PCTC
PAPER ON DRUG TRAFFICKING
The underworld has virtually taken
a new role in the geopolitical order with the establishment of a
semi-ideological institution known as “narcocracy“[1].
It replaced communism as the new threat to democracy and to the political,
social, economic and military security of individual states. It has subtly invaded almost all countries
of the world and is now actively participating in running the economic and
political affairs of some states to the extent of dictating courses of action
of governments or worst, monopolizing the administration of government.
Narcocracy
has established an “underground empire which has more power, wealth and status than many
nations. It flies no flag on the
terrace of the United Nations, but it has larger armies, more capable
intelligence agencies, more influential diplomatic services than many countries
do”[2].
It relies solely on underground capitalism with profit as its primary
orientation and drugs as the main subject of commerce. Its strategy is bribery directed against
those occupying sensitive positions in government or participating in political
exercises by shouldering the bulk of the financial requirements of political
parties. Its social activity is giving
off dole outs in the form of money with the end in view of influencing decision
making or exerting pressure on concerned personalities to further their
interests.
By and large, narcocracy is the
resurrection of communism for it employs practically the same strategy adopted
by the former Soviet Union in extending the iron curtain to the Eastern
European Countries, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. It combines the domino doctrine and the
manifest destiny in penetrating the very seat of government of sovereign states
and employ the most subtle of all tactics to evade the scrutinizing eyes of law
enforcement agencies. Thus, it portrait
itself as a pressure group or an interest group or combine legitimate business
with drug trade. But as it expand its
operation, it undermines the national power of the legitimate government to the
extent of incapacitating the same in the performance of its function including
the delivery of basic services to its constituents. It is at this point that government and the people themselves
feel the adverse impact of this seemingly legal endeavor and begin to confront
the same as a criminal activity.
However, in the assessment of the extent of the problem, the drug trade
has already completed its task of criminalizing the bureaucracy from the most
sensitive to the least recognized position in government. Hence, a gargantuan task by few good men to
boldly declare war on drugs has to be conceptualized. For unless urgent and decisive measures are implemented, the drug
trade will continue to flourish because there is practically no indication that
it will disappear by itself[3]. If it remains unabated,
“it can threaten the very
existence of our states, our people, our culture and deprive us of a civilized
identity. Hence there is an urgent need
for an all out struggle against this calamity[4].”
II. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF THE DRUG PROBLEM
The drug trade dates back during
the 16th century when Great Britain begun exploring new territories
in the Far East in search for raw materials to sustain its industrial
revolution. It was in this exploration
process, and in the acquisition of new territories, that the opium poppy and
the Indian hemp were discovered to be abundant along the “fertile crescent”,
extending from the Persian Gulf to the heart of China particularly in the
Yunnan Provinces and then to the Indo-China territories. This was originally utilized for medical purposes by the Chinese
and in religious ceremonies by the Buddhists.
The commodity was then regularly exported to Great Britain and because of its sedative and addiction
effects, was utilized mostly by British soldiers in their wars with other
colonial powers of Europe.
The increasing demand for this
commodity prompted Great Britain to further pressure China to cultivate and
produce opium as a major crop primarily for export. However, China recognizing the adverse effect of the commodity on
the populace if unregulated and abused,
passed an Imperial Decree regulating and limiting the production and
utilization of opium. Hence, it has to
turn down the request of the British government. What followed was the
imposition, by the latter, of military sanctions forcing China to declare war
on Great Britain known in history as
the “Opium War”. China was vanquished
and has to accede to the terms and conditions imposed by the victor which
includes among others the repeal of the Anti-Opium Law of the emperor, increase in the production and exportation
of opium and occupation by Great Britain of all the shoreline territories of
China including Shanghai and Hongkong.
The drug trade flourished which encouraged other colonial powers to
force their colonies to produce the same commodity. Macau and Indo-China were
pressured to produce and exported opium to Portugal and Franch respectively
until these colonial powers themselves begun to recognized the ill-effects of
drugs on their own people. Laws were passed regulating the same until it was
declared as illegal forcing the trade to go underground. Thus the struggle against drugs and the drug
trade begun.
III.
