108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

AN OVERALL ASSESSMENT OF TRANSNATIONAL

Muammer Yasar Özgül*

I. INTRODUCTION same goal. Some factors such as technological ii) The aim of providing benefit: progress, easiness of crossing frontiers and Organized crime groups expect material transition of the economic policies in and social benefit as a result of their illegal countries have encouraged criminal activities. organization and added an international iii) Violence or pressure: An organized dimension to such crime. For instance, crime group beats, wounds and kills as a while an illicit drug organization uses violence element and uses threat and counterfeit passport and identity cards to blackmail as a pressure element, aimed at hide its members’ identity results in fraud ; providing benefit for itself or a third person. to legalize the proceeds derived from such crime (by founding screen companies), with B. Differences between “Mafia” and proceedings going to banks and foreign “Organized Crime” exchanges results in the crime of money Is the organization which is called laundering. Spending money to purchase “Mafia” in the press and public outside of weapon leads to gun smuggling and that organized crime? To most people the term also engenders terrorism. This causes more organized crime and Mafia are the same. familiarity and cooperation among crime This unfortunate mistake arose because so groups. many criminals who made great reputations in the 1920’s came from Italy A. Definition of Organized Crime and, in particular, Sicily. The Mafia has for Organized crime is, within an centuries been a notorious Sicilian organization which could be in any form, organization. But it is difficult to hold the to use violence or at least put pressure to Mafia outside of the terms organized crime. provide benefits. Therefore, the term of Because the Mafia also contains each of “organized crime” consists of some the three components mentioned above, it elements below: has some characteristics comparable to i) Existence of an association ( 2 or other crime organizations. For example the more persons) Mafia: ii) The aim of providing benefit • Infiltrates economic and social (money or power) structures. iii) Violence or pressure. • Gets the management of public services and contracts, economic i) Existence of an association: The main activities, privileges, and component that distinguishes organized authorizations; or takes control at crime from other crimes is that two or more least. people are participating in the crime and • Gets into, directly or indirectly, putting the desire directed towards the the management of commercial * Deputy General Director of Personnel, Ministry of and industrial organizations, or Interior, Turkey. companies.

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• Prevents the carrying out of the supplier countries and the demanding ones administration freely. causes illicit traffic in drugs. This feature • Unbalances social and economic life of drug criminality necessitates that drug as related to the aforementioned. enforcement focus basically on the supply In addition the Mafia has; and demand aspect of the phonemenon. • A hierarchical structure that Supply control should include reducing performs in solid manner. poppy and cannabis quantities used • Organization membership tied to to manufacture illicit narcotics; prevention defined rules. of traffic in synthetic drugs and carrying • A monopoly on their activities. out the related combat. Demand control on • The punishment of the treachery the other hand should include elimination to the organization as death. of the possible means leading to drug abuse, carrying out the related combat and As shown, the Mafia influences the treatment rehabilitation of abusers as economical and administrative decision well as addicts. Meanwhile, control of both processes. As a result, the Mafia is an supply and demand should be carried out organized crime group which threatens at operational, political, diplomatic and public security and affects the general socio-economic levels. economy and public administration. Any fight against drugs based solely on II. CURRENT SITUATION OF an individual nation’s effort will not lead TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED to absolute success because illicit drug CRIME criminality is linked to organized crime and terrorism. Effective international A. General Situation Of Illicit Drug cooperation is necessary in this regard. The Trafficking ever increasing work of nations on this The illicit drugs phonemenon has three issue and the direct actions they are taking elements which are different in essence, to combat drugs are well commended. but somehow intertwined. Therefore, the Turkey too is committed to the combat of illicit drugs problem may well be regarded drugs, both with national efforts and as a tri-fold menace which could be initiatives taken internationality. considered under the topics of illicit production, trafficking and consumption. B. Production Areas of the World It is not possible however to deny the Drugs and the various materials that are existence of some organic linkage which used in drug production are produced in enables us to move from one topic onto large amounts in each continent. another between these essentially separate elements. Essentially, if there was no illicit Cannabis is cultivated in a significant production, there would be no illicit amount of the major countries in Africa. trafficking, and if there was no trafficking According to reports, South Africa then there would naturally be no demand is becoming a main source of the illegal for illicit drugs. Therefore, non-existence cultivation of more than 175.000 tons of of the demand would not give rise to the cannabis. The enterprises founding the supply. clandestine laboratories for the production methaqualone or other psycotrophic Both supply and demand are materials have been detected in some maintaining their very presence to some eastern and southern African Countries great extent. The distance between the (South Africa, Mozambique).

