29 September 2000
Pino Arlacchi,
Executive Director
Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I will begin by highlighting a few developments in international drug control, with particular reference to the work of UNDCP.
Two weeks ago we released the findings of our annual opium poppy survey in Afghanistan. The situation is largely unchanged. Afghanistan remains by far the largest producer of illicit opium in the world. The area under cultivation this season was 81 thousand hectares, down 10 per cent from last year's 92 thousand. Production fell somewhat, but this is a result of the drought that affected the country during the growing season.
I remind you that last year was a record year for Afghan opium -- double the production of the year before and three-fourths of the world's total. This year's decrease must be seen in that perspective. Afghan opium and the heroin derived from it remain a serious threat to the neighbouring countries. The highest heroin addiction rates in the world are in this region, not in Europe or North America. Afghanistan is also the source for most of the heroin that reaches the CIS countries and Central and Western Europe.
We continue to work in Afghanistan. In fact, in three districts where we operate alternative development pilot projects, the area under poppy decreased by 50 per cent. Alternative development can work in Afghanistan. But we do not have adequate funds to continue even these modest activities. These activities are in jeopardy if we do not receive new contributions for Afghanistan.
We have intensified our work with the countries around Afghanistan, in an effort to create a barrier to Afghan opiates and to help these countries protect themselves from the effects of drug trafficking.
Although we have excellent cooperation with all the countries that border Afghanistan, I will only mention the case of Tajikistan. We have helped the Government create a new Drug Control Agency. In a very short time, there are concrete results. Overall drug seizures are up by 70 per cent over the same period last year. Looking only at heroin, the increase is 450 per cent, to a total of 789 kilos through the end of July. That is half the total amount of heroin seized in the United States in all of 1999. Much of this success reflects the cooperation between the new agency and the Russian border guards stationed along the Tajik/Afghan border, where we are also providing assistance.
The Central Asian countries are concerned at the threat that Afghan drugs and the related drug trafficking -- some of which serves to finance arms purchases -- threaten the security of their countries. The Six plus Two group has been especially active in focusing attention on the problems they face. They brought the matter to the attention of the Security Council last spring. The Council called for the cessation of opium cultivation in Afghanistan and asked the world community to assist all the affected countries in dealing with the threat posed to them. The Six plus Two Group recently endorsed a regional action plan, and we look forward to participating in its implementation.
I take this opportunity to add that ODCCP and the Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe will co-host a Conference in Tashkent on October 19th and 20th on Enhancing Security and Stability in Central Asia.
The second largest source of illicit opium is Myanmar. There are certain parallels with Afghanistan. We are working in Myanmar and know that alternative development can eliminate the economic dependence on poppy. But, as in Afghanistan, shortfalls in resources may handicap our work.
The special session established targets for the reduction of illicit cultivation of both opium poppy and coca. I am pleased to bring more positive news from South America. I recently visited Bolivia and can report that coca cultivation has virtually disappeared from the Chapare region. This was felt to be almost impossible only a few short years ago.
The Bolivian Government deserves praise for its commitment and for the effectiveness of its strategy. Two years ago we pledged 50 million dollars in assistance for the Bolivian Business Plan up to the year 2004. 22 million have been provided so far, and we must now identify contributions for the remainder. Bolivia desperately needs this support to sustain the result through the difficult period of economic adjustment. It would be a tragedy if we missed this opportunity to remove Bolivia from the list of source countries for cocaine.
Peru continues to make progress in consolidating its success over the past few years in reducing coca. Coca production fell by 56 per cent between 1997 and 2000. Recent coca price increases are worrying, but the Government remains firmly committed to the targets set by the special session -- major reduction by 2003 and full elimination by 2008.
Colombia faces a complex situation. Coca production is interwoven with serious security problems. The Government has adopted its "Plan Colombia" with this in mind. International financial support has begun to materialize.
Turning briefly to other mandates from the special session, there have been significant developments in the field of money laundering. As you know from the press, the volumes of money being laundered are reaching record levels. A single case last year was greater than the GDP of around one-third of UN Member States.
We have devoted particular attention to offshore banking jurisdictions. They are of course not the only entities involved in money laundering. Yet many of them are unable to meet the minimum international standards. In a meeting we convened last March in the Cayman Islands, 36 offshore jurisdictions - two more have since joined - agreed to undertake measures that will move them towards compliance with acceptable standards. As of 25 September, 24 of those jurisdictions had confirmed this to me in writing. Eight more such commitments are expected to be signed before the 30 September deadline. When needed, ODCCP will provide technical assistance to help the jurisdictions meet the standards, including a mentoring programme when appropriate.
