CONSOLIDATING THE POLITICAL AND LEGAL IN THE SOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM OF THE END OF THE LARGE-SCALE PRODUCTION OF NARCOTICS AS A KEY MECHANISM FOR ENSURING SECURITY INTERNATIONAL
Estensori del rapporto, per parte italiana, sono stati: Franco Frattini – Presidente Istituto di Studi Eurasiatici, Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini – Coordinatore Programma Narcotraffico (parte italiana), Ranieri Razzante, Andrea Giannotti, Massimo Labartino, Giuseppe Panzarella e Federica Tondin.
In 2004 the High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change established by the UN Secretary-General (A / 58/612) stated that “one of the primary activities of organized criminal groups – drug trafficking – has a considerable impact on security . In some regions the huge profits made from this kind of activity even exceed the GDP of some countries, creating a threat to the government, economic development and the rule of law”. In December 2009, the President of the UN Security Council in a report on peace and security in Africa urged the UN Secretary-General to “take into account the problem of illicit trafficking of narcotics as one of the key factors to process conflict prevention strategy, the conflict analysis, evaluation and planning of integrated missions and support to build peace “. The UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon told the summit of the African Union in January 2010 that “drug trafficking represents a growing threat to international peace and security in Africa”. In February 2010, the Security Council noted with concern “that there are serious threats posed in some cases by drug trafficking and transnational organized crime to international security in different regions of the world”. In July 2010, the President of the UN Security Council stated that “the Council members have expressed concern in relation to the growth of illegal drug trafficking and organized crime that threaten the peace and security not only in Guinea-Bissau but also in the whole region “. In the Declaration of Heads of State members of the Organization of the Collective Security Treaty of 2011 it was noted that “the distribution of Afghan opiates has assumed such a dimension that endangers international peace and security”. In the press of antinarcotica Ministerial Conference in Moscow in 2014 and the Second Ministerial Conference antinarcotica Moscow were further highlighted the global nature and the dimensional increase in drug trafficking, a threat to the security of the entire international community. Same thing in the Commission’s Statement of heads of police bodies of Central American countries, the Caribbean, Mexico and Colombia aManagua adopted in September 2014 and the Declaration of the Russian-African Dialogue Conference Antinarcotica adopted in Banjul (Gambia) in July 2015. In this sense, the consideration of the problem of the drug from the point of view of a threat to security, has repeatedly been supported in various international locations. However the UN followed to approach these problems not from the perspective of ensuring global security through the UN Security Council, but as a problem mainly humanitarian in the context of social and economic problems in the ECOSOS. The drug problem is, really, excluded from the work of the UN Security Council, and not allow the world community a legal assessment of the true scale of a security problem and, therefore, does not allow to take appropriate response measures.
You need to take note in official UN documents that narcotics are a threat to security and thus complement the existing system for combating narcotics with the new provisions of the UN Security Council.
A NEW LEVEL OF CONTRAST:
- DEVELOP OF LARGE-SCALE ALTERNATIVE IN THE REGIONS WHICH PRODUCE DRUGS
- ENFORCE INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
- IMPROVE ANTI MONEY LAUNDERING ACTIVITY
- RIVITALIZE ASSET RECOVERY.
Looking with little optimism to society of his time, to the profound transformations of the rising economies, the great French writer Émile Zola had once said, rather sadly, that the fertilizer with which grew the humanity of the future was not the money. Nobody can deny that drug trafficking constitutes the core business of the crime. If so, the contrast against drug trafficking must now shift gears. This is why we believe it is our responsibility, as men of the institutions, try to throw different suits, and to propose another idea of protection of the global community, against the enormous threat of drugs.
In these sense, a first step in a new contrast strategy is the promotion of alternative development on a large scale of narco-production regions.