182 108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

In 1996, as in the past, hashish was in closed areas. Amphetamine has also raised for domestic consumption in Middle been produced in Holland. A major number America and the Caribbean. Jamaica of LSD seized in Europe was welded in the continued to be an important source of USA. In Australia and Oceania, illegal hashish for consumption in Europe and cannabis and legal poppy has been grown Northern America. Hashish is also and methamphetamyn has been produced. cultivated and produced in Mexico (Brasil and Colombia) for the USA. The illegal As shown above, drug materials arise production of metamphethamin and LSD naturally or are grown on purpose for the increased in the USA. In Colombia, poppy reason of high profit, to finance terrorism and opium poppy is also raised. Peru and or cold wars between countries. Drug Bolivia has remained the biggest producer trafficking has followed many various of coca. The coca that is the raw material routes in countries throughout the World of cocaine is smuggled from Peru and from east to west and south to north. Bolivia into Colombia, where it is transformed into cocaine and enters the C. Illicit Drugs Problem In Turkey world market 3. The production of synthetic and Related Policies and Fight drugs and acetic anhydride that is used in Against Drugs the production of is realized in the We have tried to cover drug problems USA. and the global fight so far. In this context, Turkey is a transit point because of features Cannabis grows naturally in a number such as an adjacent geographical location of the countries in south-east , such as which is in intersection with the continents Thailand. The illicit production of poppy of Asia and Europe. Having those and heroin and the cultivation of opium producing regions in the east while the poppy have continued to increase in consuming regions are in the west-coupled Burma. Acetic anhydride is produced in with the passing of the Balkan Route China, India and South Korea4. An through her-Turkey has, as the most important amount of ephedrine has been important problem, the illicit trade of produced in the Russian Federation. In narcotics. addition, cannabis has been grown in the Russian Federation, especially poppy in Fluctuations in this region have caused, Khazakistan. also has an as mentioned above, the emergence of new important place in the production of resin routes. Enhanced criminal capabilities for hashish5. Opium poppy has been cultivated those drug syndicates which were new to in legal ways in India, Japan, China and the republics which gained independence Turkey. Heroin that is significant part of upon dissolution of the former Soviet, drug trafficking, is produced from poppy coupled with crises caused by such which has been grown in the Golden economical transition, have led to the Triangle (Burma, Laos, Thailand) and the emergence of new criminal groups with Golden Crescent (Pakistan, , either involvement in or cooperation with ) . Poppy has been grown in drug trafficking groups. legal ways in France, Spain, Hungry. Holland has become a producer of cannabis Turkey is facing traffic from east to west with the trafficking of synthetic tablets, (3) INCB Report for Precursors 1995 such as Captagon and Ecstasy (and facing (4) INCB Report for 1995 west-to-east traffic) of cocaine and it’s (5) INCB Report for 1995 precursors, mainly acetic anhydride, which

