timor-Leste for its eagerness to observe the ASEAN decision-making process.
The 10th ASLOM WG on AET is scheduled to be held in August 2024 in Lao PDR, to commence the fifth reading and revisit outstanding issues, whilst the 4th SOM-MLAT will be held in Lao PDR on the exact dates and venue to be confirmed among all AMS.
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