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Sub-Regional Strategy
The United Nations International
Drug Control Programme Sub-regional Strategy in the Caribbean is the
outright implementation of the Barbados Plan of Action. The Barbados
Plan of Action was ratified in Bridgetown, Barbados on 17th May 1996
by 36 member countries
Plan of Action for Drug Control Coordination and
Cooperation in the Caribbean
- The Regional Meeting on Drug Control Cooperation in the
Caribbean considered that one of the main problems facing the
Caribbean region was that of illicit drug trafficking from South
America to Europe and North America. Caribbean countries formed a
geostrategic arc of democracy which was fundamental to the
maintenance of peace and security in the western hemisphere. The
transit traffic in illicit drugs, however, was undermining and
threatening their peace and security. To counter that threat, the
Meeting therefore drew up a plan of action incorporating the
findings and recommendations emanating from its deliberations.
A. NATIONAL DRUG BODIES
- To improve the operational capacities, communications
capabilities and statutory functions of national drug bodies to
pursue more effective coordination of drug control programmes,
both domestically and in partnerships with other countries, the
following specific measures were prioritized for Governments of
the region, which were invited to take action:
- To create or strengthen, as appropriate, national drug
bodies, and to give these bodies the appropriate authority and
independence effectively to pursue their mandate;
- To reiterate a clear commitment with a clear mandate to
develop and implement national drug-control master plans and
strategies;
- To provide the organizational structure and to adequately
equip the national drug bodies to organize and participate
meaningfully in the elaboration, regular review and updating of
the national master plan, by producing a single
government-approved document that summarizes national
drug-control strategy, sets priorities and identifies resources
based on realistic estimates, assigns responsibilities, and sets
the time for completion;
- To guarantee the capacity of national drug bodies to
implement projects and activities as defined by the national
drug-control master plans and strategies;
- To take action to address the weaknesses and needs
identified through the regular assessment of the capacity of
national drug-control bodies to define, advise on, promote,
implement and coordinate the drug-control policy of the
Government, and to engage in strategic planning and
organizational development for drug control;
- To upgrade the communications capabilities of national drug
bodies, so that they can communicate more rapidly and more
economically with their counterparts in other countries, and
share information and data. In this regard the project initiated
by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) of
the Organization of American States (OAS) is acknowledged;
- To establish a mechanism for closer regional and
international coordination and cooperation and the strengthening
of existing structures, for example, the Caribbean Community
(CARICOM), OAS, the United Nations International Drug Control
Programme (UNDCP), the European Union and other relevant
organizations, to facilitate the above-mentioned action.
- The mechanism to be established by the European Union,
pursuant to the conclusions of the meeting of the European
Council, held at Madrid in December 1995, will be a major element
in cooperation and coordination efforts.
B. LEGISLATION
- The Meeting acknowledged the inability of criminal justice
systems to deal effectively with major cases of drug trafficking
and money-laundering, and recognized the need for such cases to be
dealt with expeditiously and effectively.
- The Meeting recommended strengthening and working within
existing institutions at the regional level to identify key common
difficulties and to propose common remedial options for the full
consideration of Caribbean attorneys-general and ministers
responsible for legal affairs.
- The Meeting recognized the problem of insufficiency of
legislation dealing with money laundering in several of the
jurisdictions of the region and the differences in national
legislation. It noted the collaborative efforts to deal with this
problem throughout the region under the aegis of the Heads of
Government of CARICOM, on the basis of the ministerial communiqué
emanating from the Regional Ministerial Meeting on Follow-up to
the Naples Political Declaration and Global Action Plan against
Organized Transnational Crime*/, held at Buenos Aires from 27 to
30 November 1995, and of the recommendations of the Caribbean
Financial Action Task Force (CFATF).