183 RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No. 54 is used in heroin production. In this Center For Alcohol and Substance Addicts), context, Turkey is also an intersection for Turkish Grains Board of the Ministry of narcotics and their precursors in addition Agriculture and Village Affairs, the to her transit position for other drugs. General Directorate of Customs and the General Directorate of Customs Guard of The majority of the narcotics moved into the Undersecretaries of Customs are on Turkey from the east and/or southeast, duty to combat illicit drug trafficking in belong to the PKK terrorist organization. Turkey. The same organization traffics some other parts of the narcotics across the border for The General Directorate of Security is drug trafficking organizations for a certain the main operational body for drug commission. Drug trafficking enforcement in Turkey. The General organizations, mainly the PKK, act as an Command of Gendarmerie carries out drug intermediary for transporting their illicit interception efforts through its narcotic ‘cargoes’ supplied from producing countries teams employed in rural and border to consuming areas and markets. regions. The Coast Guard Command carries out, with assistance from the In some other cases, as will be mentioned Turkish Navy when necessary, the drug under the heading “Clandestine fight at sea. Laboratories,” it has been detected that the PKK terrorist organization and other drug The General Directorate of networks are attempting to supply Pharmaceuticals of the Ministry of Health morphine base at a lower cost, converting defines the procedure for drugs and amounts of the substance into heroin in psychotropic substances used for medical clandestine heroin laboratories, and finally purposes, arranges licenses for legally moving end-products at a higher price to imported chemicals and psychotropic consumption locales in Europe. Turkey’s substances control, and provides for the location as an intersection plays a major procedures for treatment of addicts. role in such undesired formation. The only treatment center for drug Metaphorically speaking, it is impossible addicts, AMATEM (Treatment Center For for Turkey to avoid the drug menace, given Alcohol and Substance Addicts) has been that she is already surrounded by such established within the premises of the pervasive drug movement. Dangerous BAKIRKÖY MENTAL STATE HOSPITAL indications suggesting the emergence of in Istanbul. This mental hospital, under addiction have recently begun to surface. the Ministry of Health, is the largest of its However, more important for Turkey are kind in Turkey. Plans exist to set up similar the facts that drugs constitute the major centers in five (5) other regions. financial support for the PKK terrorist organization, and that drug funding is The Turkish Grains Board of the known to benefit from this organization. Ministry of Agriculture and Village Affairs is charged with overseeing licit cultivation; Subordinated to the Ministry of Interior, issuing licenses; making policies for the the General Directorate of Security, purchase of cultivated products, operating General Command of Gendarmerie and the Afyon Alkaloid Plant, and carrying out Coast Guard Command, General export transactions. Directorate of Pharmaceuticals of the Ministry of Health, AMATEM (Treatment Subordinated to the Undersecretaries of

184 108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

Customs, two Directorates are charged iii) Clandestine Heroin Laboratories with the interception, investigation, and As emphasized earlier, it is no longer a prosecution of any acts of smuggling, secret that some trafficking organizations including drugs, within Turkish Customs have turned, in an attempt to magnify their areas. profits, to derive heroin in Turkey through utilizing primitive methods from either D. Licit and Illicit Drug Production acetic anhydride and morphine base i) Licit Poppy and Cannabis Growing supplied from producing countries, thus Turkey is a traditional licit grower of giving up the practice of carrying the ready- opium poppies and controlled and unlanced to-use heroin from the production sites to poppy growing is taking place in 13 consuming communities. That trend is provinces. The harvested crops are being enhanced by the strategic location of processed at the Afyon Alkaloid Plant for Turkey in terms of illicit drug trafficking. medical use. Checks on licit poppy Four clandestine heroin laboratories were cultivation from poppy cultivation till the detected in Turkey in 1996. end of harvest are being rigidly carried out. This practice which was begun in 1994, and E. Drug Trafficking Passing through to date, no seizures of opium derived from Turkey Turkish poppies have been sighted either In this part, the trafficking dimension at home or abroad. of the drug problem will be considered first in the context of drug routes passing ii) Precursors Used to Manufacture Heroin through Turkey, then an evaluation of drug Forerunning among the precursors in seizures and the offenders. illicit drug production, acetic acid is not produced in Turkey but mention can be i) Routes made of its licit import as it has various The presence of the Northern Black Sea domestic industrial uses. Both licit import Route, the Balkan Route, and the Eastern and distribution of the substance has been Mediterranean Route in the east-to-west, under rigid control through the relevant against precursor routes from west-to-east, Legislation. No diversion from the legally have already been mentioned. Being a imported products has been sighted until transit point in that regard, Turkey is an now. intersection where there is some reverse traffic in terms of drug trafficking routes. Turkey is seeing reverse precursor traffic Situated in the midst of such traffic, Turkey from west-to-east, contrary to what is seen has many drug routes passing through her. in regard to heroin or morphine base. This Trailing along a west-to-east line, the means that, Turkey is also an intersection precursors traffic is carried out with such in terms of the trafficking of such substances originating in their production substances in addition to being a transit zones (the European countries) being for illicit drug trafficking. moved to drug producing regions, particularly the Golden Crescent region. The successful seizure of fifty-three (53) tons of acetic anhydride thanks to ii) Seizures conscientious efforts in 1995, has been In general, there is an increase as to the considerably influential on the 1996 amounts of heroin, morphine base and seizures record. Acetic anhydride seizure synthetics, as against some decrease in (25.2 tons) for 1996 has dropped according hashish and cocaine quantities, in drug to the previous year by 49.1% . seizures in 1996. Factors like consuming

