 Terima kasih kerana menangiskan saya untuk berada di sini pagi ini. Encik Jose Rao Modino Condero, Minister of Public Security, Panama. Encik Jose Aju Prado Canals, General Attorney. Encik Julio Monto, Director National Police of Panama. Encik Gloria Moreno-Gilopis, Director General National Customs Authority. Encik Keith Williams, President and CEO Underwriters of Oral Trees. Encik James Steeve Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen. Di bahagian-bahan saya, Encik Paul, It is your great pleasure that I welcome you to the 2012 International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference. Now I realize that some of you have traveled from afar like I have and may still be jet-lagged. Nevertheless, I am confident that all of us will find our attendance here not only worthwhile, but also memorable. Panama is indeed a place where East meets West and the record attendance attests to the leading role of Panama in connecting people with its vibrant economy and the Panama Canal and more importantly, the wall of hospitality we have all received. Now, a recurring theme of every IP crime conference has been how we can work together nationally and illusionarily to prevent and disrupt what transnational criminals do. These unredacted criminals are well-organized. They systematically manufacture and distribute counterfeit and pirated goods worldwide without regard for the effects their actions have on unsuspecting consumers. This operational annual intellectual property conference has therefore been occurring since 2007 and since then, Encik Paul is always impressed with the commitment from a wide range of public and private partners who are joining efforts to tackle counterfeiters everywhere on the road. Encik Paul is therefore delighted to have the privilege of co-hosting this milestone conference the first in Central America with the Polythea National Panama. Panama has been an Interpol member country since 1958 and Interpol considers the Polythea National Panama as one of its valued partners. Minister, Attorney General, and Police Director your leadership and determination to place Panama at the forefront of international efforts and to make a meaningful impact on this dangerous crime is very much appreciated. He also acknowledged the work, the wonderful work of the customs as we know many containers passed through Panama. I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to the underwriters with oral trees for their steadfast and dynamic support not only towards the conference but also the Interpol Intellectual Property Rights Program. Indeed, yesterday we had a very fruitful meeting with the general councils and brand protection managers of a number of companies who were brought together by UL. Now please allow me to illustrate our outreach and successes this year and you will see the wide and diverse geographical spread of the challenges facing us. As of this month, Interpol can proudly speak of five international operations in Africa, Central Europe, and Central America. Operations ops-on, targeted counterfeit and substandard food was deployed in 10 Western European countries. Then Operation Tonsay followed focusing on counterfeit products in five countries in Eastern Africa. In April, Operation Mayan, National IP crime operation was deployed in 11 Central American countries. Then came the month-long operation Black or Siden in May in which five Central European countries took part. This saw 1,700 interventions at commercial locations like markets, ports, and airports. The operation involved law enforcement working with prosecutors, customs, and intellectual property crime experts. After our phenomenal success with the sheer volume of interventions, arrest of 1,400 individuals and the seizure of 7.3 million items worth of traffic works valued at €122 million from Operation Poseidon, we did not stop there. And certainly not the last for this year in July, we carried on with Operation Mercant, which was jointly coordinated with the World Customs Organization. This covered seven Southern African countries and focus on illicit alcohol, cigarettes, and tobacco products. In all, our successors this year for IP crime are seizures of counterfeit pirated illicit goods valued at over €155 million and with the arrest of over 1,700 suspects. Now, these global operations involved 27 per cent or 51 interpo member countries from different regions or sub-regions. While each of these countries deferred in terms of systems, processes, language, and culture, they were all united by their experiences and face the same destructive threat from IP crime. Our common aim is to create and reserve a safe environment for individuals, families, communities, businesses, and governments. And we must each do our part in our respective countries for a collectively safer world. The manufacturer and distribution of counterfeit and illicit products clearly takes place on an industrial scale because we find the same counterfeit and illicit product types in every region. Illicit trade, including tax evasion and the inversion fuel by corrupt practices is an ever-present feature. Worse, this illicit trade which often seriously injures and even kills members of the public is conducted with a complete disregard for the health and safety of consumers. Clearly, individual safety is not the business or an interest of transnational organized criminals. These operations consistently confirm that counterfeiting and piracy are just two components of a much larger transnational organized criminal activity which is trafficking in illicit goods. Trafficking in illicit goods is a generic term used by Interpol to describe all types of illicit trade. It includes various types of intellectual property infringements and environmental crime, illegal trade in natural resources, trade in substances that cause health or safety risks, the smuggling of excitable goods as well as a variety of illicit financial flows. This complex yet diverse situation demands an even more comprehensive global partnership response to firmly focus on the transnational criminals responsible for these activities. They effectively act as commodity brokers by manipulating any illicit product to generate significant profits regardless of the consequences. And we cannot discount the fact that some of the money could go into terrorist organizations as today we remember the 11th anniversary of the tragic situation the tragic circumstances that occurred in New York and Pennsylvania. Now we are thankful for the external investments into the Interpol Fund for a safer world which has enabled Interpol to counter these crimes. It has led to an expansion of the proven IP crime model to all types of trafficking in illicit goods. And immediate benefit is the introduction of a mentoring program for senior police investigators in all aspects of trafficking in illicit goods and this is to ensure good investigation skills widely available in member countries. The cover of mentor officers will acquire specialist knowledge and skills during integrated training and operational intervention requirements in their own country and a period of attachment to the trafficking in illicit goods program. The process has begun today with the attendance of 50 police and customs officers representing every Interpol region to maximize benefits derived from collective knowledge and expertise. Now in the context of training I am particularly proud of the partnership between Interpol and Underwriters in Power Trees which has resulted in the creation and delivery of the Online International IP Crime Investigators College or IIPCIC. On successful completion of the 14 core modules students receive and IIPCICs addicted and doors by Interpol certifying that they have successfully completed a course on professional studies on the investigation of transnational and organized intellectual property crime. The certificated course recognized by Interpol sets international standards and provides IP crime professionals with evidence of specialist awareness and learning on the subject of transnational and organized IP crime. Well, on that note, all that remains is for me to thank each and every one of you for your commitment to this important issue. Please make most of this conference and especially the operational workshops. I trust you will enjoy this unique opportunity to exchange your knowledge and experiences with subject matter experts and other like-minded IP crime professionals from around the world. Personally, I have found the time I spent with you over the past few years most rewarding and enlightening. Though this will be my last engagement with you as President of Interpol because my term ends in November, I hope to be able to carry on contributing to this community of practitioners in any way I can. Together, we really can make a difference here in the Americas and around the world. Thank you and much more. Terima kasih.