EU Naval Force - Somalia
Operation ATALANTA

A joint EU NAVFOR and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) team conducted training with representatives from Seychellois law enforcement agencies and the judicial system, to assist them with continued improvement and development of all areas within the legal process, involving from capture to conviction of suspect pirates.

Over three days, from 18^th to 20^th March of 2019, the participants in the Seychelles Prosecution Pathway programme developed skills and knowledge in detainee handling, evidence collection, crime scene management and a discussion about the legal conditions of transferring suspects of acts of piracy.

The attendees engaged in classroom-based learning and discussions followed by two practical exercises related to gather the evidence and being able to present it before a court of justice. The training included syndicated work in which participants had to come up with legal reasons to support their conclusions and expose them in public.

At the closing ceremony EU NAVFOR Legal Advisor, Maj. Rodrigo Lorenzo from ES OHQ Rota, quoted “the high level of the attendees”, and remarked “that this kind of exercises allow the Seychellois law enforcement authorities to improve their development of all areas within the justice system.”

EU NAVFOR, UNDOC and the Seychellois authorities are key partners in the deterrence, prevention and disruption of piracy in the Indian Ocean.