185 RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No. 54 preferences, drug prices, etc. play a major Major decline in the cases and amounts role in such changes. of cocaine is mostly due to the increased general use of disco drugs, namely the iii) Heroin stimulating ecstasy tablets, use of which Ever increasing demand is the primary saw in recent years a higher frequency in element to explain the increase both in Turkey. It is considered that cocaine users heroin cases and related seizures. in search of a new drug have now turned Destination of the heroin trail passing to ecstasy and that trafficking through Turkey, Europe, has long had organizations are attempting to create a consuming masses. Growing numbers of fresh avenue to push this drug widely members are being added to those masses abused, in almost the entire of Europe, to each and everyday. During 1996, case the Turkish market. Great amounts of numbers increased by 31% while seized ecstasy seizures in 1996 have supported amounts increased by 28%, which is also such an assertion. an indication of the priority accorded to the combat of drugs. TABLE 1 Ecstasy Seizures iv) Hashish Hashish amounts for 1996, when Year Case Quantity ( unit ) compared to the year 1995, show a 1995 3 9 considerable decline. Underlying reasons 1996 4 3473 for that might be less lucrative profits from hashish and promotion of the more Note: The statistics of all tables are taken from police lucrative drug types preferred by registrations in the Ministry of Interior.The traffickers. amounts include the registration of police, General Command of Gendarmerie and Coast Guard The leading drug production sites are in Command. Lebanon, although there has been a major decline due to the establishment and vi) Morphine Base organization of a security system which is Morphine base seizures were generally under way in Lebanon, and the substitutive made at the clandestine heroin laboratories agro-policies carried out by the U.S. and discovered. Seizure ratios, compared to last I.N.C.B.. Hashish seizures also declined year’s statistics, indicate a major decline last year, as in 1995, due to the African from past years cases in number but also production which took route in European some partial incline in confiscated markets; the heroin preferred by traffickers amounts, which suggests there is morphine and the ecstasy apreferred by consumers. base trafficking taking place in big lots. The growing number of case discoveries are mostly due to the street teams set up. vii) Synthetic Drugs The basic synthetic drug of traffic is v) Cocaine captagon. Captagon is not consumed in Turkey is not in the mainstream of Turkey but mostly in the Middle-East cocaine routes, which is keeping seizures countries. Illicit captagon production is low. Both the cocaine amounts and the concentrated in certain European seizures were in considerable incline countries. Manufactured tablets illicitly during 1995, against a major decline in enter Turkey in the west and are 1996. transported to the Middle-East by certain organizations in the south and southeast

186 108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS of Turkey. To that effect, land transport is With ASENA taking effect, information utilized, making use of the existing was established that: commercial contacts with Middle-Eastern • Drug trafficking organizations countries. were running their illicit business intertwinedly. Another route in the illicit traffic is the • Activities conducted were limited one leading from European countries, via to a main focus, based on shared maritime lines, to the countries in fields of duty among them. downward location to Turkey. The relative • Traffickers preferred to establish decrease in seizures merits attention, kinships, or reinforce existing despite a clear decrease during 1995 in internal relations, through Turkey. marriages to unite their power and enhance trust in each other. F. Drug Trafficking Organizations • Traffickers had become sectors of While illicit drug trafficking used to be the production, transport, storage run before the 1990’s by people or groups, and distribution of illicit narcotics, more recent times saw traffickers and of the transfer of illicit profits incredibly intensify their activity by derived from such criminal forming large family organizations and/or activities. establishing twopartite or threepartite family organizations to get higher profits It is clear from the above the inter- and run their activities on a larger scale. organizational division of duties. Below are a few examples of the above mentioned ASENA was initiated to make a general points: analysis and to further enlarge, based on • The HAN organization was information developed, the scope of existing meeting the morphine base needs measures by establishing matters such as of such organizations. Hurshit general structures, modus operandi, HAN, leader of the organization targets, roles in the traffic of the mentioned was arrested in Istanbul on 9th, organizations and what contacts are made September 1996 in connection with who. with some 750 kgs of morphine

