BANGKOK – The Faculty of Law of Hasanuddin University is exploring opportunities for collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) _Regional Office for Southeast Asia and the Pacific _ through a visit to the UNODC office in Bangkok on Wednesday (16 September). The meeting discussed opportunities to strengthen education, research, and capacity building in the fields of law and law enforcement.
The Unhas Faculty of Law (FH) delegation was led by Dean Prof. Dr. Hamzah Halim, S.H., M.H., M.A.P. Accompanying the dean were Vice Dean for Cooperation, Research, Innovation, and Alumni Prof. Birkah Latif, SH, M.H.; Head of the Department of Law, Society, and Development Dr. Andi Tenri Famauri; Secretary of the Department of International Law Dr. Kadarudin; and Dr. Laode M. Syarif, a senior lecturer at the Unhas Faculty of Law.
The meeting gave the Unhas Faculty of Law a chance to present its academic and institutional capacity and to identify areas that could be developed together with UNODC. The issues discussed included combating transnational crime, eradicating corruption, crimes related to natural resources and the environment, and strengthening the capacity of law enforcement officers and public institutions.
Dean of the Unhas Faculty of Law, Prof. Hamzah Halim, explained that exploring cooperation with UNODC is part of efforts to expand academic networks and to match legal education and research capacity with law enforcement needs.
“We see a lot of room to develop together, especially in education, research, and capacity building that are directly relevant to law enforcement issues,” said Prof. Hamzah.
In the discussion, the Unhas Faculty of Law also proposed several forms of collaboration, including student internship programs, professional training, joint research, seminars, and academic exchanges. The involvement of UNODC experts and officials in the Faculty’s academic activities was also among the opportunities discussed, whether as guest lecturers, speakers, or trainers.
The Faculty also introduced its Research Center for Prosecution, which has been in existence for more than a decade. The research center is a forum for developing studies in the field of prosecution and law enforcement that can support the development of academic and research cooperation.
In addition, it introduced the newly inaugurated Research Center for Police Forces, part of efforts to strengthen research capacity in the field of policing. Both research centers open opportunities for developing evidence-based studies and for knowledge exchange among academics, practitioners, and law enforcement institutions.
Prof. Hamzah said that strengthening international networks should be directed at cooperation with clear academic and institutional outcomes.
“What we hope for is not just to build institutional relationships, but to produce activities that benefit students, lecturers, researchers, and law enforcement institutions,” Prof. Hamzah added.
As a follow-up, the Unhas Faculty of Law invited the UNODC team to visit Makassar, South Sulawesi, to discuss cooperation priorities.
UNODC is a United Nations organization mandated to help member states address drugs, crime, and terrorism. UNODC also works on transnational organized crime, anti-corruption, crime prevention, and strengthening criminal justice systems. For the Southeast Asia and Pacific region, UNODC’s regional office is based in Bangkok.(*/fh/mir)
Editor : Ishaq Rahman
This article is an English translation of the original Indonesian report.