A) THE INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE ON THE DRUG TRADE
Most
organized crimes have developed and transformed themselves into transnational
criminal corporations with home base in their place of origin but operate
illegally in other countries thereby transcending national boundaries hence,
the term “transnational crime[5].” These include the Italian Mafia, the Chinese
Triads, the Japanese Yakuza, the American
Mafia, and Medellin and Cali Cartels of Columbia. They deal primarily with drugs as a source
of income to finance other criminal endeavors and utilizing extortion,
corruption, blackmail, threat and use of physical force to facilitate their
transactions.
The American Mafia which rose during the Prohibition period
had been a marginal player in the cocaine industry and ultimately decline largely because of its being very
familiar to law enforcement agencies,
the criminal justice system was invulnerable to intimidation and corruption and
the political system and police itself
were professionalized.
On the other hand, the Medellin and the Cali Cartels of
Columbia prolonged with impunity their
drug trafficking activities because their organization was comfortably built on
the purchase of broad political influence, in addition to their successful
intimidation of law enforcement authorities.
This allowed the principals to freely launder the proceeds of this crime
to real properties within and outside Columbia and since the profit was
enormous a systematic corruption and criminalization of the Colombian
bureaucracy was effected. The cocaine
cartels even tried to distort the diplomatic policies of Columbia to the extent
of offering to pay Columbia’s foreign debt of more than $10 billion if the
extradition treaty between Columbia and the United States is abrogated[6]. The same scenario took place in Bolivia when
one of its drug barons, Roberto Suarez Gomez offered to pay Bolivia’s foreign
debt in exchange for the release of his son who was imprisoned in the United
States on drug charges[7]. The Colombian Cartels were able to expand
their activities to almost all the coastline countries of South America using
precisely the same tactic that of criminalizing the bureaucracy by paying huge
amount of money to bribe those occupying sensitive positions in
government. What is unique in Brazil
was the fact that drug barons were able to effectively control the shanty towns
of Rio del Janeiro known as “ghettos”[8].
“Official
government authority is eroded and can only be maintained by increasingly
oppressive means. The wealthy live in
walled and guarded prison – like enclaves and become increasingly alienated
from others less fortunate than themselves.
Corruption is widespread. The
police become persecutors, not protectors.
The agents of the state are seen as assassins. The state becomes the enemy and the ghettos a state within a
state. The people are trapped in the
crossfire. The area is characterized by
misery, extreme violence and death”[9].
In the trafficking of drugs to the United States and other countries, the
cocaine cartels were able to assume a transnational corporation status largely
utilizing Panama as a transhipment point, a country which was also placed at
the mercy of the South American drug lords.
The Panama Canal is an ideal place for the transportation of drugs to
different countries of the world since many ship frequently traverse the canal
en route to the Asia Pacific and European Countries considering that 85% of
world shipping industries are of Panamanian Registry. The administration of Manuel Noriega benefited from that drug
trade and Noriega himself was charged
by the United states as a drug baron causing the invasion of Panama leading to his arrest to stand trial in the
United States for drug trafficking charges.
In Europe, the Italian Mafia has
grown from a local to a transnational criminal corporation generating huge amount of income largely from the drug
trade which ranges form $21.5 billion to $24 billion a year[10]. It has even forged alliances with Latin
American and Russian Mafia establishing a transnational drug network that
facilitates the movement of drugs from one country to another having favorable
markets for this commodity.
Russia was the newest state to
join the organization of drug inflicted countries with the establishment of the
Russian Mafia which rose from the rubbles of the Soviet Union followed by
political, economic and social unrest within what was left of the union. Narcotics trafficking became a foundation of
the global criminal power of organized groups generating and controlling 25% of
Russian GNP[11].
Many countries of the world have
been afflicted by the menace including Mexico, members of the Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS) and some African countries. Other states are vulnerable prey and will soon experience the
scourge of drugs as transnational criminal corporations continue to establish
strongholds in countries that offer favorable market and a favorable
environment for drug investment and laundering of drug proceeds.
B. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
AGAINST DANGEROUS DRUGS
Even prior to the establishment
of the United Nations in 1945 and its precursor, the League of Nation of 1919,
international initiatives to arrest the proliferation of the drug trade was
already in place. Countries of Europe
and Asia were gathered in Shanghai, China to explore regional cooperation on
drugs in 1909 and their efforts were consolidated and finally ratified in 1912[12].