TABLE 2 Drug Seizure Figures for Turkey in 1996 by Drug Type

TYPE CASES ACCUSED QUANTITY(kg) Hashish 1618 3287 12294 Heroin 519 1650 4422 Morphine base 5 24 1157 Opium 26 58 233 Cocaine 40 122 13 Acetic anhydride 7 29 42450 Synthetic drugs* 74 160 259097 TOTAL 2289 5330 319666 * Per unit

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base seizure. organizations with rules, penalties, techniques and intimacies. • Suppliers of morphine base, the AY and KONUKLU organizations Many other forms of criminality follow were converting, in their own the organization of drug related crimes. clandestine laboratories, volumes While illicit drug crimes are considered at of morphine base into heroin. early level stages such as illicit narcotics Located in Saray town, Tekirdag, planting, dealings and abuse, many other the laboratories owned by these crimes like the smuggling of precursors organizations were seized on 8th, (including the smuggling of controlled March 1995. precursors placed under international treaties), laundering drug money, violence, • Heroin quantities produced were murder, fraud, theft, human trafficking, being transported by the arms smuggling, and terrorism are gaining KUYUCU and KASAR increased momentum largely due to illicit organizations, into Europe. gains being shifted into other criminal Mehmet KASAR, leader of the channels. organization, was arrested during an operation in Istanbul on 7th, III. CURRENT SITUATION OF April 1996 where some 158 kgs of TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED heroin was confiscated. CRIME EXCEPT ILLICIT DRUG TRAFFICKING • Illicit drug quantities moved into The general situation of illicit drug Europe are being stashed in trafficking has been clarified. The following Romania by the SITOCHI will try to briefly explain other Organization, and pushed in transnational organized crime, with various European local markets statistics. by the SITOCHI, POLAT and other organizations. A. Illicit Firearms Trafficking In 1995 and 1996, illicit firearms • With ASENA, twenty-five (25) trafficking occurred in Turkey. The illicit organizations have been statistics of individual and organized illicit schematized to present time. Of firearms trafficking are given below. these, four (4) were smashed and finally disrupted through TABLE 3 determined action taken. Recent Firearms Trafficking G. Drug Trafficking and Related Criminality Year Incident Arrested Offenders Fugitives While numerous drug trafficking 1995 145 603 46 organizations and cartels initially used to 1996 171 918 73 be small and established with individual 1997* 145 683 56 leadings, drug trafficking organizations have increasingly sought partners in crime for individually conducted activities. These were easily found due to impressing people with the belief of becoming rich; and it is within such turn that they become

188 108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

Confiscated Firearms and Other structure of Turkish society. After the Materials collapse of the Soviet Union, considerable amounts of women, who are engaged in Year Firearms Bombs Bullets prostitution, entered Turkey from Russia 1995 1.006 132 37.479 and some Balkan countries. This incident 1996 1.054 1 91.275 is not generally a result of the activities of 1997 1.316 - 61.571 organized groups, but the individual preferences of the women from the above The PKK play an important role in illicit mentioned countries in which poverty has fire arms trafficking in addition to drug become one of the major problems. trafficking. D. Stealing Motor Vehicles and their B. Smuggling of Illegal Migrants Illicit Ttrafficking Because of the political instability in The number of foreign stolen motor Northern Iraq, Turkey is having some vehicles sold in Turkey is so limited that it problems in this regard. This problem has is not worth mentioning. However, Turkish emerged recently and no certain statistics workers employed in various European are available. Some organized groups are countries are bringing their own cars of a transferring the people of north Iraq via high quality, which are comparatively Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria to European cheap in Europe but expensive in Turkey, Countries. These organized groups are and selling them through various methods providing false passports to Iraqi people without paying customs tax. and are manipulating them to apply as political refugees in European Countries. TABLE 5 Besides this, some people who are Stolen Motor Vehicles unemployed are cheated by organized crime groups with the promise of work. The Year Confiscated Cars Cars Searched table below indicates the situation of illegal 1994 275 413 migrants cases by year. 1995 197 200 1996 171 165 TABLE 4 Illegal Migrant Cases E. Money Laundering Predominantly, money laundering Year Incident Accused activities are performed at casinos. The 1994 35 122 owners of casinos are receiving a certain 1995 49 173 percentage of the illicit money from owners 1996 47 188 of this money for money laundering. 1997 35 171 Besides casinos, money laundering activities have been found in paravane C. Illicit Trafficking in Women and companies, travel agencies, hotels and Children banks. These types of activities are In Turkey there may be illicit trafficking performed both by organized groups and in women, but there is no such problem for individuals. In order to camouflage these children. This might stem from the cultural illicit activities, some fictious companies have been established and employed. *The numbers of 1997 in the whole tables are taken from police registrations and do not include other security forces registrations.

