141078 (Drug trafficking - a global challenge of the XXI century)

Наркобизнес - глобальная проблема XXI в.

Content

Introduction 3

Drugs situation in the world; scales, major factors and tendencies of development of drugs business. 4

The drugs business characteristic: criminal groups, kinds of drugs, stages of manufacture and distribution, sale territory. 17

The characteristic of the markets of principal views of drugs 20

Interrelation of drugs business with other global problems of mankind. 26

Conclusion 30

Bibliography 32

Introduction

The mankind has stepped in the XXI-st century, continuing to search for effective ways of the decision of one of the major global world problems - a drug trafficking. This problem costs practically before all states. Here there are no territorial, national, religious, class, sexual or other borders.

The narcoindustry with a turn corresponding approximately of 8 % of world trade is steadily improved, raising technical, financial potential, adapting advanced achievements of scientific and technical progress for the requirements. Therefore it is no wonder that transnational narcosyndicates use in the criminal activity the advanced means of arms and an ammunition, systems of electronic equipment, the newest methods of maintenance of own safety.

World narcobusiness, being the most profitable (for example, in the Netherlands the cost price of one tablet " ecstasy" makes 7-9 cents, and its retail price already $ 8-15) has also the most powerful and branched out mafia structure. Narcobusiness is initially doomed to internationalism, globalisation. Bought primary raw materials in Third World countries, the drug mafia should organise not only its processing in an end-product, but also goods delivery to the consumers which most part lives in the developed countries.

Has passed time when the narcoproblem mentioned the only separately taken countries. The narcotism wide circulation causes concern not only in those governments or other states and the international organisations. The United Nations Organization, in particular, functioning in its structure Management on struggle against drugs and criminality preventive maintenance (based in Vienna), International Crime society, the International association of criminal law, the Interpol is engaged in drug trafficking studying, etc.

Drugs situation in the world; scales, major factors and tendencies of development of drugs business

The world has stepped in the XXI-st century. The rough processes of the globalisation which has captured various areas of human ability to live, as a whole have positive character and give to mankind unprecedented possibilities. But, unfortunately, occurring changes have also a shady side, allowing such troubles of the modern world as the organised crime, the international terrorism, drug business to get transnational character, to turn in «problems without passports».

Spread of drug addiction worldwide has set of aspects: political, economic, social, legal, medical, moral. Drugs – social illness of a modern society, and its exact diagnosis, understanding of all complexity of the given phenomenon and difficulties of struggle with it is necessary for treatment of this illness.

Leitmotif of performances of many heads of the states and the governments at special session of General Assembly of the United Nations in the June, 2008, the devoted struggle against spread of drug addiction, the deep alarm sounded because spread of drug addiction on globe occurs accruing rates and turns to global threat, comparable from the ecological. In especially difficult situation there are many countries with transitive economy¹.

Drug business transnationalization, its offensive strategy on a threshold of second millennium are in many respects connected by that to the traditional reasons generating it malicious (poverty, the political hopelessness, social disorder, alienation of millions people), were in the nineties added the new factors accompanying globalisation financial, bank, trading, technological, information and other areas of human activity. These factors, on the one hand, are reflected in a way of life of the person, and with another – open new possibilities for businessmen of drug business. And these new possibilities are reflected as in structure and ways of manufacture drugs, and on ways of delivery, trade, consumption.

By approximate calculations, for today worldwide over 200 million persons are on drugs a various kind. Including about 140 million people smoke marihuana - the most widespread drug, cocaine use 13 million people, and heroin - 8 million, 30 million people’s abuse stimulators amphetamine.

The quantity of consumers of drugs increases every year and basically at the expense of defeat by drugs of the most vulnerable part of the population - youth. In some countries the number of schoolboys and full age young men which, by own recognition, tried to consume marihuana, makes 37 %.

Along with it the tendency of expansion of activity of the international criminal groupings was outlined. Thanks to the international character and a market basis drug business faster, than legal business, reacts to these changes, using globalisation for expansion of a drug network and expansion in all directions.

In an active of drug businessmen all advantages of shadow economy – tax free, absence of control, concentration of huge capitals, network international structure of the organisation of corporate type which covers the basic links of the drug industry and connects in a uniform global network of all participants of a drug trafficking – making, consuming and providing transit of drug cargoes of the country. And the specific goods – a drug thanks to an interdiction have the highest prices defined not by production costs, and demand in the drug market of the consumer dependent on it and from distance from it to a point of production².

The drug industry is enough steady because of a stable demand and brings considerable profits in connection with absence some a serious competition between the organisations which are engaged in this kind of criminal business. The turn of the world drug industry is estimated by experts of the United Nations approximately in 400 billion dollars a year that makes about 8 % of a turn of all international trade. The report of the United Nations on position with drugs in the world of 1997 notices that the world turn of drug business in separate years exceeds a turn of the world market of cars or the world market of ferrous metals. One only the Colombian cartels presented more than 500 companies, in the late nineties of the XX-th century took from drug traffic in the USA of 20 billion dollars of annual profit. For comparison we will notice that totally national budgets of Colombia, Bolivia and Peru made at that point in time only about 9 billion American dollars annually.

Operations with drugs bring from 300 to 2000 % have arrived that does their attractive and for the transnational criminal organisations, and for separate groups of criminals, whose purpose is reception of the maximum profit in short terms³. Thus the drug industry is steadily improved, raising technical, financial potential, adapting advanced achievements of scientific and technical progress for the requirements.