However, the agreement died a
nature death as isolation and nationalism prevailed among European Countries
manifested by military aggression and territorial expansion.
With the establishment of the
United Nations, representatives of member states, recognizing the adverse
effects of drugs, were able to consolidate national differences and arrived at
generally accepted agreements and conventions which are enforceable in
accordance with the constitutional processes and national laws of individual
states. These were primarily designed to curve the spread of dangerous drugs
and psychotropic substances. These
international laws on narcotics control are:
1.
The 1961 Single Convention on
Narcotic Drugs.
The 1961 Single convention on
Narcotic Drugs is designed to prevent drug addiction through cooperation
between and among states. It provides
among other things that “the possession, use, trade in, distribution, import,
export, manufacture and production of drugs is exclusively limited to medical
and scientific purposes. It is
primarily designed to prohibit the abuse of drugs, prevent its diversion to other
purposes not specifically mentioned which
would be injurious to health, establish an international system to guide
signatory-states in penalizing violators of the convention, and
institutionalized the establishment of
an International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) to oversee the manufacture of
drugs for purposes mentioned in the convention.
Attached to this convention is a
protocol ratified in 1972 amending the 1961 convention which obligate states to
establish institutions that will provide treatment and rehabilitation of
addicts and drug dependents.
2. The 1971 Convention
on Psychotropic Substances
This international agreement
calls on member states to initiate measures
to control the proliferation of advance forms of drugs such as pharmaceutical
and synthetic drugs to include sedatives, hypnotic, psychostimulants, and
hallucinogens and to establish measures to penalize violators of the agreement.
3.
The 1988 United Nations
Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic
Substances.
This convention rally member
states to take necessary measures, including legislative and administrative
measures, in conformity with the fundamental provisions of their respective
domestic legislative systems to halt the spread of drugs and psychotropic
substances. It specifically prohibits
the following:
a) i)
The production, manufacture, extraction, preparation, offering, offering for sale, distribution, sale, delivery on any terms whatsoever,
brokerage, dispatch, dispatch in transit, transport, importation or exportation
of any narcotic drug or any psychotropic substance…
ii) The cultivation of opium
poppy, coca bush or cannabis plant for the purpose of the production of
narcotic drugs…
iii) The possession or
purchase of any narcotic drug or psychotropic substances…
iv) The manufacture, transport or distribution of equipment, materials
or of substances.. knowing that they are to be used in or for the illicit
cultivation, production or manufacture of narcotic drugs or psychotrotreptin
substances.
v) The organization, management
or financing of any of the offenses enumerated above.
b) i) The conversion or
transfer of property, knowing that such property is derived form any offense or
offences as mentioned above… or from an act of participation in such offense or
offenses, for the purpose of concealing or disguising the illicit origin of the
property or with assisting any person who is involved in the commission of such
an offense or offenses to evade the legal consequences of his actions.
ii) The concealment or disguise of the true
nature, source, location, disposition, movement, rights with respect to, or
ownership of property, knowing that such property is derived from an offense or
offenses established therein or from act of participation in such offense or
offenses.
Several
governmental organizations accredited by the United Nations were established as
operating arm in the fight against drug trafficking. Among these are: the
Commission on Narcotic Drugs, International Narcotics Control Board, United
Nations Fund for Drug Abuse Control, Opium De-Addiction Treatment, Drug Abuse
Prevention Programme, and many other related international organizations.
The
Southeast Asian Region is a “hot spot” in relation to the drug trade. Many countries of the region are either
producers, manufacturers and exporters of drugs and many organized criminal
syndicates that deal on drugs originate from the region. China is a leading
producer of opium poppy cultivated along the Yunnan Provinces and is also
actively engaged in the manufacture and trafficking of methamphetamine
hydrochloride or “shabu”. The “Golden Triangle” which includes Burma, Thailand
and Laos produce and manufacture opium and heroin. These products are also
produced by Afghanistan, Pakistan and India including Nepal which cultivates
Indian hemp along the Himalaya Mountains. Burma in particular openly cultivates
opium poppy as a major cash crop and is one of the leading producers of this
commodity in the world. On the other hand, cannabis (marijuana) is produced and
exported from Cambodia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Indonesia.