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F. Transnational Economic Crimes prohibited of using, selling or owning (Others) by law, are produced, these materials In regard to transnational economic are also confiscated. crimes, counterfeiting can be mentioned in c-If firearms are carried without the Turkey. Counterfeiting is committed by permission of the authorities, these organized groups or persons who have firearms are confiscated. ” international relations. These groups or persons have the technical capability of Beside this, The Prevention and imitating foreign or national currency by Controlling of Smuggling Act also has using press equipment or photocopy articles to confiscate goods, tools and machines. proceeds derived from crime. These articles are applicable to specific transnational TABLE 6 organized crimes. Additionally The Drug False Banknotes Obtained Control Act contains provisions for the confiscation and destroying of drugs. Year $ DM TL Finally, firearms either obtained by 1994 10482510- 717000- 24522500- security forces or confiscated by the courts 1995 873470- 607400- 35960000- are submitted to the defense secretary (the 1996 1122020- 417850- 21904000- Act About Firearms and Other Crime Tools). IV. LEGAL FRAMEWORK AGAINST TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED Moreover, the Prevention of Money CRIME BY THE CRIMINAL Laundering Act has adjusted for the JUSTICE SYSTEM IN TURKEY confiscation of ‘black’ money. According to the Act, offenders who money launder can There is no specific act to penalize crimes be punished with imprisonment. The, committed by transnational organized ‘black’ money is confiscated and the crime groups. However, there are many offender has to pay twice that quantity of provisions in the Turkish Penal Code to money back as a penalty. If the offender countermeasure such crimes. Also if the does not have enough money, their property crime is committed by a group of people, is correspondingly distrained. the penalty is increased proportionally. Yet the Turkish Penal Code defined organized There are not any specific laws to crime as below: criminalize organized crime groups in Turkey at present. However both the “ They who become organized to Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of commit crime ”. Article 313- “They who Interior have prepared a Bill to regulate form an organization to commit crime organized crimes which is expected to pass in any form, are punished with prison in Turkish Parliament in 1998. sentence from 1 to 2 years.” Controlled delivery is regulated by an According to Turkish Penal Code Article Act to prevent money laundering. There are 36: some regulations about immunity in the “ a-If some special tools are prepared for Police Duty and Authority Act. Security the purpose of community crime, these forces can search private places with a tools and equipment are confiscated warrant issued by a judge. Yet with the by the state. judgment of a court, the police can wiretap b-If some materials which are according to The Criminal Judicial

