The Prosecution Service of Georgia is the sole competent authority in Georgia for conducting criminal prosecution. It also has its own investigation competence regarding the designated crimes, such as corruption, money laundering and crimes committed by certain high-level officials. In exceptional circumstances, e.g. preventing a conflict of interests, it also has the competence to investigate other crimes.
The Prosecution Service also has an important role in investigations conducted by other agencies. It consists of exercising procedural guidance, applying for the court authorization of coercive measures and coordinating overall law enforcement action against crime. The Prosecution Service is a central authority for international judicial cooperation in criminal matters.
The Prosecution Service was significantly reformed throughout the recent years aiming at strengthening its external and internal independence. The reforms included separation of the Prosecution Service from the Ministry of Justice, guaranteeing its independence by the Constitution, creation of the Conference of Prosecutors, improving the rules for appointment of the Prosecutor General, establishing the Prosecutorial Council and other collegial bodies in charge of the selection of the Prosecutor General and appointment, promotion and discipline of prosecutors, the introduction of the performance appraisal system of prosecutors and improvement of the rules for the career management, ethics and discipline of prosecutors.
Undertaking its functions to the highest level of efficiency is the top Prosecution Service priority. The relevant goals are set forth in the upcoming 2022-2027 Prosecution Service Strategy and Action Plan.
The International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) has a longstanding tradition of organising conferences to provide fora for prosecutors to net- work with colleagues from around the world, and exchange best practices and experiences.
The Annual Conference and General Meeting of the IAP is comparable with a travelling theatre. Even though the venue and geographical context change from year to year, the basic content, structure and performance of the conference stay the same. However, this consistency does not mean strict uniformity - the IAP acknowledges that local traditions may vary and differ from the IAP guidelines, and local identity and customs are welcomed.
Organisational members wishing to Host an Annual Conference should be prepared to meet the requirements set out in this manual.
General Information about the IAP
The International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) is a non-govern- mental, non-political Organisation, and the first and only worldwide or- ganisation for prosecutors. The Association has over 180 Organisational Members, including associations of prosecutors, prosecution authorities and crime prevention agencies. Together with its individual membership the IAP represents over 300.000 prosecutors in over 175 different countries and territories around the world.
The IAP was established on 6 June 1995 at the United Nations Office in Vienna and was formally inaugurated in September 1996 at its first General Meeting in Budapest. The main impetus leading to its formation was the rapid growth in transnational crime, particularly, drug trafficking, money laundering and fraud. An obvious need for enhanced international co-oper- ation between prosecutors was emerging, particularly in the fields of mutual legal assistance, extradition and asset recovery.
The IAP Objects
The IAP Constitution sets out the following Objects of the IAP:
a) To promote the effective, fair, impartial and efficient prosecution of criminal offences.
b) To respect and seek to protect human rights as laid down in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 10 December 1948.
c) To promote high standards and principles in the administration of criminal justice, including procedures to guard against or address miscarriages, in support of the rule of law.
d) To promote and enhance those standards and principles which are generally recognised internationally as necessary for the proper and independent prosecution of offences.
e) To assist prosecutors internationally in the fight against organised or other serious crime, and for that purpose:
− to promote international co-operation in gathering and providing evidence; in tracking, seizing and forfeiting the proceeds of serious crime; and in the prosecution of fugitive criminals.
− to promote speed and efficiency in such international co-operation.
f) To promote measures for the elimination of corruption in public ad- ministration.
g) To promote the professional interests of prosecutors and to enhance recognition of their crucial role in achieving criminal justice.
h) To promote good relations between individual prosecutors and prose- cution agencies; to facilitate the exchange and dissemination among them of information, expertise and experience; and, to that end, to encourage the use of information technology.
i) To promote examination of comparative criminal law and procedure and to assist prosecutors engaged in justice reform projects.
j) To co-operate with international juridical organisations in furtherance of the foregoing objects.
The IAP Officers and Organs
The Executive Committee is the governing body of the Association, subject to the authority of the General Meeting which is the body of su- preme authority in the Association. The Association elects a President, up to 9 Vice-Presidents and 21 ordinary members of the Executive Committee. The membership of the Executive Committee reflects the regions in the world, where the Association has members.
The Executive Committee appoints a Secretary-General, who is the Chief Executive of the Association, a General Counsel, who is the principal professional representative of the Association responsible for the professional programme of the IAP and provides legal advice and coun- selling to the Association, and an Executive Director, responsible for the day-to-day management of the Association, to include finances, technical support, communication, membership administration and community outreach.