These
drug crops are trafficked or smuggled to foreign countries particularly to
those offering safe havens such as those with favorable market environment,
weak criminal justice system, corrupt law enforcement, immigration and customs
officials and politicians, and a weak border protection and immigration laws.
These are the national conditions that favor the entry of transnational
criminal corporations within their territories. Thus, the Chinese Triads based in Hongkong, which were established in China during the
reign of the Ching Dynasty, specialize in the trafficking of drugs to different
parts of the world. These triads
include the Wo Hop To, 14K, Sun Ye On, Wo Sing Wo, United Bamboo Gang, Four
Seas Gang, and Big Circle Boys[13].
They generate huge profit from their drug trade and utilize the same to bribe
officials of the host state to provide them with unhampered criminal
operations.
The
Japanese Yakuza on the other hand is also an international criminal agent of
drugs. It is divided into three groups: the Yamaguchi-gumi, the Inagawa-kai and
the Sumiyushi-kai[14].
They are engaged in drug trafficking, smuggling of firearms, illegal gambling,
money laundering, and sex trade. They are aggressively operating not only in
the Asia-Pacific region but throughout the world.
Considering the horrible drug
trade situation in Southeast Asia, the
members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are continuously
pooling their resources to effectively address drug trafficking. The member
states recognize the fact that because of the transnational character of this
menace, no single state in the region can effectively address the problem on
its own initiative. They proposed a comprehensive regional approach to the
problem which led to the intensification of dialogues among ASEAN members.
Several ASEAN bodies were formed to address this threat to include the ASEAN Chiefs of National
Police (ASEANAPOL) which consolidate efforts of National Police Forces, enhance
regional law enforcement cooperation and harmonize policing system in the
region, the ASEAN Senior Officials on Drug Matters (ASOD) which focuses on drug
related activities, and the ASEAN Finance Ministers Meeting (AFMM) which is
concerned with customs enforcement, anti-smuggling and money laundering. Recently, the ASEAN Ministers of
Interior/Home Affairs meeting was first hosted by the Philippines on December
18-20, 1997. The three day summit resulted in the signing of the ASEAN
Declaration on Transnational Crime which includes the establishment of an ASEAN
Center on Transnational Crime (ACOT) to coordinate regional efforts against
transnational crimes through intelligence sharing, harmonization of policies
and coordination of operations.
Several centers are also
established to help in the resolution of this menace. Among these are the ASEAN
Training Center for Narcotic Law Enforcement (Bangkok), ASEAN Training Center
for Preventive Drug Education (Manila), ASEAN Training Center for Treatment and
Rehabilitation (Kuala Lumpur), ASEAN Training Center for the Declaration of
Drugs in Body Fluids (Singapore), and the ASEAN Center on Transnational Crime
(Manila).
The Council for Security
Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (CSCAP) is also a regional agency that monitors
and analyses developments and trends and prescribes plans, programs and
policies for the advancement of harmonious relations within the Asia-Pacific.
They conduct extensive strategic researches and international studies, the
results of which are indispensable in
the formulation of legislative and administrative measures as well as
national and regional policies.
The drug problem in the Philippines is very serious than we
realize it to be. Everyday, daily newspapers bombard us of drug pushers, users,
traffickers, drug lords to include foreigners being apprehended by law
enforcement authorities. Almost everyday also, we read or witness authorities
proudly declaring the recovery of several grams or several kilos of shabu or
marijuana including drug related paraphernalia or the burning of huge volume of
drugs in police camps. We also witness many incidents of rape, killings and
robberies and other heinous crimes perpetrated by drug-crazed individuals.
Apart from these are more shocking news that the Philippines is being utilized
as a transhipment point of drugs by transnational criminal organizations, that
government officials are involved in the drug trade, that shabu laboratories
are operating in the Philippines , and that shabu are being sold in ordinary
stores like any other commodity. These, however, are just symptoms, visible
signs or what we call the tip of the iceberg. Hidden from the naked eye is the
horrifying menace: WE ARE IN THE GRIP
OF POWERFUL DRUG SYNDICATES.