190 108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

Procedure Act. The members of parliament they are subordinated to The General have immunity in the sense that they can Directorate of Security via the Directorates not be taken to court without the of Security. In addition, Anti-smuggling permission of the parliament. Bureaus have been established and made operational in some fourteen (14) cities There are provisions for the protection with strategic importance in terms of drug of witnesses for terror related crimes in trafficking (such as Yüksekova, Hopa, Turkish legislation. We have a special Act Çesme and Iskenderun). with regard to criminal punishment in sentencing policy. The Turkish Penal Code The Department is responsible for the and The Criminal Judicial Procedure Act collection, analyzing and dissemination of regulates criminal law. As known, there are all information related to drug smuggling international treaties to facilitate and organized crime, as well as the international cooperation such as provision of instruction and guidance to extradition and mutual legal assistance in local units. It also carries out the allocation criminal matters. All of these treaties have of personnel, financial and logistical been accepted by parliament. resources to local units. They also use a tele-drug system which provides V. CURRENT SITUATION OF computerized information exchange DETECTION AND INVESTIGATION between other countries and Turkey. IN TURKEY The equipment which is called In the Constitution of the General “Smuggling Network Project” has been Directorate of Security, the Department of recently procured for a more efficient Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime is combat of smuggling and organized crime established. In the structure of that nation wide; providing audio-visual department, seven (7) branch offices are communication between the center and its formed as follows: units. In this way it is possible to transfer i) The section of economic crimes. suspect’s pictures and crime evidence to ii) The section of narcotic crimes. form archives. This project will be iii) The section of illicit firearms. operational in 1998. iv) The section of organized crimes. v) The search section. During wiretapping (possible with a vi) Technical services section. court order) tape recorders of out dated vii)The bureau of official documents, technology are used. Therefore it becomes statistics and computer systems. impossible to transfer records into a digital environment and so cross-examine. But a Besides, the specific section, each digital record system was purchased for the respective section engages organized crime Center and fifteen (15) provinces in 1997, which is related to their own matters. The thus the above-mentioned problem will Department of Anti-Smuggling and cease. Turkey does not have any important Organized Crime is sufficiently organized problems regarding equipment and devices and equipped to deal with crime all over due to progress made. the country. In Turkey, as city-based investigators of In every province (there are eighty (80) organized crimes have sufficient ability and provinces in Turkey) that anti-smuggling expertise, regional seminars have been and organized crime units are constituted, arranged on the current legal and

191 RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No. 54 administrative situation of smuggling and (Note : The two issues mentioned above organized crime, new methods, technical are speculative, as no such cases have been and personnel possibilities, problems detected yet in Turkey.) encountered for the managers of smuggling and organized crime units. The first of • Sufficient information is not given these seminars has been held in Diyarbak, by opponent countries and the second in G.Antep, the third in international investigation Erzurum, the fourth in Samsun and the organizations, such as fifth in Ankara. Furthermore the INTERPOL. The intelligence specialized training program (for services of some foreign countries investigators in regional bases) has been are behind such crime groups. carried out with the aim of more effective combat of such crimes that have increased Yet the detection of such crimes has been lately. quite successful so far. Besides, the persons who play major roles or who are in the In detection and investigation, gathering highest position in such organized crime information is very important. In Turkey, groups have been successfully arrested. the measures written below are taken to (For instance the chief of crime group of gather information; SÖYLEMEZLER, Sena SÖYLEMEZ ; the • Wiretapping of conversations of chief of Hursit Han’s group, Hursit Han; suspects (people known to be the chief of Havar Family, Halil Havar have related to such crimes), paravane all been arrested and jailed). companies and paravane financial constitutions. Some difficulties, encountered with • The accounts of suspects and regard to international cooperation, such companies, banks mentioned as extradition and mutual legal assistance above are taken under control. in criminal matters, are listed below: • The connection between ordinary • Opponent countries do not assist crime groups and political crime in the matters above mentioned. groups such as the P.K.K. is • Controlled delivery can not be watched closely. performed as required. • Suspected hotels and travel • There is no international agencies are kept under databank concerning such crimes. surveillance. VI. CURRENT PROBLEMS IN THE There are a lot of difficulties in COMBAT OF TRANSNATIONAL identifying transnational organized crime ORGANIZED CRIME AND SOME groups and gathering information about PROPOSALS them. Some of those are; i) Some governments, intelligence • Such crime groups obtain and use services, companies and banks are at the some politicians, public bottom of such crime groups world wide administrators, journalists. and therefore an International Criminal • Such groups look out for any Court must be founded. weakness of police chiefs, judges, public prosecutors, politicians and ii) There are some deficiencies and public administrators and then conflicts in the law related to such crimes blackmail them. in some countries. For this reason, the laws

