Current Situation with Respect to Regional and Subregional Cooperation
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UNODC/HONLAC/28/3 6 August 2018 Original: English* Twenty-eighth Meeting of Heads of National Drug Law Enforcement Agencies, Latin America and the Caribbean Santiago, 22–26 October 2018* Item 3 of the provisional agenda** Major regional drug trafficking trends and countermeasures Current situation with respect to regional and subregional cooperation Note by the Secretariat I. Introduction 1. The present note provides information on regional cooperation initiatives and assistance in countering drug trafficking and related crimes provided by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to Governments in Latin America and the Caribbean, focusing on developments since the Twenty-seventh Meeting of Heads of National Drug Law Enforcement Agencies, Latin America and the Caribbean, held in Guatemala City from 2 to 6 October 2017. II. Precursor control Colombia 2. UNODC, through the Integrated Illicit Crops Monitoring System, continued to provide technical advice to the Ministry of Justice and Law and the National Police of Colombia on a number of initiatives, including research and the drafting of studies on the control of substances. Mexico 3. The UNODC Liaison and Partnership Office in Mexico and the Federal Commission for Protection against Sanitary Risks of Mexico, together with the UNODC Information Technology Service, in order to meet the requirements of the ir partners in Mexico, updated to the latest versions two precursor control software platforms installed in 2017, namely, the National Drug Control System program suite, version 7, and the International Import and Export Authorization System (I2ES). __________________ * Available only in English, French and Spanish, which are the working languages of the subsidiary body. ** UNODC/HONLAC/28/1. V.18-05332 (E) *1805332* UNODC/HONLAC/28/3 Peru 4. In 2017, UNODC, through the project “Strengthening strategies against precursor diversion and drug trafficking in Peru”, in close coordination with the Division for Investigation and Monitoring of Controlled Substances and Chemical Inputs of the Anti-Drug Directorate of the National Police of Peru, conducted two workshops, in Ayacucho and Puno, on the use of global positioning system methodologies. As a result, Peru made advances in mapping the routes and methods used in precursor diversion and in identifying risk zones in the Ayacucho and Puno regions. 5. In addition, with the objective of gradually implementing a Global Positioning System (GPS)-based methodology, the Anti-Narcotics Police of Peru procured global positioning system equipment, cameras and scanner equipment, to be used by various anti-narcotics divisions within coca production areas in Peru. III. Legal assistance and anti-money-laundering Central America and the Caribbean 6. The UNODC Global Programme against Money-Laundering, Proceeds of Crime and the Financing of Terrorism and the UNODC Regional Office for Central America and the Caribbean in Panama provided specialized technical assistance to 13 Member States in the region in the area of cash smuggling, in particular in the implementatio n of recommendation 32 of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering. 7. Similarly, the Panama-based UNODC Regional Anti-Corruption Adviser Programme provided normative assistance to authorities of the Dominican Republic in strengthening the Penal Code and the laws on bribery and asset declaration. UNODC continued to provide support to national authorities in El Salvador in the reform of the country’s Law against Money-Laundering, with a view to aligning it with international standards. Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 8. In November 2017, UNODC, in close coordination with the authorities of Bolivia (Plurinational State of) and Guatemala and the UNODC Country Office in Colombia, delivered a workshop on asset forfeiture in the context of goods seized i n drug trafficking cases and on the implementation of national laws against drug trafficking. A total of 44 participants (including policymakers) benefited directly from the workshop. 9. In March 2018, UNODC, in coordination with the authorities of Bolivia (Plurinational State of) and Colombia and the UNODC Country Office in Colombia, delivered a workshop on the exchange of experiences in the implementation of asset forfeiture laws. A total of 71 participants, including officials from the prosecutor ’s office, judges and judicial investigators, benefited from the workshop. Colombia 10. UNODC developed two specialized tools to enhance prevention and prosecution strategies in the fight against money-laundering in the public and private sectors: a guide on modern techniques in investigating cases of money-laundering and a model of risk management in relation to countering money-laundering and the financing of terrorism in the context of public performance spectacles. In addition, UNODC helped to build capacities in the administration of justice in relation to money-laundering by delivering five specialized training events to 250 criminal investigators. 2/11 V.18-05332 UNODC/HONLAC/28/3 Ecuador 11. In September 2017, a memorandum of understanding between Ecuador and UNODC was signed with the aim of consolidating, developing and detailing joint cooperation efforts and common objectives in the areas of anti-corruption, illicit asset recovery and anti-money-laundering. Following the signing of the memorandum of understanding, UNODC and authorities of Ecuador cooperated on the analysis of the bill to combat corruption entitled “Organic Law Reforming the Comprehensive Organic Penal Code”, as well as on the draft law on asset forfeiture and on the development of indicators for the design of public policies against corruption. In that connection, UNODC and the World Bank responded positively to a request from the Government of Ecuador by initiating technical assistance activities through the joint UNODC-World Bank Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative in the area of recovery of stolen and diverted assets. Panama 12. The Regional Office in Panama continued to provide assistance to the Office of the Attorney General in the establishment of a specialized unit on money-laundering. Paraguay 13. UNODC and national partners made progress in the establishment of a centralized unit for the management of forfeited assets. UNODC also provided relevant national authorities with technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of prosecutors and judges in the area of asset forfeiture. Peru 14. Peru recently enacted legislation bringing the country’s savings and loan cooperatives under the regulatory umbrella of the Superintendency of Banking, Insurance and Private Pension Fund Administrators. IV. Strengthening of national police forces and cooperation initiatives Central America and the Caribbean 15. All UNODC initiatives being implemented in Central America continued to support, either directly or indirectly, the implementation of the Central American Integration System’s Central American security strategy. 16. Assistance was provided by UNODC to police forces in Central America through the delivery of training activities in the field of cybercrime, in particular through the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force programme. 17. In the context of a regional initiative focused on combating trafficking in persons in Central America and the Dominican Republic, UNODC provided criminal justice practitioners and law enforcement officials working in border areas with relevant training on detecting, investigating, prosecuting and adjudicating trafficking in persons cases and identifying and assisting victims. A memorandum of understanding on regional cooperation in the field of trafficking in persons was developed under the initiative and was signed by the Attorneys General of Member States in Central America (except Nicaragua) and the Dominican Republic. 18. In El Salvador, UNODC continued to support the work of the Cybercrime Unit established within the National Civil Police, including through training activities, the purchase of equipment and software and the provision of assistance in the development and implementation of its annual operations plan. Support was also provided to the National Civil Police in the strengthening of its capacities to effectively address the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons, including V.18-05332 3/11 UNODC/HONLAC/28/3 through the delivery of tailor-made training and the facilitation of inter-institutional cooperation. 19. In Panama, as part of a new national initiative following up on the work carried out under the Security Cooperation in Panama project, UNODC delivered technical assistance to the National Security Council, in particular to its Strategic Analysis Centre in the strengthening of its criminal intelligence capacities, including through the procurement of equipment and the promotion of inter-institutional and international operational cooperation to fight crime. 20. In Panama and the Dominican Republic, UNODC provided technical assistance to the offices of the Attorneys General in the context of the interregional programme on strengthening criminal investigation and criminal justice cooperation along the cocaine route in Latin America, the Caribbean and West Africa (CRIMJUST). Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 21. In October 2017, through the chapter of the Airport Communication Project (AIRCOP) in the Plurinational State of Bolivia, officials of the national customs authority participated in a regional training event on interdiction of air cargo. The event took place in Santo Domingo.