Indeed, transnational criminal
organizations such as the Japanese Yakuza and the Chinese Triads are actively
operating in the country. Many of those apprehended by the law enforcement
authorities are of foreign nationals specifically Chinese and Japanese and many
of them are languishing in jail on drug-related charges. The recent controversy
within the Philippine National Police was ignited by the arrest of big time
drug lords like Rafael Madraso who is of a Filipino-Chinese decent, Vicente
Sy, Chua Hong Que alias Tony Chua, and
Jimmy Hung Kin Sing alias Jimmy Ang who are all Chinese nationals.
No less than Commissioner
Alejandro P Melchor III of the Philippine Anti-Organized Crime Commission has
specifically identified the extent of illegal drug activities in the
Philippines as follows:
1.
The RP is a producer, exporter
and consumer of cannabis plant-based drugs (marijuana, hashish, et al).
2.
The RP is an importer and
consumer of synthetic drugs, in particular methamphetamine hydrochloride
(shabu).
3.
The RP is a transit point for the
international trade in heroin and cocaine.
4.
The RP is being used as a
recreation place, an investment and money laundering haven, and a hiding place
for international drug syndicates, some of whom envision it as a regional
headquarters in the near future.
The drug menace has also
infiltrated Malacañang, the seat of President Estrada’s government. Recently,
two Malacañang employees were caught in the act of sniffing shabu within the
Malacañang grounds. It confirms therefore that this menace operates under the
very nose of our government and our law making the war against drug syndicates
an urgent task of good and dedicated men.
B.
THE PHILIPPINE CONDITION
FAVORABLE TO THE DRUG TRADE
Crimes thrive in societies
suffering from social, political and economic crises. The Philippines is just
starting to emerge from the economic slow down that has plague the Southeast
Asian region accompanied by the rapid devaluation of the peso, closure of many
multinational corporations and banks, rise in the prices of basic commodities
and recently, the increase in the prices of oil. All of these definitely lead
to unemployment, mass layoff and
poverty, a favorite breeding ground of the drug trade which is viewed as an
alternative source of income. The devaluation of the peso has attracted drug
lords to launder money into the country considering the high value of the
dollar. The crisis has left the national treasury virtually bankrupt prompting the government to call for
nationwide fiscal stringency and went further to lessen the budget of operating
agencies thereby adversely affecting the law enforcement campaign capability
against drug trafficking.
To hasten economic recovery, the
government is continuously inviting foreign investors and multinational
corporations to do business in the country. The Medium Term Philippine
Development Plan (MTPDP) of President Estrada seeks to alleviate the country’s
poverty through liberalization, deregulation, and globalization to create a
market-friendly environment for foreign investors. It is also concentrating a
large amount of government funds to boost tourism in the country to attract
foreigners. Apart from this, the government is attracting dollar inflow into
the national coffer to help stabilize the peso. All of these offer a great
convenience for transnational criminal organizations like the Chinese Triads
and the Japanese Yakuza to enter the country under the guise of multinational
corporations. This economic environment also encourage the influx of foreign
criminals or members of the transnational criminal organizations into the
country with ease masquerading as legitimate investors and tourists. This
economic approach to social progress has also beef up the entry of illegal
goods and services including drugs since laws on the movement of these
commodities are being relaxed in the spirit of liberalization and
deregulation.
The banking system of the
Philippines provides a very safe haven for proceeds from the drug trade.
Philippine banks are among the most secretive in the world similar to
Switzerland, Austria, Japan, Monaco, Cyprus, and the Netherlands Antilles but
is not as secretive as Austria which allows anonymous bank accounts[15].
Philippine banks are not required to report suspicious currency transaction and
may divulge bank accounts only upon lawful orders of the courts. Laws on the
transport of Philippine currency are also very lenient. Thus, transnational
criminal organizations take advantage of this banking environment because their
funds will be definitely out of reach by law enforcement and BIR authorities.
