New Delhi: Calling upon the global community to work faster to “eliminate safe havens” for terrorists, criminals and the corrupt, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said when the “forces of good cooperate, the forces of crime cannot operate”.
Inaugurating the 90th General Assembly of Interpol on Tuesday, Mr Modi warned about the harmful globalised threats the world faces — terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking and organised crime: “The pace of change of these dangers is faster than earlier. When threats are global, the response can’t be local!”
The Prime Minister released a commemorative postage stamp and an Rs100 coin to mark the event. He was welcomed at the venue by Home Minister Amit Shah, Interpol President Ahmed Naser Al Raisi and Secretary General Jurgen Stock.
He was introduced to the Executive Committee by Al Raisi.
In his address to the gathering of 195 member countries of Interpol, which included a delegation of Pakistan led by its Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Mohsin Butt, the prime minister said India has been combating transnational terrorism for decades.
“Long before the world woke up to it, we knew the price of safety and security. Thousands of our people made the ultimate sacrifice in this fight,” he said.
He said a safe and secure world is a shared responsibility of the global community and there can be no safe havens for the corrupt, terrorists, drug cartels, poaching gangs or organised crime.
“Such crimes against people in one place are crimes against everyone, crimes against humanity. Further, these not only harm our present but also impact future generations. Police and law enforcement agencies need to devise procedures and protocols to increase cooperation. Interpol can help by speeding up Red Corner Notices for fugitive offenders,” he said.
India has 780 active Red Notices as of now, of which205 are related to criminals wanted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
