Taiwan and Belize recently concluded the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, underscoring Taiwan’s commitment to deepening its relationship with allies while contributing to global crime-fighting efforts, according to the Ministry of Justice Sept. 29.
Following a year of negotiations, facilitated in conjunction with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the treaty was signed by MOJ Minister Tsai Ching-hsiang Sept. 26 in Taipei City and Belize Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington Sept. 28 in Belize City.
According to the MOJ, the pact will serve as the legal framework for more effective collaboration on criminal investigations, prosecutions, court proceedings and crime prevention.
Under the new accord, defendants and witnesses can give statements via videoconference, with the relevant authorities present to pose questions during the process. This will enable the two sides to work as a joint investigative team combating transnational crime, the ministry said.
In a statement released the same day, the Belize government praised the reciprocal agreement as another major milestone in the two allies’ trusted relations.
The treaty is the seventh signed by the MOJ following those with the U.S., China, the Philippines, South Africa, Poland and Nauru, in that order. It is also the second cooperative legal arrangement between Taiwan and Belize after the agreement on anti-corruption was concluded July 2, 2019. (SFC-E)
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