Geographically, the Philippines
is at the cross road between the Asian drug-producing and exporting countries
and the Pacific drug-dependent countries. It is therefore strategically located
making it vulnerable to transnational criminal corporations primarily as a
transit point and at the same time a market for drugs. Apart from this is the
archipelagic condition of the Philippines which is composed of many islands and
islets scattered south of Taiwan and north of Borneo and Indonesia thereby creating
a very long and broken coastlines around the archipelago. It is therefore very
difficult and even very expensive to effectively patrol these coastlines
rendering them virtually unguarded making it vulnerable to drug trafficking and
smuggling.
On the other hand, the political
system of the country including law enforcement is power and not service oriented making
professionalization difficult to introduce. Politicians and other government
employees see themselves as masters and not servants of the people, a situation
which is an open prey to graft and corruption. Enrichment in office is a
primary motivation as manifested by the assets and liabilities of members of
Congress as published in newspapers. This political environment aggravated by a
meager salary is exploited by drug lords who have in their possession huge
amount of money generated from the drug trade. Only "professional public
servants" would reject the offer but many would sacrifice public service
with self-interest. The recent developments within the PNP, even if it will not
be proven to be true, is a classical example of how public officials are prone
to bribery and how power can influence the course of an endeavor in favor of
drug lords. According to a 1998 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report
released by the US Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement
Affairs, “ Philippine law enforcement efforts suffer from corruption of police,
customs and military officials. Judicial corruption is also acknowledged to be
an impediment to drug prosecutions”[16].
The social condition of the people
also offers a favorable drug market. Approximately seventy five percent (75%)
of the country’s seventy four million (74 million) Filipinos are still living
below the poverty line. As such, people are easily agitated to sow social
unrest to call for social reforms thereby diverting attention of law
enforcement authorities to this problem rather that threats from the outside
primarily drug trafficking. The cravings for food and money drive individuals
to ran errands for drug lords thus making the drug trade as a source of
livelihood. Worst, children whose parents cannot afford to feed them sniff
drugs to stop the hunger gnawing at their stomachs. Entertainers, drivers and
conductors take shabu to let them stay awake and perform overtime works for
additional incentives. Children of middle class, educated families take shabu
during review and examinations thus increasing the clients of drug lords.
C)
IMPACT OF THE DRUG TRADE ON
PHILIPPINE
SOCIETY
The effect of the drug trade on
Philippine society is very appalling especially if we rely on surveys and
figures. Based on the assessment of the National Drug Law Enforcement and
Prevention Coordinating Center (NDLEPCC), 14% of the 42,979 barangays of the
Philippines or a total of 6,020 barangays
are drug-infested[17].
In Metro Manila alone, 35% or 604 of its 1,692 barangays are under the control
of drugs[18]. The drug
users comprises approximately 5% or 3.7
million of the 74 million Filipinos[19]
of which according to the NDLEPCC echoing the survey of the National Youth
Commission (NYC), 7% or approximately 1.2 million of the total youth population
of 17 million ages 15 to 29 are drug users[20].
This figures will eventually increase if the drug trade remains unabated. It is
probably from these data that prompted the PNP Narcotics Group to declare that
the drug problem is the number one threat to national security[21]
to include political, economic and social security.
The political security of the country will continue to be
seriously undermined because of the corrupt values of people in government who
are desperately in need of financial resources to sustain basic necessities
aggravated by meager income. They will naturally succumb to temptations offered
by drug lords who have huge financial resources at their disposal in return for
unhampered drug activities. If this remains uncorrected, the drug lords will
become even more powerful and can participate in governmental decision making
or exert tremendous pressure on government officials to perform acts favorable
to the drug lords but inimical to the general welfare. They can even secretly
finance political parties or contribute to the campaign requirements of a
candidate, such that if their favored candidate is elected, they can ask favor
in relation to their activities which is sometimes difficult to turn down
considering the well entrenched Filipino value of utang na loob. Drug lords can
infiltrate social development initiatives of national and local governments through
donations or contributions. In this way, they assimilate themselves with the
people thus winning their hearts and minds conducive to exploitation.
Another area where drug lords can penetrate is the problem
of insurgency and secessionism. The drug lords can finance the activities of
these rebel groups to create social unrest or sow terror in order to shift
government attention from the drug trade to this political problem. They can
even utilize these rebel groups as agents of the trade or as instruments to
encourage widespread addiction or intimidate the populace and force them to be
drug clients or as protectors of their interests.
