Commissioner Lee Ming-kwai, Assistant Commissioner (Crime) Lee Ka-chiu and Liaison Bureau Senior Superintendent Wong Che-kwong attended the 74th Interpol General Assembly as members of the PRC delegation in Berlin from September 19 to 22.

Heading the delegation was the Vice-Minister of Public Security, Mr Meng Hongwei.

Around 600 law enforcement delegates from 154 Interpol members attended the General Assembly. Its theme was "supporting member countries in combating terrorism and other international crimes, and providing a united police response to major international incidents and national disasters".

The Interpol President, Jackie Selebi, urged the delegates to adopt measures that would give police the tools and procedures they need to work effectively in an increasingly dangerous world where crimes and criminals respect no borders.

In addition to focuses on Interpol's National Central Bureaux and their roles in combating international crimes, including terrorism, drugs, human trafficking and financial offences, member countries were also updated on the expansion and success of Interpol Databases, such as those on DNA, Stolen Motor Vehicles, Stolen or Lost Travel Documents, Fingerprint Database and Internet Child Abuse.

A total of 167 countries, representing 91 per cent of the Interpol membership, have been connected to the Interpol I-24/7 system, and all member countries will have been connected by the end of 2005.

With the support of the G8, Interpol recently launched the latest phase of the development of its international database of child sexual abuse images. Member countries were urged to introduce or further develop legislation to prevent online child sexual abuse and identify the offenders.

The National Central Bureaux were also encouraged to share information on criminal networks involved in human trafficking, and Sub-Regional Bureaux were called upon to monitor and coordinate such activities. The need to increase the flow of information in relation to money laundering activities was also underlined.

An Interpol United Nations Office was opened in New York, which has led to closer collaboration with the UN, particularly with the Security Council's Committee dealing with terrorism. Crosschecking Interpol information on suspected terrorists with that of the UN is definitely of interest to both organisations.

At the General Assembly, a number of resolutions were endorsed, which included:

* Access to Interpol's stolen travel documents database was recognised as an essential tool for border and customs agents to limit the movements of criminals and terrorists. With nearly eight million records already entered into the database, finding technical solutions to allow border guards instant access to information via Interpol's I-24/7 communications system was highlighted as a priority.

* A new Interpol Notice will also be created to support the United Nations Security Council in the fight against terrorism. Details of individuals on the UN Al Qaeda / Taliban Committee's list and those subject to anti-terrorism sanctions will be circulated to police around the world via the new Interpol Notice, and will be added to Interpol's databases.

* The UN Peacekeeping Mission in Liberia will also be given access to Interpol's databases and the I-24/7 communications network.

* Member countries will introduce legislation to assist investigations and prosecutions against Internet websites that support terrorism. The Interpol General Secretariat will convene an international meeting for exchanging intelligence in this regard.

* Following a terrorist attack, an international database on missing persons and unidentified bodies will be established to assist in the rapid identification of victims.

The Interpol General Assembly for next year will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The Force delegation also took the opportunity to visit the French National Police in Paris and the National Police Service Agency in the Netherlands between September 12 and 18. Issues discussed at these visits included terrorism, technology crime, human smuggling, and trafficking of dangerous drugs. Both the French and the Dutch Police pledged to co-operate more closely with the Force in the fight against transnational crimes.