China Focus: China, ASEAN push pragmatic law enforcement cooperation

China and ASEAN countries have vowed to push for pragmatic law enforcement cooperation to better tackle security challenges and a law enforcement college to train police will be set up.

The Yunnan Police College in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, will be in charge of establishing the China-ASEAN Law Enforcement Academy, according to the first forum of presidents of police academies from China and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The academy is expected to provide higher quality, more customized training programs for police from ASEAN and neighboring countries, according to an official with China's Ministry of Public Security.

China has pledged to provide free mid- and short term law enforcement training and degree education for 2,000 officers from law enforcement agencies of ASEAN region from 2016 to 2020.

An education executive committee will be set up to promote China-ASEAN law enforcement training and cooperation, according to the forum held on Tuesday and Wednesday in Kunming.

The moves will help China and ASEAN effectively tackle growing threats such as terrorism, cyber crimes, drug smuggling and human trafficking, according to the participants of the forum.

Transnational crimes and terrorism cannot be solved by one country alone, said Bounxou Nammachak, president of Lao People's Police Academy.

In recent years, different police institutions have done a lot in information and experience exchange and organizing delegations of different levels, which have greatly promoted communication and cooperation between China and ASEAN countries, he said.

China is willing to improve cooperation in police training with ASEAN countries in such fields as drug control, anti-terrorism, handling of emergencies and cyber crimes, said Chen Yanchao, an official with the personnel and training department of China's Ministry of Public Security.

Azizan Bin Abu Taat, commandant of the Royal Malaysian Police College, said information sharing is a must in combating menaces and cooperation needs to be enhanced locally, regionally and internationally.

Malaysia needs international cooperation between law enforcement agencies as modern criminals and transnational syndicates are moving and operate internationally, said the commandant.

The forum was held after China and ASEAN issued a joint declaration on law enforcement cooperation at a ministerial meeting on regional security and common development last year.

Enhancing law enforcement capacity construction and building a more concrete, comprehensive and multidimensional cooperative system, will improve the capacity of preventing regional risks, said Guo Bao, president of Yunnan Police College.

The college is the first of its kind in China to organize training courses for foreign police officers. Some 2,163 foreign officers from 57 countries, have received training from the college. Endi