INTERPOL

Why in news?

• PM Modi to address 90th Interpol General Assembly on Oct 18,2022.

About INTERPOL:

• Interpol is the world’s largest international police organization, with 194 member countries.
• Established in 1923, it enables cross-border police cooperation and supports and assists all organisations, authorities and services whose mission is to prevent or combat international crime.
• Interpol has an objective to facilitate international police cooperation even where diplomatic relations are not present between certain countries.
• Action is taken within the limits of existing laws in different countries and in the spirit of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Interpol’s constitution prohibits ‘any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character.’

Functions:

• Secure global police communication services:
  • A service called I-24/7 is operated by the Interpol which is a Global Police Communications System that provides a common platform for the member countries’ police organisations to share sensitive and urgent police information with each other.
  • It links law enforcement agencies of the member countries.
• Operational data services and databases for police:
  • Interpol provides a Database that the police can access globally.
  • This database allows the police all over the world to access services necessary to prevent and investigate crimes.
  • The database also holds criminal data such as Criminal profiles, criminal records, theft records, stolen passports, vehicles, artwork and forgeries, etc
• Operational police support services:
  • Interpol supports law enforcement officials in the field with emergency support and operational activities, especially in its priority crime areas of fugitives, public safety and terrorism, drugs and organized crime, trafficking in human beings and financial and high-tech crime. A Command and Co-ordination Centre operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Interpol notices:

• Interpol issues eight different types of international notices, most of them colour-coded. They includes:
• Red Notice:
  • It is issued to seek the location and arrest of wanted persons for prosecution or sentencing.
• Yellow Notice:
  • To help locate missing persons or to help identify persons who are unable to identify themselves. 
• Blue Notice:
  • To collect additional information about a person’s identity, location, or activities in connection with a crime. 
• Black Notice:
  • To seek information on unidentified bodies. 
• Green Notice:
  • To issue warning about a person’s criminal activities, in case the person is considered a possible threat to public safety. 
• Orange Notice:
  • To warn about an event, a person, an object, or a process that poses a serious and imminent threat to public safety. 
• Purple Notice:
  • To collect or provide information on modus operandi, objects, devices, and concealment methods used by criminals.
• INTERPOL–United Nations Security Council Special Notice:
  • Issued for groups and individuals who are the targets of the UN Security Council Sanctions Committees.

Add ons:

• The CBI is designated as the National Central Bureau of India for Interpol.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Consider the following statements:

1. Interpol issues Red Notice to seek the location and arrest of wanted persons for prosecution or sentencing.

2. The CBI is designated as the National Central Bureau of India for Interpol.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer