|
|
|
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL STRATEGY REPORT, MARCH 1996: CZECH REPUBLIC
United States Department of State
Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
I. Summary
In 1995, the Czech Republic emerged as a target of the drug trade, while
continuing as a conduit for illicit drug smuggling. Drug traffickers
rapidly expanded drug markets, money laundering operations, and
production of amphetamines during 1995. Low drug prices in the Czech
Republic and legislation which permits the possession of drugs for
personal use also attracted increasing numbers of "drug tourists" from
Austria and Germany. In response to the rising drug threats, the
Government of the Czech Republic (GOCR) bolstered its antidrug program
by developing a new three-year national antidrug campaign which, once
adopted, will emphasize both law enforcement and demand reduction
programs. New legislation which allows for undercover operations and
targets money laundering will significantly increase the effectiveness
of GOCR counterdrug operations. In December, the Czech Republic also
signed the Council of Europe's Convention on Money Laundering, Seizure
and Confiscation of Proceeds from Crime. Despite these signs of
progress, the development of a national drug control plan was hampered
by philosophical differences.
II. Status of Country
Czech police believe that drug organizations are accelerating efforts to
target domestic markets, strengthen smuggling networks, expand
amphetamine production, and launder drug profits. According to Czech
officials, organized crime groups from the Newly Independent States
(NIS) and the former Yugoslavia, as well as Italian groups such as the
Neapolitan Camorra and the Sicilian Mafia, are establishing bases in the
Czech Republic.
These groups and others use the Czech Republic as a conduit for
smuggling drugs to Western Europe. For instance, Turks and local
Czechs, Kosovo Albanians, Russians, and former Yugoslavs move large
cargoes of heroin from the Golden Crescent -- Afghanistan, Pakistan, and
Iran -- to West European markets. More recently, South American cocaine
traffickers have begun to target the Czech Republic as a staging ground
to reach West European markets and Czech Customs officials recently
apprehended a series of small-time drug couriers traveling by air to
Prague.
The National Hygienic Service estimates the number of persons dependent
on drugs at approximately 200,000, of whom about 1,200 are addicts.
Drug use in the Czech Republic is on the rise, including in the
countryside where demand reduction programs are scarce. Police
authorities find that amphetamines are the most prevalent drug, but use
of heroin and cocaine is also becoming more widespread. While
amphetamines are often imported from Poland, pervitin, a stimulant
manufactured locally from ephedrine, is also becoming more widely used.
The relatively low prices and the legal provision permitting possession
of drugs for personal use, are also attracting drug "tourists,"
particularly from Germany. In the Czech Republic, heroin and cocaine
sell for one-third of the price they command in either Germany or
Austria.
III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 1995
Policy Initiatives. In response to the rise in drug abuse, the Czech
National Drug Commission (NDC), which coordinates among eleven
ministries and departments, is developing a three-year national
counternarcotics plan that emphasizes both law enforcement and drug
abuse prevention and treatment. Key to this effort, is an extensive
demand reduction training plan focusing on school-based prevention
programs, which are being extended from elementary to high schools. The
Czech government made steady progress in revising antidrug legislation
to bolster law enforcement mechanisms targeted against crime and
facilitate implementation of the 1988 UN Convention. The changes
include:
-- amendments to the penal code, allowing the police to conduct
undercover operations, providing for the use of confidential informants,
and establishing a witness protection program.
-- the adoption of a draft bill on narcotics and psychotropic
substances which will give the Ministry of Health the authority to
control pharmaceutical imports and exports and to register the
cultivation of opium and hemp.
-- the introduction of a bill criminalizing money laundering in the
1995 session of Parliament. The bill, which Czech authorities expect
will come into force in July 1996, will require banks and other
financial organizations to report unusual financial transactions and
cash transactions over 500,000 Czech crowns, and will set up a
monitoring unit in the Ministry of Finance.
Despite these key gains made in forming a response to the growing drug
threat, GOCR efforts were hampered by basic philosophical differences.
Disagreements by cabinet members about whether possession of drugs for
personal use should remain legal continue to reduce the effectiveness of
the national counterdrug program.
During 1995, GOCR also began expanding its interdiction campaign,
including giving its customs agents law enforcement authority. While
seizures remained low, enforcement efforts yielded increased arrests.
Seizures in 1995 totalled 5 kilograms of heroin, 52 kilograms of
cocaine, 36 kilograms of ephedrine, and 5 kilograms of cannabis.
Customs and police agents carried out 99 drug enforcement operations,
arresting 174 people and dismantling a large illicit amphetamine
operation and small methamphetamine laboratories. As a result of
international cooperation, another 20 kilograms of heroin and 700
kilograms of cocaine were seized abroad and an ephedrine smuggling route
from Mexico was discovered.
Government and non-government organizations (NGOs) provide programs for
demand reduction and drug education. Anonymous advice, diagnosis, and
treatment of drug addicts are available from both the government's
health clinics and private institutions, including seven ngos.
Organizations offering drug treatment and counseling reported increases
in contacts from the public over the past year. The Ministry of
Health's national coordinator for drug epidemiology has compiled a
report on the extent of drug problems in the country. The Ministry of
Health has developed a one-semester credit course in drug-use prevention
for 1,700 teachers from all over the country; further material for
parents and kindergarten teachers was distributed in 1995.
Corruption. The USG is unaware of any reports of official narcoticsrelated
corruption in the Czech Republic.
Agreements and treaties. The Czech Republic is a party to the three UN
conventions on narcotics: the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic
Drugs and the 1972 Protocol thereto, the 1971 UN Convention on
Psychotropic Substances, and the 1988 UN Convention. The bilateral
extradition treaty between the Czech Republic and the United States is
in effect and includes drug-related offenses covered under the 1988 UN
Convention.
In mid-December, the Czech Republic signed the Council of Europe's
Convention on Money Laundering and the Seizure and Confiscation of
Proceeds from Crime. The Convention provides a vehicle for member
countries to freeze and seize assets in banking accounts in other member
countries. The Justice Minister also signed several bilateral protocols
to facilitate the extradition of persons wanted for criminal proceedings
or sentenced to prison.
Cultivation and Production. Authorities believe that methamphetamine
production is extensive, but most data are anecdotal. The Czech
Statistical Office reported that there were 35,000 hectares of licit
opium poppy cultivation for pharmaceutical products and poppy seeds for
the food industry. Authorities predicted that total licit opium
cultivation will be reduced to 25,000 hectares in 1996. There is no
available information about large-scale cannabis cultivation, but
authorities believe that cannabis is cultivated for personal use.
IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs
Policy Initiatives and Bilateral Cooperation. The USG continues to
promote increased GOCR attention to the drug problem. Moreover, the USG
encourages assistance for the GOCR from those nations, primarily in
Western Europe, most directly affected by the drug problems of this
region. In 1995, the USG increased cooperation with the Czech antidrug
agencies and provided law enforcement and customs training.
The Road Ahead. The USG will encourage the Czech Republic to continue
to expand its drug control activities and build up the nation's antidrug
institutional capabilities. In 1996, the USG will provide three
narcotics enforcement seminars to assist the Czech Government's
counterdrug efforts. Additionally, the United States and the UNDCP will
continue to support Czech participation in the Central European regional
demand reduction program in Italy.
|