- * To the extent not already done, States** should take steps
to:
- Become parties as soon as possible to the relevant
international drug control treaties and to implement national
legislation to give effect to the provisions thereof;
- Review domestic drug-control laws to ensure that they are
fundamentally consistent across the subregion and in line with
the international drug control conventions. The review should
extend to licit drugs, regulatory laws covering the control of
production and movement of precursors and essential chemicals,
penal codes and codes of criminal procedure, extradition, mutual
legal assistance and asset forfeiture legislation;
- Ensure that there are adequate investigatory powers in
domestic laws to enable effective investigations, prosecution
and asset forfeiture in all serious crimes, including
drug-related crimes and money-laundering. These include, subject
to appropriate safeguards, controlled delivery, undercover
operations and telecommunications interception and electronic
surveillance;
- Make the laundering of the proceeds of all serious crimes a
criminal offence in domestic legislation which should, as a
minimum, provide for the identification, seizure and forfeiture
of the proceeds and instrumentalities of such crimes. Such
legislation should comply with the provisions of the United
Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and
Psychotropic Substances of 1988,1/ with the recommendations of
the Financial Action Task Force established by the Heads of
State or Government of the major industrialized countries (Group
of Seven) and the President of the Commission of European
Communities, and with those of CFATF. The Meeting recognized the
responsibility of the CFATF in monitoring and assisting in the
implementation of anti-money-laundering measures in the region.
* Adopted by the World
Ministerial Conference on Organized Transnational Crime, held at
Naples, Italy, from 21 to 23 November 1994, and approved by the
General Assembly in its resolution 49/159 of 23 December 1994.
** For the purposes of the
Plan of Action, and unless the context indicates otherwise,
references to "States" extend to countries and territories within
the Caribbean region for whose foreign relations other countries
are responsible, and which may not be States in the sense of
international law.
- The Meeting noted the existence of the model anti-money
laundering legislation prepared respectively by UNDCP, the
Commonwealth Secretariat, and CICAD, and commended such model
legislation for consideration and adoption by States, as
appropriate. The Meeting recommended that such legislation should
include provisions regarding the modification of the traditional
rules of bank secrecy and the maintenance of adequate bank records
to assist in the investigation of money-laundering offences. The
provisions of such legislation should extend to bank and non-bank
institutions and other entities which can be used for
money-laundering.
- In recognition of the cross border aspects and implications of
money-laundering, the legislation should provide for cooperation
between States. More specifically, it should provide for the
exchange of information, the use and admissibility of evidence
obtained in foreign jurisdictions, asset sharing and extradition.
- Where appropriate, bilateral and multilateral agreements
should be concluded in order to enhance the effectiveness of
legislation.
- To implement the legislation the Meeting recommended that
assistance in the form of training and other resources should be
provided where appropriate.
- The Meeting suggested that a timetable should be set for the
implementation of the legislation.
- States should also take steps:
- To move towards harmonization of legislation and sentencing
policy, taking account of the different legal and judicial
systems in the region;
- To revise domestic legislation to facilitate the
admissibility of evidence, particularly when obtained from
another country, and in relation to evidence obtained by video
tape depositions and other electronic means;
- To enact legislation necessary to implement maritime
cooperation arrangements for law enforcement;
- To strengthen the judicial process leading to more
successful prosecutions of drug offenders, including increasing
the jurisdiction of magistrates and the establishment of a
network of regional prosecutors and magistrates, while ensuring
the improvement of infrastructure to include improvements to
court buildings and adequate court reporting facilities. The
Meeting further acknowledged the necessity for the provision of
material assistance to States within the region to enhance the
capacity of their judicial and prosecutorial systems;
- To develop a regional strategy to establish priorities and
access to information, training and technical assistance for
infra structural improvements which would facilitate the
provision of adequate protection and security for witnesses;
- To adopt a regional package of treaties based on United
Nations or other suitable models on extradition and mutual legal
assistance and transfer of prisoners to serve sentences which
would be open for signature by other countries on invitation;
- To consider the adoption of agreements on the transfer of
court proceedings to another jurisdiction, in appropriate cases,
in drug-related offences;
- To provide assistance throughout the region in the
coordination of training at various levels, including court
reporting, and training for investigators, prosecutors,
magistrates and judges. Such training should continue the
University of West Indies (UWI)/UNDCP Legal Training Programme,
and be extended to include participants from all Caribbean
jurisdictions and training to address money-laundering.
- The Meeting acknowledged that conviction for offences related
to drug abuse resulted primarily in custodial sentences, and noted
the absence of appropriate sentencing alternatives. Consequently,
the Meeting recommended the development of programmes geared
towards alternative methods of sentencing, such as probation,
community service orders, counselling and rehabilitation in
accordance with international standards.
