HARGEISA — In cooperation with the Somaliland Attorney General Office (AGO) and under the umbrella of the Counter Piracy Coordination Office, EUCAP organized and funded the fourth round of a Maritime Legal workshop in Hargeisa, Somaliland from January 28-30.
Participants from the Judiciary (judges and prosecutors), Police, Coast Guard and Immigration Officers attended the workshop. There were 44 participants in total who came from different parts of Somaliland including four women and six trainers from the Somaliland AGO.
Hosted at the Ambassador Hotel, the officers were trained on several subjects, including: Criminal and Civil Jurisdictions of flag state and coastal state; Maritime zones; Illegal Fishing/Sailing in unauthorized areas; Maritime Crimes and related laws; Piracy; Dumping and Waste; Tax Evasion, Human trafficking, smuggling of migrants, contraband and appropriate care and treatment of female victims in marine cases.
The trainers were EU experts from EUCAP, the Somaliland Attorney General’s Office and NAGAAD, an NGO advocating for women and children’s empowerment towards “achieving an egalitarian society where women, children and men are equally significant”.
In comparison with the three previous workshops of this kind organised in Hargeisa, topics were more focused on criminal offenses with regard to the Fishery’s Act and Pirates Act. More time was dedicated to discussing Human Rights, Gender and Human Trafficking.
Besides acquiring additional professional skills, enhancement of cooperation among the participating Somaliland agencies was a key objective of the workshop.
Background
EUCAP is a civilian EU mission, under the auspices of the Common Security and Defence Policy, which assists Somaliland in strengthening its capacity to ensure maritime security.
