Handover Ceremony of Investigative Equipment to the Philippine National Police

On 2024 November 29, Japan handed over investigative equipment to the Philippine National Police (PNP) through the project entitled “Drugs and Human Trafficking in Southeast Asia,” implemented through the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as a supplementary budget item for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in FY2023. The ceremony, which was held at the Philippine National Police Headquarters in Quezon City, is part of the “Counter Terrorism and Violent Extremism and Prison Improvement” initiative of the PNP. 
 
Director of the International Safety and Security Cooperation Division of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs WARISAWA Koichi, First Secretary of the Embassy of Japan in the Philippines NISHIMURA Haruka, UNODC Philippine Office Representative Daniele Marchesi, PNP Police Brigadier General Benjamin dl Sembrano and various affiliated parties were present during the event.
 
This initiative aims to ensure regional security and maintain the rule of law by strengthening the ability to respond to urgent and new threats such as illegal drugs which are expanding against the backdrop of socio-economic difficulties in Southeast Asia; international organized crimes which include human trafficking for the purpose of extortion in online fraud and illegal casinos; and terrorism and violent extremism which are expanding in prisons as well as online.

As part of this project, Japan has provided the Philippine National Police with crime scene 3D laser scanning and mapping equipment, which is necessary for the detection and investigation of terrorists.

Given the growing concern about the impact of the security and crime situation in Southeast Asia on Japan, particularly the trends of international organized crime groups involved in recent telephone fraud cases, the Government of Japan hopes that the efforts to improve the capabilities of police authorities in Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, will improve public safety in the region and of Japan.