C. LAW ENFORCEMENT
- States should consider strengthening multi-agency
collaboration at the national level to maximize the effectiveness
of drug law enforcement.
1. Exchange of information between Caribbean
States
- States should consider establishing multi-agency bodies
responsible for the coordination, gathering, analysis and
dissemination of information and intelligence in order to
strengthen this process. In this connection, the respective
mandates and responsibilities of the agencies concerned should be
carefully defined to ensure a clear delineation of roles;
- States should consider establishing a network of national
focal points responsible for the exchange of information and
intelligence at the regional level, as well as ensuring
dissemination of information and intelligence to all relevant
agencies at the national level;
- States should ensure that national legal frameworks provide
for the exchange of information and intelligence within the
region;
- Where appropriate, States should consider adopting memoranda
of understanding at the bilateral and multilateral levels to
facilitate and set out the terms and conditions for the exchange
of information and intelligence;
- While there may be no need for a new regional system for the
exchange of information and intelligence, there is a requirement
for more effective and secure communications links between
Caribbean countries to ensure better regional cooperation;
- States should consider the establishment of a communications
network linking all the countries of the region quickly, securely
and directly through the focal points referred to above so that
information can be more closely coordinated internally. In this
connection, consideration should be given to using the
(SITA-based) telecommunications system of the International
Criminal Police Organization (ICPO/Interpol), which can be made
accessible to all drug law enforcement agencies concerned;
- If necessary, an assessment of the technical requirements for
linking existing systems for this purpose should be undertaken,
making full use of the expertise of both regional organizations
and national authorities;
- Law enforcement agencies in the Caribbean region should
continue to meet regularly, in order to secure better regional
cooperation. In addition, meetings to discuss common policies in
law enforcement and other sectors should be held on an ad hoc
basis as and when required;
2. Training
- Greater priority should be given to the provision of training
to law enforcement officers in the Caribbean at the national and
regional levels;
- Regional training institutions such as the Centre
interministériel de formation anti-drogues (CIFAD)
(Interministerial Drug Control Training Centre) in Martinique, the
Constabulary Staff College and the Regional Counter-Narcotics Law
Enforcement Training Centre (REDTRAC) in Jamaica and the Police
Training College in Barbados, have an important role in this
respect. In order to ensure that training is properly targeted at
priority areas and to avoid duplication, the mandate and role of
these institutions should be clearly defined with a view to the
closer coordination of their activities and the training which
they offer to all the countries of the region.
- Training requirements for the region should be reviewed. This
review should take into account the training provided by
Governments and interregional organizations and the training
materials made available by them, as well as utilizing the
expertise available within the region.
- Countries should undertake an assessment of national law
enforcement training needs, which should be updated as necessary
in order to assist in the development of an inventory of regional
training requirements.
3. Interregional cooperation
- In order to establish closer links between the Caribbean
region and Latin American countries, the states of the Caribbean
should consider the establishment of bilateral agreements with
Latin American countries on law enforcement matters. Where
appropriate, states should consider the creation of Caribbean Drug
Liaison Officer posts, or other appropriate measures, to improve
coordination.
4. Drug law enforcement cooperation in the
Caribbean
- In addition to continuing work on the harmonization of laws,
it is proposed that a comprehensive framework should be developed
covering the entire Caribbean region, similar to what is already
being done under the Regional Security System (RSS), the Operation
Bahamas and Turks and Caicos (OPBAT), and other similar bilateral
agreements. Such a framework would give all agencies (police,
customs, immigration, coast guard and the military) appropriate
means to carry on in the fight against illicit drugs.
- Caribbean Governments should consider legal arrangements to
establish a mechanism which would coordinate all aspects of drug
operations in the Caribbean for which those countries are
responsible. It could comprise representatives from the police,
customs, immigration, the coast guard and the military. The
mechanism could have responsibility for drug interdiction, and in
particular could coordinate the work of three subregional coast
guards in the north, centre and south of the region.
- Provision would also be made for drug interdiction at airports
and seaports, drawing on the study recently completed by the
Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council (CCLEC) at airports in
the region.
