The Masters Programme in Governance and Human Rights connects the theory of science with its practical application. In seven modules, the students will learn to analyze and understand legal and political theories of governance and international and regional human rights regimes and how they are interrelated. The students and scholars of the Master of Governance and Human Rights will design, plan, organize, and realize their own project addressing a practical challenge related to the field of governance and human rights.

Degree: Master of Arts (M.A.)
Credit Points: 90 
Lenght of Study: 4 terms extra-occupational
Language: English
Study Places: 25
Start Date: in October
Application Deadline: July 1st; it is possible to apply later and be admitted until September 30th
Costs: 9.500 Euro (total tuition cost), plus the current term contribution of 200 Euro per term
Programme Director: Prof. Dr. Alessandra Asteriti (http://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/personen/alessandra-asteriti.html)

Angela Higginson, Elizabeth Eggins & Lorraine Mazerolle

ISSN: 

0817-8542

Australian Institute of Criminology

Abstract: 

Police use a variety of techniques in their investigation of serious violent crimes, such as homicide, robbery, assault and sexual assault. This paper systematically reviews experimental and quasiexperimental research on the effectiveness of these investigative techniques. Meta-analysis was used to combine effect sizes across multiple studies examining the same technique, crime and outcome.

Eighteen studies on 10 broad categories of investigative techniques were identified, with the largest number of studies examining specialised investigative techniques for sexual assault and the collection or testing of DNA and other physical evidence. While there were some promising findings, findings were mixed and, in some areas, there is limited evidence on which to draw strong conclusions. Given the significant investment of police resources in the investigation of serious violent crime, the results highlight the need for more methodologically rigorous empirical research on both new and established investigative techniques available to law enforcement.

The non-medical use of prescription drugs is becoming a major threat to public health and law enforcement worldwide with opioids causing the most harm and accounting for 76 per cent of deaths where drug use disorders were implicated, according to the latest World Drug Report, recently released by the UNODC. [Read More]

At least 2.5 million migrants were smuggled in 2016, according to the first Global Study on Smuggling of Migrants released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Migrant smuggling occurred in all regions of the world and generated an income for smugglers of up to US$7 billion, equivalent to what the United States or the European Union countries spent on global humanitarian aid in 2016. [Read More]

In its commitment to advancing the rule of law, criminal justice and crime prevention, UNODC has been working on the rehabilitation of prisoners, and reducing the possibility of recidivism by investing in their future and changing their outlook on life. [Read More]

During the first-ever United Nations Counter-Terrorism Week, the General Assembly adopted by consensus a resolution stressing the need for countries to join forces as no one could tackle the scourge of terrorism alone. Introducing the resolution, Assembly President Miroslav Laj?�k said: "the level of activity and participation we saw recently, shows that the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy is as crucial as ever." [Read More]

Beware of pickpockets #ProtectYourPocket!

At the start of the 2018 World Cup we have launched a European prevention campaign on pickpocketing during mass events. By the use of three animation videos the EUCPN and 25 European Member States aim to step up the fight against this crime by informing and warning citizens on how they can protect themselves.

The campaign #ProtectYourPocket, financed by the Internal Security Fund of the European Union, includes three short animation videos which will be shown on big screens and distributed on social media. By the absence of a spoken language the videos can easily reach a large audience. Each video demonstrates, with a touch of humor, how a cartoon figure is not paying attention to the belongings in his or her pockets while standing in a large crowd; watching a football game on outdoor big screens, taking public transport or enjoying a concert at a festival. Because of its characteristics these happenings are a paradise for pickpockets.
 

Video World Cup

Video Public transport

Video Festival

Read the factsheet on how to set up a successful prevention campaign
Read the factsheet on how to prevent pickpocketing

Daily News 09 / 07 / 2018

Brussels, 9 July 2018

Today, the 5th Anti-Money laundering Directive has entered into force following its publication in the EU's Official Journal. Proposed by the Commission in July 2016, the new rules bring more transparency on the real owners of companies and tackle risks of terrorist financing. Věra Jourová, Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality said: "This is another important step to strengthen the EU framework to combat financial crime and terrorist financing. The 5th Anti-Money laundering directive will make the fight against money laundering more efficient. We must close all loopholes: gaps in one Member State will have an impact on all others. I urge Member States to stay true to their commitment and update their national rules as soon as possible." The new rules introduce stricter transparency requirements, including full public access to the beneficial ownership registers for companies, greater transparency in the registries of beneficial ownership of trusts, and interconnection of these registers. The key improvements also include: limiting the use of anonymous payments through pre-paid cards, including virtual currency exchange platforms under the scope of the anti-money laundering rules; widening customer verification requirements; requiring stronger checks on high-risk third countries as well as more powers for and closer cooperation between national Financial Intelligence Units. The 5th Anti-Money laundering directive also increases the cooperation and exchange of information between anti-money laundering and prudential supervisors, including with the European Central Bank. The Juncker Commission has made the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing one of its priorities.This proposal was the first initiative of the Action Plan to step up the fight against terrorist financing following the terror attacks and part of a broader drive to boost tax transparency and tackle tax abuse in the aftermath of the Panama Papers revelations. Member States will have to implement these new rules into their national legislation before 10 January 2020. In addition, in May 2018 the Commission invited the European Supervisory Authorities (European Central Bank, European Banking Authority, European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, European Securities and Markets Authority) to a joint working group to improve the practical coordination of anti-money laundering supervision of financial institutions. Work in this group is now ongoing and a first exchange with Member States is planned in September. For more information see a factsheet on the main changes brought by the 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive.