On the other hand, the drug trade
may create an imbalance resulting to inflation because of enormous profit
laundered into the financial system not supported by currency or gold reserves.
Criminal business becomes a leader subordinating legitimate businesses. This
facilitates the transfer of ownership of productive assets into criminal hands
leading to monopoly of crucial industries to a point where legitimate
businessmen can no longer compete. This can lead to economic distortion because
of massive pullout of capital from speculative investments. In an attempt to
convert profit from the drug trade into clean financial assets to make it
appear that it originated from legitimate business, other economic crimes are
committed such as bank fraud, trading malpractice, tax evasion, and smuggling
of raw cash across international borders, all of which can destabilize the
national capital market.
In threatening the social security
of the state, drug trade takes its toll on the ordinary citizens ranging from
drug addiction to other forms of criminal activities. The abuser definitely
suffers short term and long term toxic effects including less productive life,
drug dependence, mental, emotional and physical disorders and exposure to
transmissible diseases such as AIDS, hepatitis and tuberculosis.
The family shares the agony to
include violence against family members, child abuse, rape, poverty, separation
of spouses, and definitely a broken family.
The state on the other hand will be
crippled of productive work force. Law enforcement authorities will be facing
increasing volume of crimes from the most petty to the most bizarre. The
Dangerous Drugs Board states that 75% of the crimes committed are attributable
to drugs[22]. Apart from
this is the responsibility of the government in rehabilitating drug addicts so
that they will be assets when they return to society.
D)
PCTC’S PROPOSED SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEM
The drug problem
can be addressed through the following:
1.
Inclusion
of dangerous drugs and related subjects
as part of the regular curriculum of schools. This is a more down to
earth solution to the problem founded on the idea that a person with strong
character and determination will say no to drugs even in the face of all
temptations. This will allow him to build up his will power and make him
realize that only he and he alone can eliminate the drug habit and that he no
longer needs to rely on drugs to enjoy the happy life he craves for.
2.
Parental
intervention based on the fact that parents exercise primary
responsibility in preventing their
children from being hooked on drugs. Appropriate sanctions should be institutionalized
and imposed on parents who fail to effectively exercise this primary
responsibility.
3.
Devolution
of the anti-drug campaign program of the government to the local government
units. The mayors and barangay chairmen will lead their local policemen and
barangay tanods, respectively, in clearing their territorial jurisdictions from
the menace of dangerous drugs. This is very effective because monitoring of
activities of their constituents can be undertaken. Thus, drug users and
pushers including big time suppliers can be easily identified and the necessary
remedies can be effected within their levels. National agencies with drug
functions will act as monitoring agencies and exercise administrative control
and supervision over the anti-drug campaign of local governments with power to
recommend and impose administrative sanctions against local chief executives
who fail to eradicate dangerous drug activities in their area.
4.
The
national dangerous drug agencies should coordinate with church leaders and
cause-oriented groups to help in the anti-drug campaign. The church and civic
leaders should help educate their constituents on the adverse effects of drugs
and rally them to repudiate the proliferation of the menace and to help create
an environment of vigilance against dangerous drugs.
5.
The
same national drug agencies should establish partnership with the tri-media to
help in the information campaign against this menace. Dangerous drugs should be
one of the subjects of TV hosts and advertisements, spearheaded by popular
media personalities and sport stars, to create awareness on the ill effects of
drugs and to motivate ordinary citizens to report drug related activities to
proper authorities.
6.
The
national drug law enforcement centers and agencies will continue with their
anti-drug activities to purge the society of drug lords and organized criminal
syndicates specializing on drugs.
7.
The
Philippine Center on Transnational Crime (PCTC) will perform its mandated
functions and specifically monitor and identify foreign nationals engaged in
drug trafficking, identify foreign sources of drugs, trace movements of drugs
from other countries to the Philippines, and gather data on how these drugs are
able to enter Philippine territory without being detected by concerned authorities
and agencies. The PCTC will coordinate
with regional and international organizations for a regional or international
cooperation approach to this transnational crime to include the possible
creation of a regional task force against dangerous drugs to facilitate
apprehension of foreign nationals operating within the Southeast Asian Region.