192 108TH INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS of countries must be united and an It may be impossible to eliminate International Penal Code should be organized crime, but it can be reduced to a prepared to deal with such crimes. minimum level. It is impossible to prevent such crime with measures based solely on iii) Cooperation among transnational nation wide efforts. In this regard, it is organized crime groups is more intensive necessary to combat crime on an then international cooperation. international level. Therefore international International cooperation should be cooperation is inevitable. Importance must facilitated including extradition and be attached to international cooperation mutual legal assistance in criminal and organized crime must be taken matters. seriously by governments. They must do everything they can to combat crime on a iv) Gathering information is the most national and an international scope. important factor in the combat of such crimes. So cooperation among intelligence APPENDIX A services and national polices must be THE MODUS OPERANDI BEHIND provided. THE SEIZURE OF SOME 22.440 KILOGRAMS OF ACETIC v) Special programs should prepared to ANHYDRIDE protect witnesses in the course of investigations and trial proceedings. On 13th Feburary, 1996 a joint operation at the Alsancak Marine Bordergate was vi) Confiscated illicit proceeds derived undertaken by the Izmir Narcotic Police from specific transnational organized and the Custom Directorate’s officers and crimes must be expended for the combat of some 22,440 kg’s of acetic anhydride, such crimes. concealed in 379 barrels on TIR truck driven by a Belgian national, Willy DE vii) Controlled delivery is very DECKER, were confiscated aboard the important to detect such crime groups. ferry ‘SAMSUN’ on a cruise from Italy. The National police forces should be operative offenders, Ayhan YUMRUTAS, Ali in foreign countries or international police KAZAKOGLU, Ridvan SERINKAN, Tolga authorized to operate in each country. TASDEMIR and Kemal ÖZ were arrested in connection with the case. The truck viii) International databank connected driver said, during the interrogation, that with all countries should be established. he had taken the ‘cargo’ from Belgium’s Michelin city at the ‘S.T.O.P.’ hangar in the VII. CONCLUSION industry zone of Dender MONDA city, by means of the owner of ‘GP CARGO’, a Organized transnational crime is one of Belgian, Paul GIDIER. the worst problems for all countries. Organized crime first disturbs public On 14th March, 1996 some 20kg’s of security and the balance of economy. It heroin was seized in Izmir. The offender, menaces public health because of drug Abu Bekir SIDDIK OKTAY, said during the addiction, reduces reliance on government interrogation that 11 tons of the 22,440 kg’s and in this manner causes anarchy, and of the acetic anhydride were going to results in the judicial system becoming out Yüksekova; and 5 tons of the substance of order. would be moved by the traffickers to the PKK camps in the village Cermi, Urumiye

193 RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No. 54 of Iran. He also said that the PKK had the Tebriz of Iran as its illicit drug center.

APPENDIX B THE MODUS OPERANDI OF THE ‘HURSIT HAN’ CASE Acting on a tip, Istanbul Narcotic Police stopped and searched a TIR truck with entry from Iran to Turkey through the Gurbulak border crossing. The search led to discovery of some 750 kg’s of morphine base - each in 1 kg packets - and concealed in a secreted parasitic attachment to the dorse of the vehicle. The offenders, Hursit HAN, his brother Sükrü HAN, Sevket ÇAGIRTEKEN, Hasan YILMAZ, Muhittin ARSLAN, Mustafa HANIFIOGLU, Mehmet Sait TURGUT, Halil GÜNES, Nusrettin HAN, Osman ABDULLAH, Mehmet ALAKEL, Mehmet KARABAG, Sükrü ÇAGIRTEKIN, Idris ÇAGIRTEKIN and the Iranian nationals, Süleyman Ferhadi GHOLANJI, Fardin AMJAD, Ramin GANIZADE, Mohammed Ali MAGHSOUDI, Hokmali Ghanizadeh DIZAH and Ahmet REGIKALES were apprenended in connection with the case. During the interrogation Hursit HAN said he had some acetic anhydride stashed on a farm in nearby Sapanca, Sakarya. The farm was stormed on that information and searched, which resulted in discoveries of some 6831 of acetic anhydride along with lab equipment used in heroin production and a tabulating machine to press the manufactured heroin.

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