The Senate of the Association consists of past members of the Execu- tive Committee who elect to join the Senate upon their departure from the Executive Committee, and who are, in the opinion of the President and the Executive Committee, fit and proper persons of good standing and repute in the Association. The Senate operates in conjunction with the President and the Executive Committee. The Senate serves as an advisory body and executes powers to promote the IAP Objects.
The Secretariat of the IAP is based in The Hague, The Netherlands.
IAP EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (2020 - 2021)
President
Cheol-Kyu Hwang, Chief Prosecutor
International Center for Criminal Justice
Prosecution Service of the Republic of Korea
Guseong-ro 243, Giheung-gu, Yongin,
16913 Gyeonggi
Korea
Vice-Presidents
1. Mohammed Hassan AbdulRahim, Senior Advocate General
Dubai Public Prosecution
P.O. Box 61612
Dubai
United Arab Emirates
2. Kamran Aliyev, Prosecutor General
Office of the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan
N. Rafibeyli, 7
1001 Baku
Azerbaijan
3. Lloyd Babb, Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions NSW
Locked Bag 8A
1232 Sydney South
New South Wales
Australia
4. Satyajit Boolell SC, Director of Public Prosecutions
Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions
13 Floor Garden Tower Poudriere Street
N/A Port-Louis
Mauritius
5. Serge Brammertz, Chief Prosecutor
United Nations, International Criminal Tribunal’
For the Former Yugoslavia
Churchillplein 1
2517 JW The Hague
The Netherlands
6. Josip Cule, Deputy Attorney General and National Member for Croatia at Eurojust
State's Attorney Office of the Republic of Croatia
10000, Gajeva 30A
Zagreb
Republic of Croatia
7. Juan Bautista Mahiques, Prosecutor General of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires
Ministerio Público Fiscal de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
Avenida Córdoba 820, piso 10
Ciodad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
C 1054AAU Buenos Aires
Argentina
8. Christopher Toth, Executive Director, National Association of Attorney Generals (NAAG)
1850 M Street NW, 12h Floor
Washington, DC 20036
United States of America
Immediate Past President
Gerhard Jarosch
EUROJUST
Johan de Wittlaan 9
2517 JR, The Hague
The Netherlands
Ordinary Members
1. Jorge Abbott, Prosecutor General
Public Prosecutor's Office
Calle Catedral 1437
Santiago
Chile
2. Jane Abodo, Director of Public Prosecutions
Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions
P.O. Box 1550
Kampala
Uganda
3. Paris Adamis, National Member for Greece at Eurojust
Johan de Wittlaan 9
2517 JR The Hague
The Netherlands
4. Shamila Batohi, National Director of Public Prosecutions
National Prosecuting Authority of South Africa
Private Bag X752
0001 Pretoria
South Africa
5. Frédéric Fèvre, Prosecutor General and President of AIPPF
Association Internationale des Procureurs et poursuivants francophones
65 avenue du general Leclerc
54000 Nancy
France
6. Giorgi Gogadze, Deputy Chief Prosecutor
Office Of The Chief Prosecutor
24 Gorgasali Str.
0114 Tbilisi
Georgia
7. Max Hill QC, Director of Public Prosecutions
Crown Prosecution Service
102 Petty France
SW1H 9EA London
England and Wales
8. Tong Jianming, First Deputy Prosecutor General
Supreme People’s Procuratorate of PR China.
147 Beiheyan Street, Dongcheng District
100726 Beijing
China
9. Wongsakul KITTIPOMWONG, Former Attorney General
Office of the Attorney General
Na Huppei Road
10200 Bangkok
Thailand
10. Claire Loftus, Former Director of Public Prosecutions
Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions
Infirmary Road
7 Dublin
Ireland
11. Nayef Mahmood, Advocate General
Public Prosecution
P.O. Box: 207
207 Bahrain
Bahrain
12. Kate Matthews, Vice President of the Association of Crown Counsels, Canada
Ontario
Canada
13. Jean Fils Kleber Ntamack, Prosecutor General
Ministry of Justice
Yaounde Court of Appeal
15884 Yaonde
Cameroon
14. Kathleen Roussel, Director of Public Prosecutions and Deputy Attorney General
Public Prosecution Service of Canada
160 Elgin Street, 12th Floor
K1A 0H8 Ottawa
Canada
15. Edina SOLTÉSZ, Public Prosecutor, Head of Division for International Cooperation and Coordination
Central Chief Prosecution Office of Investigation
H-1087 Budapest Könyves Kálmán krt. 38
H-1476 Budapest, Pf.: 404
Hungary
16. Bruce Swartz, Deputy Assistant Attorney General
and DOJ Counselor for International Affairs
Department of justice
Criminal Division
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001
United States of America