From Seattle to Palermo: Hopes to win over the global mafia

The UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime was adopted by the United Nations last month, followed by a UN conference which included signing of the Convention in Palermo, Italy, from Dec. 12-15. The Bangkok-based Representative of the Regional Center for East Asia and the Pacific for the UN International Drug Control Program, Sandro Calvani, writes his personal views on the issue.

BANGKOK (JP): The end of the 20th century saw one of the largest outcries against corporate dominance of the global economy. The November and December 1999 protests in Seattle against the World Trade Organization carried the message that globalization is dangerous if not treated with great multi- cultural care.

According to economist Herman Daly, globalization refers to a system where there are uniform rules in which capital and goods move at will without the rule of individual nations.

Despite the many benefits that ensue from the free flow of goods and trade, often there is neglect for local, national, and international laws that traditionally set and regulate standards.

Globalization does not always provide for a better future and not surprisingly, there are endless numbers of individuals waiting to exploit the instabilities and inequalities characteristic among countries. Globalization should serve peoples' aspirations, not prey upon them.

Transnational organized crime has become a worldwide concern and although groups such as the Colombian cartels, the Asian triads, and the Italian mafias, are hardly new contenders to the scene, they are beginning to play larger roles in the international arena.

New organized criminal groups are also emerging at an enormous speed, acting as networks to pursue the same types of joint ventures and strategic alliances as legitimate global business.

The scope of their activities is broad -- corruption, drug and arms trafficking, human smuggling, fraud, money laundering and cybercrime -- which presents only a few examples of the transnational crimes that threaten international security.

The roots of organized crime are deep and they frequently have powerful connections with politicians, government officials and law enforcement officers.

Criminals would rather influence and intimidate a government and undermine legitimate businesses rather than overtly destroy them. Once the government is powerless to fight against transnational crime, sovereignty is threatened and national social fabric deteriorates under the growing power of the organized criminal groups.

The dark side of globalization must be acknowledged and addressed because every nation, irrespective of its geographical, political, or economic situation, is affected.

Can international efforts truly dismantle organized crime? In November, former Prime Minister of Thailand, Anand Panyarachun, stated to the ASEAN Chiefs of Armies that countries, in particular member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, must be open to new ideas because previously employed tactics cannot counter new situations effectively.

"The first, and perhaps the most pressing (new security issues) is, international crimes," Panyarachun pronounced. The international community requires leverage to combat the evils of organized crime.

Representing the first legally binding UN instrument in the field of crime, the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime opened for signature at a high-level conference held in Palermo, Italy, from Dec. 12 to 15.

The Convention is a tool to help countries focus on actions they could adopt independently or cooperatively in the areas of mutual legal assistance, corruption, money laundering, confiscation and judicial measures, informal cooperation, joint investigations, and special investigative techniques.

For many countries that choose to ratify the Convention, they will be entering into unchartered territory.

Nevertheless, any step towards establishing protection against organized crime is positive since criminals seek out countries that have less effective regulatory and enforcement systems.

Any country that does not have appropriate defenses against transnational organized crime generates an increased vulnerability to its neighboring countries.

In this field, the new UN Convention carries a bold statement; if there is a will, there is a way to win over the global mafias.

Governments, communities, civil society, and the private sector must unite to meet the changing dynamics of crime and develop viable solutions.

"To combat transnational organized crime, a new sort of mentality must be created -- one that understands and is capable of putting up organized resistance", stated Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the UN Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention.

"Above all, the international community needs to act more effectively than the criminal organizations that threaten us." Transnational organized crime should not be viewed as a single entity; the interconnecting relationships among the various offenses must be recognized if the phenomena is to be effectively addressed.

To rebuild human security in a globalized world will not be an easy task but cooperatively, the proliferation of organized crime can be controlled. Can we afford to do it? Rather, we should consider whether we can afford not to do it.