Transnational drug syndicates in criminal activity use the advanced means of arms and an ammunition, systems of electronic equipment, the newest methods of maintenance of own safety. A part of the profit received from drug traffic, drug businessmen direct on acquisition of equipment of communication, cryptographic devices, and radio with use of high-speed measurement of frequency, receivers for revealing of radar. By estimations of experts, drug business annually puts about 125 million dollars in purchase new «technicians of alarm investigation». Drug cartels have perfectly armed security forces in which order there is the advanced weapon, up to the portable is rocket-surface-to-air missile systems. And on September, 8th, 2000 on world information channels has passed the message on detection in Colombia in working suburb Fakatativa (18 km from Bogota) shipyards with almost collected тридцатиметровой a submarine on which drug businessmen were going to take out the production. Drug business development is closely connected with traffic in arms development. Annually from drug criminals from all regions of the world it is withdrawn about 100 thousand units of fire-arms; comes to light over 500 secret runways and platforms, about the same quantity of the flying machines used by drug syndicates, gets off during flight or it will be confiscated. Despite it, it is daily carried out about 300 starts with illegal cargo of drugs.

Transnational scope of criminal activity allows criminals to use channels fast and concerning reliable audio- and video contact.

So, the greatest distribution is received by cases of use of global information network Internet for the conclusion of contactless transactions. As reported by Reuters, drug dealers and their clients even more often conclude transactions in «private-room» (the closed rooms) the chats-channels protected from an extraneous sight by hardware-software means. To trace similar transactions it is almost impossible. Internet-drugstores give out psychoactive preparations without the recipe. And, at last, the Dutch and Canadian companies through Internet trade worldwide in cannabis seeds, grassy ecstasy, and ephedrine.

Use of the powerful computer techniques connected to the international bank electronic network, promotes distribution internationally process of legalisation of criminal incomes. Even more often drug dealers «launder money» through Internet-banks.

As the international market of drugs covers all regions of the world and almost each nation, the money-laundering, received as a result of drug traffic, also has got transnational character. Only within the Russian Federation "is washed" from 2 to 7 billion dollars of money from drugs, these means then actually free move abroad. Under the statement of officials of Singapore, with 1999 on 2002 drug dealers it is spent through Singapore about 100 million dollars which went through underground bank to Bahrain and further into accounts of the World Bank. In 1996 in Singapore arrest has been put means of the organisations of drug dealers in the sum equivalent to 20 million of US dollars. The money-laundering estimation in Australia makes about 3,5 billion dollars annually. Here, for example, the network on washing up more than 20 million dollars of the receipt of heroin in New York has been opened and is confiscated more than 40 million dollars from funds of the criminal syndicate trading in cannabis in Australia, but being in Hong Kong⁴.

In this light there is real an estimation according to which annually in the world will be legalised the incomes received as a result of drug business, at a rate of 300-800 bln. dollars of the USA (are washed)⁵.

If it was possible to block the basic channels of washing up of drugs-dollars drug business to no small degree would lose the appeal. Fabulous incomes of a drug turn, estimated in billions dollars, it is impossible to store «in a stocking». However to block channels it is not possible, for there is a set of methods of washing up of drugs-dollars, and too powerful forces make profit of these operations.

The drug trafficking actively stimulates also corruption with which help drugs cartels and other criminal groups involved in process of drugs business, aspire to secure the business and to duck out. The profit part is spent for payoff and reception of the necessary information. Gathering of data on the corrupted officials in law enforcement bodies and authorities, the data about market condition, about the prices for drugs is conducted. For example, one of not the largest Mexican cartels – Tidzhuansky – spends weekly 1 million dollars for bribes to the Mexican judges, public prosecutors, police, army, and customs. The general public prosecutor of Mexico recognised that 90 % of judges and public prosecutors in Tidzhuane "are bought" by cartel.

One of the major universal tendencies in drugs business development also is its industrialisation. Illegal manufacture of narcotics gets character of well adjusted industry. Depending on technological complexity of the organisation of illegal manufactures underground drugs laboratories it is possible conditionally are subdivided on handicraft which, as a rule, possess low productivity and manufacture in which is carried out without difficult chemical reactions, and industrial, different by high efficiency and used for manufacture of synthetic drugs by means of difficult chemical synthesis.

Concerning the countries widely making narcotics, strict economic sanctions are entered. However the quantity of drugs laboratories in territories is reduced very slowly.

Last years of XX centuries the tendency to concentration of manufacture of narcotics, integration of capacities on manufacture of drugs was observed. The numerous facts of detection of laboratories-giants testify to it on cocaine manufacture. So, it agree to the data published by antinarcotics’ police of Colombia, in 1996 in the Central Colombia was the underground laboratory-complex protected by a large armed formation is found out and destroyed. It had several runways, has been equipped by modern system of the notification and differed high level of the organisation of production. Annual maximum productivity of this laboratory could make approximately 350 т cocaine.

Mobility of manufacturers of drugs increases. The facts of manufacture of drugs in the mobile laboratories which are settling down in vans and by trucks are elicited. Similar laboratories seldom enough come into the view of law enforcement bodies and, continuously making drugs in a way, to destination deliver already ready product. Capacity of one of such laboratories revealed in territory of Colombia, made 70 kg of cocaine a day.

Manufacture process синтетиков has no rigid binding to raw materials sources, places of their transportation and sale. Thereof turn decentralisation synthetic is observed. Besides, the number of intermediate links in a chain «the manufacturer – the consumer» is considerably reduced that reduces a risk level and costs. Synthetic drugs are much more difficult for finding out at all stages of their illegal circulation including stages of creation, transportation and trade.

Last years there are new kinds of synthetic drugs. In their manufacture last scientific achievements are used. Considerable financial resources are invested in financing of independent researches for the purpose of search of new drugs and more perfect technologies of their manufacturing. Handicraft and unproductive manufactories are superseded by hi-tech compact laboratories and the large industrial drug enterprises which are served by the qualified experts.