“The road ahead must go beyond Abu Dhabi”: DMUN Foundation at the 15th UN Crime Congress

A delegation from the DMUN Foundation's Observer Office to Asia and Africa participated in the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Abu Dhabi, from 26 September to 1 October 2026. The Congress marked the Foundation's debut participation in the United Nations' principal forum on crime prevention and criminal justice.

Across six days of deliberations and activities, the delegation engaged with government representatives, prosecutors, justice-sector institutions and other stakeholders, to learn about their work and explore opportunities for youth participation in the field of criminal justice.

One such engagement was with Dr. Narendra Jatna, Deputy Attorney General (Civil and State Administration) of Indonesia, and the delegation from the ASEAN Prosecutors/Attorneys General Meeting (APAGM). The delegation was pleased to learn of APAGM's support for youth-led initiatives that seek to engage young people in understanding the work of prosecutors and other justice-sector institutions. The Foundation looks forward to exploring how such engagements can help young people develop a deeper understanding of the rule of law and the institutions responsible for upholding it. The discussion covered opportunities for greater youth engagement with the legal and justice sector, including the potential for the Foundation to organise further engagements with, and visits to, APAGM's learning and working facilities.

The delegation also opened avenues for future collaboration with national institutions working on financial crime and anti-money laundering. During a meeting with Mr. Hasan Alhosani of the UAE's General Secretariat of the National Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation Financing Committee (NAMLCFTC), the delegation received an opportunity to explore potential work on white papers and reports with the Committee.

Representative to the 15th Crime Congress Maximilian Ang Jian Zhi, who is Observer to the UNESCAP and Other Intergovernmental Organisations at Asia and Africa, said he believes youth engagement will help shape a fairer justice system.

“For the Asia and Africa Office, the opportunity to work with the NAMLCFTC represents an important step towards moving youth engagement beyond dialogue and towards substantive contributions to research and policy discussions. We see this as a landmark sign of recognition for the Office’s work over the past year, spearheaded by youth and for youth, and we are grateful for it.

“Moving forward, we look forward to continuing our work with our most important stakeholders — young people worldwide, and particularly those in Asia and Africa — to go beyond getting them a seat in the room where the most crucial decisions happen. We want our generation to be actively involved in these discussions; for we must take accountability to build a better future that we will eventually inherit.

“The road ahead must, therefore, go beyond Abu Dhabi, and I’m more than excited to embrace whatever comes next.”

Alternate Representative Alfonso Yuji Abeleda Cortez, who is the Deputy Observer, noted that the future perceived effectiveness of the United Nations will depend primarily on its commitment and ability to address issues that often receive far less public attention.

“Critics of the United Nations often point to the UN’s perceived inability to resolve the most visible global crises. My experience at the 15th Crime Congress demonstrates otherwise. Most of the UN’s most important work takes place far away from the spotlight of the General Assembly (which happened to be taking place around the same time), the Security Council, and the spaces people most often associate with the UN.

“From technology-enabled crime prevention to concerted efforts at combatting money laundering and strengthening the rule of law across all domains, even outer space, these issues may not always attract headlines, but they have a profound impact on communities worldwide. I was particularly heartened by the willingness of organisations to showcase their often-underappreciated work at this Congress, as well as their openness to creating opportunities for young people to contribute through research, engagement and volunteerism in support of the effective implementation of these initiatives.”

Commenting on the outcome of the Congress and the Foundation’s performance, Executive Director Jaewon Choi said: “DMUN Foundation welcomes the adoption of the Abu Dhabi Declaration, in particular Article 11(d) highlighting the importance of youth empowerment initiatives in promoting respect for the rule of law. Similarly, provisions such as in 12(g) and 15(f) also recognise that protecting and involving youth in efforts against organised crime are equally important. I congratulate the delegation for their good work, and we look forward to further engagements with any willing partners.”

The delegation also met with key figures such as Police Major General Rutthaphon Naowarat, Minister of Justice of Thailand; Alex Davies-Jones MP, UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Victims, Violence Against Women and Girls and International Justice; and Hon. Justice Adejumo, the Administrator of the National Judicial Institute of Nigeria. These engagements provided the Foundation with perspectives from different legal systems and jurisdictions, while creating opportunities to explore how youth organisations can contribute to conversations surrounding crime prevention, criminal justice and the rule of law.

The Foundation's participation in Abu Dhabi is only the beginning. The debut has opened doors to institutions and individuals working at the forefront of criminal justice, and the next step is to turn those relationships into sustained engagement through research, youth education, institutional visits, policy dialogue and opportunities for young people to contribute their perspectives.

For the DMUN Foundation, the objective is not merely to bring young people closer to the institutions shaping justice systems across the world, but to help create viable pathways through which young people can understand those institutions, effectively engage with them, and ultimately contribute constructively to the decisions that will shape the future of justice.

The DMUN Foundation's delegation to the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice comprised Maximilian Ang Jian Zhi (Singapore, Representative), Alfonso Yuji Abeleda Cortez (Philippines, Alternate Representative), Cristee Arora (India, Advisor), Ethan Hoh (Singapore, Advisor), and Ruby Lee Yi Xuan (Singapore, Advisor).

This article is part of the Foundation’s public record of its engagements and programmes.

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