As shown, there are two main areas of production of narcotic plants, the South Asia, for heroin, and South America for cocaine. In each of these areas the cultivation is closely linked to the economy of the country, both because it represents a source of income for part of the population, and because it gives birth to an extremely lucrative traffic. The conflict, which has so far produced only limited results, was based primarily on a purely repressive strategy. A second approach has simply aimed at eradicating narcotic plants. This policy, however, turned out to be reductive or even harmful, because it threatened to alienate even more citizens from the state and the law, as it did not create viable alternatives for economic sustainability. This is why the distruction, through aerial fumigation or forced eradication of a province from poppy or opium may simply mean that the workforce before engaged in the cultivation in this province moves in other areas to continue the same activities. It has been stressed by several observers, therefore, that to make the eradication of narcotic plants effective, it should be just a phase of a more complex process with the purpose of ensuring an alternative development of the areas used for their cultivation, identifying alternative crops and by granting loans to farmers. Only through the reconstruction of a virtuose production cycle in the affected areas it is possible to create a new economy able to replace the previous criminal one. To achieve this purpose it is necessary to develop alternative programs aimed at encouraging sustainable development, to create jobs and infrastructure. This line of action, alongside the classic repression and a strong support to local governments in fighting drug trafficking, represents a new frontier of drug policy. In other words, in addition to the need for greater cooperation between transit States in monitoring the routes used by traffickers, it is essential to provide the producing countries the means and assistance to abandon the poppy and opium and to convert their agriculture to other types of cultivation. Such geopolitical-economic activities should always, however, be accompanied by a systematic analysis on new drugs, including synthetic, their places and procedures of production, distribution and consumption, to check the impact, also epidemiological, the new way of working on global drug trafficking and to prevent, contrasting it in advance, any attempt by the “Lords of drugs” to convert their business.
A second essential tool to effectively combat the problem of international drug trafficking, and ‘adequate and serious international cooperation, supported not only by mere declarations of intent, but by concrete and appropriate tools (primarily in information and analysis, in order to make possible a thorough and shared systemic evaluation, and subsequently political, regulatory, investigative and judicial) modem and more widely shared among countries, because no country should be the weak link in the chain and thus provide an opportunity operational for traffickers. The “drug problem”, as well as having a social and health impact has become an increasingly matter of security, both on national and International level and thus the traditional approaches and contrast methods, even if there was a finding and an exchange of best practices, they are insufficient. In this sense, it is necessary to effectively implement the provisions contained in the UN Convention, signed in Palermo in 2000, against transnational organized crime. Drug trafficking is the most typical manifestation of transnational and international nature of organized crime (by the number of countries and the variety of criminal organizations and individuals involved) and sees, more than any other illegal activities, a growing, flexible and dynamic syncretism between criminal groups in all stages of its value chain (production, processing, brokerage, transportation and dealing). In particular, referring to the aforementioned Convention, it is fundamental the provision in art. 19 (“Joint investigations”) on joint investigative bodies, as well as that of art. 20 (“special investigation techniques”) in the field of international controlled deliveries, undercover operations and other special investigative techniques. In this direction it would be appropriate the widest and effective implementation of art. 21 (“Transfer of criminal proceedings”), as well as art, 18 (“Mutual legal assistance”) and art. 16 (“Extradition”). As well, it is of absolute importance the provision contained in art. 13 ( “International cooperation for purposes of confiscation”) in order to effectively hit the criminal groups engaged in drug trafficking, depriving them of the huge fruit of drug trafficking assets. It is also desirable for dose and effective international cooperation between customs bodies on the International stage.
Finally, it is necessary to not underestimate the need, even in the context of the drug situation, to adapt the information models, regulatory and investigative procedures to a global context, and also as regards the cyber space. Indeed, in addition to the incalculable opportunities offered by Internet (which lends itself effectively to advertise and sell every type of substance, both on open web that in the deep web, and often using virtual coins, such as the bitcoins, to facilitate transactions illegal), also often need to deal with no appropriate legislation or condescending about the activities carried out on the web. In conclusion, the problem related to drug trafficking has become a real asymmetric international threat. In the latter respect, it would be a useful tool to expand the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrirne, signed in Budapest in 2001, and in particular Article. 35 (“Network 24/7”).
Another necessary aspect is linked to capital instruments, most notably the confiscation of the proceeds of criminal activities related to drug trafficking. It is also essential to implement the harmonization of legislation for fighting against money laundering, with a careful look at the so called “tax havens” and the use of the net for new forms of cyber laundering. The fight against money laundering through asset recovery should then be promoted, even the actual destination for security purposes and for social purposes in terms of seized and confiscated assets, to increase the level of law enforcement institutions of efficiency, to contribute to policy welfare, as well as to improve the moral and economic development of entire areas of the globe. In that framework it will be crucial to strengthen initiatives aimed at the dissemination of values, and the capacity building and institution to law enforcement, especially in favor of developing countries in various ways affected by the scourge of drug trafficking.