Australian Embassy
Vietnam

Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs in the Asia Region Law Enforcement Managements’ Sights

Vietnamese MPS,  Commander Chris McDevitt greet each other at ARLEMP 41        Senior Lieutenant Doan Quang Hung, Vietnamese MPS ARLEMP participant

Ho Chi Minh City, 6 October 2016 - Twenty five Police Officers from Asia, Australia, the Middle East and the Netherlands travelled to Ho Chi Minh City for the 41st Asia Region Law Enforcement Management Program (ARLEMP), with the theme of combatting Transnational Organised Crime and Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs (OMCGs,) last month.

Born out of a partnership between the AFP, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) Vietnam, and the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security’s GDP in 2005, ARLEMP has since become a flagship program for emerging law enforcement leaders in the region. The National Police of the Netherlands have been contributing to the partnership since 2015.

The program was the  first program of its kind in Vietnam to focus on up skilling law enforcement managers and leaders in preventing and investigating OMCG threats to our local communities. The program aimed to build participants’ confidence in preventing, detecting, and disrupting serious organised crime linked to OMCGs, while strengthening international collaboration in the field.

ARLEMP 41 participants at the Official Opening Ceremony                            ARLEMP 41 participants with officials from the UK, MPS, AFP, RMIT and ACG

All criminal activity is damaging to our communities. It undermines social order, risks public safety and negatively impacts our countries’ economies.  OMCG activity is no different. Members of these gangs are often violent predators who will use any means necessary to make a profit, and they have a complete disregard for the rule of law and of state and international boundaries.

This program was officially opened by Colonel Le Tan Tao, Deputy Director General, General Department of Police, and included presenters from the AFP’s National Anti-Gang Squad, the Attorney-General’s Department, and international experts from Denmark, the Netherlands, Thailand, and the United States.

ARLEMP is a key professional development program for law enforcement officers in the region, with approximately 38% being promoted 1 year after having completed the program. It also acts as a vital tool for fostering global partnerships and police networks in the region.