- In order to bring these proposals into being, it is
recommended that a team of Caribbean experts, assisted as
appropriate by experts from donor agencies, should:
- Analyze these concepts and prepare a report for endorsement
by regional Heads of Government;
- Prepare a list of resources required to ensure that these
proposals can be effective.
- RSS as a treaty organization, was invited to make proposals
with a view to initiating action by December 1996.
5. Money-Laundering
- States should take action to ratify and implement in full the
provisions of the 1988 Convention.
- States should continue to support the work of CFATF and to
implement the 40 recommendations of FATF and the 19
recommendations of CFATF.
- In order to provide urgently needed training and assistance at
the regional level, a financial investigation expert team should
be established, consisting of specialists from within and outside
the region, to assist those in the Caribbean responsible for the
investigation of money-laundering.
6. Precursors and essential chemicals
- Each State should enact legislation to comply fully with the
requirements of article 12 of the 1988 Convention. In this
respect, the legislation enacted by the Netherlands Antilles
appears to be a model appropriate for the Caribbean.
- States should seek advice where necessary from the
International Narcotics Control Board on precursor chemicals,
including their licit and illicit uses in order better to identify
suspicious movements.
- States should introduce effective control systems for
precursor chemicals, including, inter alia, measures
to tackle the problem of reinvoicing of cargoes.
- States should take advantage of the training available
bilaterally, for example through CIFAD in Martinique, and through
regional and international organizations.
7. Forensic science facilities
- Forensic science facilities should be made available to all
countries in the Caribbean. This can be effected through the
strengthening of existing laboratories in the region and the
establishment of drug analytical units in countries where none
exists.
- Consequently, a comprehensive study, under the auspices of
UNDCP, of the forensic support within the region should be
undertaken. In addition, there should be continued support of the
UNDCP laboratory project within the Caribbean.
- In addition, consideration should be given to strengthening
regional laboratories in order to ensure that they can provide
more sophisticated analysis of controlled substances, where
required, for the whole region.
8. Witness protection
- In order to meet the rising threat to the criminal justice
system in countries of the region in the form of intimidation and
elimination of witnesses, States should consider the need for
domestic reforms to improve the protection of witnesses and the
conclusion of agreements which would provide for regional
cooperation in the area of witness protection.
D. DEMAND REDUCTION
- The Meeting reiterated the high priority and importance of
primary drug abuse prevention programmes, particularly those
directed towards young people, and made the following
recommendations:
- All efforts in the field of demand reduction should take
into account the language and cultural differences that exist in
the region;
- The overall purpose should be to promote an integrated
approach to demand reduction;
- The need to reduce both demand and supply should be
addressed within the framework of a comprehensive, balanced and
integrated strategy;
- Demand reduction programmes should include both licit and
illicit substances of abuse;
- Programme evaluation and follow-up should be a built-in
component of all programmes, and the results should be shared at
the regional level;
- Interregional cooperation in demand reduction should be
promoted by sharing, inter alia, information and
experiences through electronic and other available information
resources.
- Timely, comparable and reliable data on substance abuse should
be collected nationally and regionally, to ensure appropriate
policy and programme development and evaluation. Such data
collection should tap into existing sources of data in each
country.
- States should establish an adequate institutional
infrastructure at the national and regional levels, including
training and necessary technology, for the collection, analysis
and dissemination of epidemiological information.
- A Caribbean-wide drug epidemiological surveillance system
should be established in cooperation with regional organizations
and agencies to support:
- The formation of research teams in each country, trained in
epidemiology research methods and data analysis, leading to the
dissemination of research findings;
- The consolidation of existing data on substance abuse, and
the refinement of existing instruments and methods to ensure
comparability;
- The provision of computer hardware and software for data
analysis to national drug commissions and the integration of the
data-processing function into related national information
systems;
- The conduct of surveys including rapid assessment studies
and studies of knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) and
other surveys as deemed appropriate in the participating
countries.
- A mechanism should be established to facilitate the exchange
of information at the national and regional level.
- The Meeting emphasized the need for drug education to take
place in the context of a skills-based approach to health and
family life education in Caribbean schools, endorsed the
inter-agency Health and Family Life Education project in the
CARICOM States, and encouraged the development of similar
programmes in non-CARICOM states. It recommended special attention
to critical target groups in formal and non-formal educational
settings, such as out-of-school youth, and the training of
teachers, guidance counsellors, school administrators and policy
makers.
