Macao and Portugal are to initiate respective internal procedures necessary for signing an official agreement of mutual judicial cooperation on criminal matters.

The Government’s working group on international judicial assistance held meetings in Macao with its Portuguese counterpart while officials from Portugal were visiting the city between 29 April and 3 May.

The working meetings involved discussion of the agreement’s terms article-by-article, during which consensus was reached regarding the content.

According to a minute summarising the talks, the two sides would initiate relevant internal procedures for affirming the drafted document.

Members of the Government’s working group on international judicial assistance included: Advisor to the Office of the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Mr Zhu Lin; Advisor to the Office of the President of the Court of Final Appeal, Mr Chen Licheng; Advisor to the Office of the Secretary for Security, Mr Adriano Marques Ho; Advisor to the Office of the Public Prosecutor, Mr Vu Ka Vai; and Deputy Director of the Legal Affairs Bureau, Ms Carmen Maria Chung.

Representing the Portuguese Republic in the Macao meetings were: Deputy Director General, Directorate-General for Justice Policy, Ministry of Justice, Ms Maria Luísa Pacheco; Prosecutor at the Prosecutor General's Office, Ms Joana Ferreira; and Head of the International Affairs Department, Ministry of Justice, Mr António Folgado.