8. The PCTC
will conduct a feasibility study for the adoption of a national policy or for
the legislation of a suspicionless, random drug testing law for the sake of
public safety and human productivity. The City of Manila has already started
with this proposition by virtue of an ordinance passed by the City Council
requiring a compulsory drug testing to all high school students to be conducted
before enrollment. A national law should be passed similar to this ordinance
which should apply not only to high school students but also to college
students, government employees and all company workers. The law should also
require drug testing for all electorates because drug abuse undermines an
objective and intelligent decision on political issues. In this case, public
health, public safety and national security in particular and the common good
in general takes precedence over private rights.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Chufrin,
Gennady. 1998. “The Drug Trade: A New Security Threat to Russia from the East.”A
paper presented at the 3rd Meeting of the CSCAP Working Group on
Transnational Crime, Manila, Philippines.
Iselin,
Brian and Alastair MacGibbon.1998. “International Initiative to Combat
Transnational Criminality.”A
paper presented to the 3rd meeting of the CSCAP Working Group on
Transnational Crime, Canderra, Australia.
Lorenzo, Harry C. Jr. “International
Cooperation in Dealing With the International
Economic Crime.”A paper presented during the
Sixteenth International Symposium on Economic Crime, Jesus College, Cambridge,
England.
McFarlane John. 1997. “Transnational
Crime as a Security Issue”, Paper presented at the 1997 meeting of CSCAP in Bangkok, Thailand.
Melchor,
Alejandro P. United People Against Crime. A compilation of Reasearch Studies,
Manila, Philippines.
Brochure of the National Drug Law
Enforcement and Prevention Coordinating Center
CSIS, “Transnational Criminal Activity.”
The Lawyers Review.
The Philippine Star.
[1] Alejandro P.
Melchor III, “An Overview of the Drug Problem in the Philippines”, Part I of The Menace of the Drug
Syndicate, United People Against Crime, p.1.
[2] Harry C. Lorenzo Jr.,
“International Cooperation in Dealing with the International Economic Crime,”
p.2, quoting Alvin Toffler, Power Shift (New York: Bantam Books, 1990), p.453.
[3]
Gennady Chufrin, “The Drug Trade: A New Security
Threat to Russia from the East”. A Presentation to the 3rd
Meeting of the CSCAP Working Group on Transnational Crime, 23-24 May 1998,
Manila, Philippines, p.11.
[4]
Ibid.
[5]
For
a definition see John McFarlane, “Transnational Crime as a Security Issue”,
A Presentation to the 3rd Meeting of the CSCAP Working Group on Transnational
Crime, 23-24 May 1998, Manila, Philippines, p.4.
[6]
Ibid.,
p.10
[7] Op. Cit., p.10
[8] Op. Cit., p.10
[9] Op. Cit., p.10
[10]
Harry
C. Lorenzo Jr., “International Cooperation in Dealing with the International Economic
Crime”, p.3.
[11] CSIS, “Transnational
Criminal Activity”.
[12]
Brian
Iselin and MacGibbon, Alastain, “International Initiative to Combat
Transnational Criminality”. A Presentation to the 3rd
Meeting of the CSCAP Working Group on Transnational Crime, 23-24 May 1998,
Canberra, Australia, p.15.
[13]
John
MacFarlane, “Transnational Crime as a Security Issue”, A Presentation to the 3rd
Meeting of the CSCAP Working Group on Transnational Crime, 23-24 May 1998,
Manila, Philippines, p.5.
[14] Ibid.
[15] CSIS, “Transnational
Criminal Activity”.
[16]
Dulce
M. Arguelles, “Drug Enforcement Hampered by Corruption”, Philippine Star,
Tuesday, May 4, 1999.
[17]
Brochure
of the National Drug Law Enforcement and Prevention Coordinating Center.
[18] Ibid.
[19]
Jose
Tomas C. Syquia, “Legal Framework on Drugs and Alcohol Abuse Testing in the Workplace”,
The Lawyers Review, VolXIII No.4, p.27.
[20] Op.
Cit.
[21]
Alejandro
P. Melchor III, “The Drug as the No. I Threat to National Security”, Part IX of
The Menace of the Drug Syndicate, United People Against Crime, p.1.
[22] Ibid.