ORGANIZED TRANSNATIONAL CRIME HAS BECOME 'NEW FORM OF GEOPOLITICS', ACCORDING TO NEW UNITED NATIONS REPORT
Press Release
SOC/CP/179
ORGANIZED TRANSNATIONAL CRIME HAS BECOME 'NEW FORM OF GEOPOLITICS', ACCORDING TO NEW UNITED NATIONS REPORT
19960520 VIENNA, 15 May (UN Information Service) -- The threat posed to national and international security by organized transnational crime is "qualitatively different" from that posed in the past, according to a newly released United Nations report. Criminal organizations carry on their activities in what for them is, in effect, a "borderless world", while law enforcement is significantly constrained by having to operate in what is still a bordered world, says the report, which presents an updated overview of the nature and dangers of criminal organizations as a global phenomenon, and highlights proposals for a commensurate counterstrategy on the part of the international community. The report summarizes information and views provided by 20 States as follow-up to an action plan adopted in Naples, Italy, in 1994, by ministers of justice and the interior, as well as some heads of State and government, who stressed the need to accumulate a critical mass of reliable knowledge on organized transnational crime, its structure and dynamics as a prerequisite for concerted action at the national and international levels. The new document was prepared for consideration by the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, which begins a two-week session here on Tuesday, 21 May, covering a wide range of crime control issues. The report states that in the past few years, organized transnational crime has developed into a "new form of geopolitics" which differs in many respects from traditional geopolitics in which control of natural resources and critical geographical areas was central to success. Today's criminal organizations are able to thrive on the political weakness and breakdown of authority that have been occurring in a number of countries since the 1980s. It is no coincidence, says the report, that what some have termed the "era of the failed nation-State" is also the era of organized transnational crime. The recent vast increase in global trade, personal mobility and high-tech communications are key factors exploited by transnational criminal organizations in their quest for profits, the report notes. The prototypical activity for organized crime is smuggling in all its forms, including trafficking in illicit drugs, firearms and stolen vehicles, as well as in women for international prostitution and in illegal migrants. Among the illegal services provided by organized criminals are gambling, false documentation, contract killing, toxic waste disposal, credit card fraud and usurious lending.Another component of the new geopolitics is the development of a global financial system that provides "enormous opportunities" for the concealment and swift transfer of funds. In addition to offshore banking, the development of "megabyte money" -- a network of stocks, bonds, futures, currency, interest rates and options markets, based on an increased use of electronic transfer systems -- has become highly difficult to track and to control. The report reflects new information on the linkages between the "underworld" and the "upper world". Organized transnational crime, the authors point out, would be far less effective and less of a threat if it were completely isolated from licit institutions. Informal alliances with legitimate businesses, while very advantageous for the criminal groups, can have seriously debilitating consequences for the legitimate economy. The emergence of "global cities" over the last few decades is seen as giving rise to a new "criminal cosmopolitanism" -- increased interaction among ethnic and national groups and new opportunities for organized criminals to infiltrate the political and economic elites of today's sprawling urban centres. Apart from the deleterious political and social impact of organized crime, the negative impact of the "parallel economy" on the economy of a developing country or a country in transition is emphasized in the report. It cites a United States estimate that $30 billion in drug money flows annually to the Colombian cartels, pointing out that such an influx of foreign currency may lead to the devaluation of the local currency and a consequent decline in local industry and increase in speculative investment. In a comparison of the current strengths and weaknesses of government and criminal organizations, the report concludes that the criminals have the advantage over States. Criminal groups have a clear and simple agenda: maximize profits, while duly constituted authorities have to balance their actions against organized crime with a variety of other considerations, including respect for human rights and non-disruption of legitimate trade. Concerning possible future directions in organized transnational crime, the report draws attention to a growing trend towards intercontinental strategic alliances among criminal organizations -- such as the collaboration of Sicilian and Colombian groups in marketing cocaine in Europe. While such combinations are disturbing enough, the authors point out that the situation could become even more worrying if criminal organizations follow another trend in the corporate world, namely, full-scale mergers. Other alarming developments which bode ill for the future are the increasing smuggling of nuclear material, including a few cases involving weapons-grade material, and the demonstrated capacity of "fringe" organizations to develop and use lethal chemical weapons and explosives. Contributing States suggest a number of elements for a global counterstrategy, including a reformulation of traditional policies that had been conceived in response to less complex forms of criminality. Argentina, for example, stresses the merits of common regional strategies against
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organized transnational crime and is calling for the elaboration of an international treaty to address the phenomenon. The value of bilateral mutual assistance measures is underscored by several States, while also calling for concerted international cooperation. Other proposals centre on protection of witnesses, cross-border evidence sharing and ending bank secrecy. The report recommends that steps be taken to create within the Vienna-based Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Division a central repository of legislative and regulatory measures against organized transnational crime, including bilateral and multilateral agreements on extradition and other forms of mutual assistance. In seeking to mobilize the necessary collective will and commensurate resources to meet the challenge posed by today's criminal groups, it should be kept in mind that complacency could spell dismal prospects for democratic governance and the rule of law. On the grounds that "it takes a network to defeat a network", the authors recommend taking law enforcement cooperation a step further by building a global network of coordinated measures. Taking account of the risk management strategies of criminal groups, the report recommends increasing the risks and costs incurred by transnational criminal organizations by eliminating the "safe havens" they use as their home bases, establishing regulatory procedures aimed at blocking the laundering of criminal proceeds and providing for the uncovering and forfeiture of assets derived from crime. Organized transnational crime in all its aspects will be high on the agenda of the Crime Commission's forthcoming session. Related issues that are also the focus of new reports are money laundering, corruption of public officials, extradition, the smuggling of illegal migrants and links between transnational organized crime and terrorist crimes.
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NOTE:The full text of the Report of the Secretary-General on the Implementation of the Naples Political Declaration and Global Action Plan against Organized Transnational Crime (document E/CN.15/1996/2) will be available shortly on World Wide Web in English, French and Spanish. The address is:
http://www.ifs.unvie.ac.at/~uncjin/5comm/2e.html
An addendum transmitting the report of the Regional Ministerial Workshop for Latin American and Caribbean countries on follow up to the Naples Political Declaration and Action Plan against Organized Transnational Crime, held in Buenos Aires from 27 to 30 November, will be available at:
http://www.ifs.unvie.ac.at/~uncjin/5comm/2add1e.html