Turning briefly to the area of demand reduction, we are moving forward with our Global Assessment Programme, aimed at helping Governments identify and analyze their own drug abuse problems. Initial concentration is on two regions - East and Southern Africa and West and Central Asia. A large contribution from one donor has enabled us to give greater momentum to both the Global Assessment Programme and to our support for drug abuse treatment centres. For example, we are committed to helping set up ten treatment centres in the South African townships. The first is already operating in Soweto, and two more will open before the end of the year.
Moving on to our work in the crime prevention field, this is a year rich in events. First of all, the Tenth UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders took place in Vienna in May. The final declaration of the Congress has been submitted to the Assembly for adoption at its current session.
The subtitle of the Declaration is "Meeting the Challenges of the Twenty-first Century". Not surprisingly, it emphasizes the commitment to act on the forms of crime that are of great concern as we move to economic globalization - the exploding traffic in human beings, corruption, money laundering and computer crime. More traditional forms of crime have of course not been neglected. But the discussions around the newer issues were especially useful in the building of a global consensus.
The Congress stressed the need for a specialized global convention against corruption.
The Congress also gave a strong endorsement to the three global programmes of the Centre. I described these to you in some detail last year. They address corruption, trafficking in human beings and organized crime.
The Congress gave a strong boost to the negotiation of the Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. The Ad Hoc Committee drafting the text has done a commendable job over the past 20 months. A total of 121 Member States have participated, with a broad geographical balance. The unanimously agreed text of the Convention is ready for General Assembly approval at this session. The Committee will meet again starting Monday to complete negotiations on the three Protocols to the Convention.
A high-level meeting is scheduled for 12-15 December to sign the Convention in Palermo. I encourage all of you to seek the participation of your Governments at the highest possible level.
The Palermo Convention will be the first major global convention of the new millennium. This is not the moment to go into the details of its contents. I would like to cite only one provision - the creation of a special account in the United Nations for the funding of technical assistance to developing countries and countries with economies in transition. The Convention urges states to make voluntary contributions to this fund.
This brings me to the financial situation of UNDCP and CICP.
Income to the Fund of UNDCP is projected to increase slightly this year to a total of around 73.4 million dollars. This is an increase of 21.4 million over the 1997 income figure, a growth of 42 per cent in just three years. This is in line with our projections in the biennial budget.
Last year we improved direct programme delivery by 56 per cent to 59 million dollars. This is the funding that goes directly into projects, exclusive of support costs. We did this with the same support structure. We expect to maintain or slightly increase this level of delivery during 2000.
In pointing out a healthy financial situation, I may appear to be in contradiction with my earlier statements about funding shortages in several key country programmes. There is in fact no contradiction. The great majority of funding for our field projects is in the form of earmarked contributions. Although there may be a healthy balance of funding, we cannot reassign it to priority areas or to areas where delivery is faster than anticipated. This has become a chronic problem.
The Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Fund received contributions of 3.3 million dollars in 1999. This was an increase of 19 per cent over the previous year and 69 per cent over 1997. The projection for 2000 shows an income level at least as high as that of 1999. With the signature of the Palermo Convention, as I mentioned earlier, we anticipate more growth in the resources available for technical assistance in crime prevention.
Many of you were present at the Millennium Summit earlier this month. In the Millennium Declaration, the first of the five fundamental values is Freedom, defined as the right we have to live our lives and raise our children free from any kind of fear. At ODCCP our job is to work against those forces that promote violence, oppression and injustice. The Secretary-General has labeled these forces "uncivil society".
We are encouraged that the Summit included in the Declaration a series of commitments to strengthen respect for the rule of law and to act against the drug problem, terrorism, the arms trade, economic crime and transnational crime in general. I am confident that the Member States will live up to their commitment to strengthen the work of the UN in these fields.
My intention is not to be a prophet of gloom. I am absolutely certain that we can defeat the uncivil society. The linkages between poverty and the areas of responsibility given to ODCCP are perhaps one of the least understood aspects of our work. Yet it is one of the most important.
We are working in some of the poorest areas of the world. This is not by chance. We are also working in some of the most violent locations. Again this is not by chance. Poverty alleviation without the rule of law is not an option. It will simply not work.
I would welcome any questions you might have.