Now available on Public Safety Canada’s website

(voir ci-bas pour la version française)

Report - Evaluation of an Innovative Cyberbullying Intervention: STOPit

This evaluation aimed to assess the potential relevance and performance of one innovative cyberbullying platform called STOPit.

Summary - Evaluation of an Innovative Cyberbullying Intervention: STOPit

This evaluation aimed to assess the potential relevance and performance of one innovative cyberbullying platform called STOPit.

Shanarani is a 18-months project co-financed by the European Commission under Erasmus+ programme, Key Action 2 – Strategic Partnership in the field of Youth. It aims to create attractive methodologies for young people and raise awareness youngsters on gender issues, in particular on the importance of reducing gender related stereotyping and promoting gender equal opportunities for all.

New research on taxpayer savings from cancelling visas of organised crime offenders

Last week, the Australian Institute of Criminology released one new publication, which is available now on the AIC website.

Statistical Report

• What are the taxpayer savings from cancelling the visas of organised crime offenders?

For the latest crime and justice facts and figures, visit Crime Statistics Australia

Informationsdienst Wissenschaft - idw - Pressemitteilung
Max-Planck-Institut für Bildungsforschung, Kerstin Skork, 19.07.2018 10:18

MRI study with 65 adolescents from inner-city Los Angeles: A study conducted by the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and the University of Southern California has examined the relationship between stress in the form of community violence and the brain structure of adolescents. The results were recently published in the journal Human Brain Mapping.

Drug trafficking, shootings or burglary—even if we are not directly affected by it, impressions of violence and crime probably will not pass us by without a trace. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and the University of Southern California have studied the brains and cognition of 65 healthy adolescents, aged 14–18, living in high-crime neighborhoods in Los Angeles. "From previous studies, we know that life in conflict-ridden environments is associated with lower cognitive performance and an increased risk of mental illness, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for adolescents. In addition, adolescence is a key period for brain development, but there has not been a study to date of how community violence exposure may affect the brains of adolescents," says first author Oisin Butler of the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin.

The results of the study support the assumption that indirect experiences of violence influence adolescent brain development. The researchers found that adolescents with higher levels of violence exposure showed lower IQ and smaller gray matter volume in the anterior cingulate cortex and the left inferior frontal gyrus. These brain regions are important for higher order cognitive functions, especially for cognitive control, language production and emotion. "The thinning of gray matter is part of normal brain maturation in adolescence. However, the slower this process is, the more time cognitive functions have to mature. Further studies are needed to find out how much stress accelerates the loss of gray matter in adolescence and how this may impact cognition," adds Butler.

Without becoming victims or perpetrators themselves, most of the young people involved in the study had heard of crimes or violence in their immediate neighborhood, had witnessed them, or had been threatened. The adolescents were healthy and came from intact, low income families and had experienced neither abuse nor neglect in their parents' home. "We wanted to make sure that the results are not influenced by other factors, such as mental illness or abuse, which are known to be associated with changes in brain structure," says senior author Mary Helen Immordino-Yang of the University of Southern California. Study participants completed an intelligence test and their brain structure was measured using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

The findings essentially resemble a study of the impact of military operations on the brain. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development were able to show that the duration of military deployment in healthy soldiers is associated with reduced gray matter in the same brain region. "Chronic stress, for example in the form of experiences of violence, can affect the healthy brain. The affected brain structures show similarities to those of patients with PTSD, even if the people examined here have no such disorder," says co-author Simone Kühn, who led the military deployment study at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.

Previous work has primarily focused on the study of stress and trauma in individuals with clinical symptoms, and these two studies examine the influence of stress on the brain in healthy individuals. "The majority of indivduals exposed to violence do not develop clinical symptoms, such as PTSD. These findings should allow us to draw a much more nuanced picture of stress influences on the brain and make a contribution to the generalizability of the results of neuroscientific stress research," continues Kühn.

Originalpublikation:
Butler, O., Yang, X.-F., Laube, C., Kühn, S., & Immordino-Yang, M. H. (2018). Community violence exposure correlates with smaller gray matter volume and lower IQ in urban adolescents. Human Brain Mapping, 39, 2088–2097. https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.23988

https://www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/en/media/2018/07/stress-research-experiencing-violence-can-negatively-affect-adolescent-brain-development