- States should initiate and enhance activities at the national
and regional levels to mobilize employers and workers’
organizations to address substance abuse in the workplace through
the development of employee assistance and similar programmes, and
to strengthen partnerships between the business community and
Government in addressing drug problems.
- States should expand public awareness through working
partnerships with the media, ensure that messages are culturally
appropriate, and conduct training of trainers in communications
techniques on a regional basis as a cost-effective manner of
promoting local training and local anti-drug awareness messages.
- States should establish a training network based on existing
structures and operations, such as the Caribbean Institute on
Alcoholism and other Drugs (CARIAD), CICAD, and UWI, as well as a
fellowship programme which includes on-the-job training,
internships and study visits.
- States should explore, on a regional basis, ways to develop
in-prison programmes, including after-care/after-release
programmes and possibilities of implementing alternative
sentencing.
- States should strengthen the development of treatment and
rehabilitation programs, especially out-patient programs,
including social reintegration, through exchanges of experience
and regional training efforts, paying particular attention to
support groups and to the special needs of women and youth. A
regional assessment and evaluation of the efficacy of different
treatment modalities should be undertaken.
E. MARITIME COOPERATION
- The Meeting recognized that in the area of maritime
drug-trafficking interdiction, successful mechanisms, initiatives
and working cooperation between States of the region as well as
between these States and States outside the region already exist.
- RSS was requested to develop a plan for a framework to oversee
all the maritime aspects of drug operations in the Caribbean with
respect to the development of subregional coast guards.
- RSS was also requested to continue the development of a
subregional framework for its member States.
- The numerous bilateral cooperation agreements should be
consolidated into a regional agreement that would include all
Caribbean States, as well as France, Netherlands, the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United
States of America.
- A system to maximize and coordinate all maritime and aerial
resources available in the Caribbean should be developed. The
establishment of subregional coast guards should be continued.
- States should examine the efficiency of the registry of ships
and their capacity to verify registry. If needed, assistance
should be sought to improve the registry to enable the State to
respond quickly. States in the region should consider the
recommendations of the Working Group on Maritime Cooperation, as
endorsed by the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, in implementing
article 17 (Illicit traffic by sea) of the 1988 Convention and in
extending their cooperation to counter illicit traffic by sea.
- States should also introduce more effective controls in
monitoring the movement of vessels, particularly small vessels and
pleasure craft, through the introduction of standard regional
enforcement systems that build on existing customs clearance
documents for arriving and departing vessels. This information
should be used to develop intelligence that can drive and direct
the enforcement efforts of all law enforcement agencies in the
region. The work already being done by CCLEC to develop these
regional systems should be consolidated and further enhanced.
- To maximize scarce training resources, States that provide
maritime interdiction and coast guard training should be
encouraged to share their training schedules with UNDCP. UNDCP
should continue its efforts to consolidate model training guides
on boarding and searching vessels suspected of containing illicit
drugs. As law enforcement agencies are being required to work
together more and more frequently, regional and subregional
training programmes should be developed.
- Efforts should be made by all Governments of the region to
institute cooperation between customs administrations, the
shipping industry and port authorities to suppress drug
trafficking through the signing of memoranda of understanding.
Assistance in this regard could be provided by the International
Maritime Organization, building on the programme of memoranda of
understanding of the World Customs Organization (WCO) and the work
being done by CCLEC in the region.
- Insufficient control over cargo entering and leaving free
ports and free trade zones is a problem not only of the Caribbean
region but worldwide. Measures to suppress illicit drug
trafficking in those zones should not be less stringent than those
applied in other parts of a country's territory in accordance with
the 1988 United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in
Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, article 18 (Free trade
zones and free ports) and with the International Convention on the
Simplification and Harmonization of Customs Procedures of 1973,
adopted at Kyoto, Japan, annex F, regarding customs procedures.
- Consideration should be given to mobilizing the community to
report suspicious vessels through awareness-creation campaigns.
F. GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS
- Organizations involved in improving regional coordination and
cooperation in combating the drug problem should be strengthened.
- It would be desirable to convene an annual meeting at a high
level to ensure the follow-up and implementation of the Plan of
Action.
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