|
|
|
U.S. Department of State
1996 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, March 1997
United States Department of State
Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
KAZAKHSTAN
I. Summary
Drug trafficking, production and abuse continued to increase in Kazakhstan
during 1996. The Ministry of Interior (MVD) recorded 12,298 drug-related
crimes as of September 1996, up from 8,500 in 1995. The 1,320 cases of drug
trafficking and seizures of 18 metric tons of narcotics--a small fraction of
the volume of narcotics transiting Kazakhstan, according to GOK
officials--highlight efforts by major international drug trafficking groups to
accelerate drug smuggling through Kazakhstan. The increase in heroin
trafficking from Afghanistan and Pakistan, through Kazakhstan and on to
Western Europe, also has to an increase in Kazakhstan's abuse and addiction
rates. GOK officials estimate that approximately 138,000 hectares of cannabis
(potentially 5,000 mt of marijuana a year) and also a considerable amount of
ephedra grow wild in Kazakhstan's southern Chu Valley. Opium poppy is also
grown in this and other areas of southern Kazakhstan. Although cognizant of
the growing drug problem, the GOK is still grappling with developing and
implementing a national drug strategy. Kazakhstan is not a party to the 1988
UN Convention, but plans to accede in 1997. Dublin Group embassies recently
set up a Mini-Dublin Group in Kazakhstan to coordinate counternarcotics
assistance programs.
II. Status of Country
Kazakhstan's is increasingly attractive to traffickers because of its
strategic location between major heroin-producing regions of Southwest Asia
and markets in the former Soviet Union and Europe. The GOK's seizure of 18 mt
of illicit drugs underscores Kazakhstan's role as a conduit for smuggling.
Most opiates and cannabis products passing through Kazakhstan are destined for
markets in Russia and Western Europe.
In addition to the traditional smuggling route from Afghanistan through
Turkmenistan to the Kazakhstani port of Aktau on the Caspian Sea, traffickers
have developed new routes from Afghanistan and Tajikistan through Kyrgyzstan,
and then Kazakhstan to Russia. Kazakhstan's membership in a customs union
with Russia, Ukraine and Belarus facilitates this traffic; once cargo enters
any of the customs union countries, customs officials consider it to be
"domestic cargo," and it is not subject to inspection as long as it remains
sealed.
The number of registered drug addicts in Kazakhstan tripled in 1996, from
6,000 to 18,000. However, unofficial estimates put the number of addicts at
about 50,000. Marijuana and heroin are the drugs most often abused.
Estimates place 65 percent of registered addicts under the age of 30.
III. Country Action Against Drugs in 1996
Policy Initiatives/Law Enforcement. There are major stumbling blocks to
an effective, near-term counternarcotics campaign, including poor coordination
among GOK law enforcement agencies, the absence of a national drug strategy,
inadequate funding, and the lack of equipment. In January 1996, the GOK
created a State Drug Enforcement Committee, chaired by the Deputy Prime
Minister, to establish a national drug policy and coordinate law enforcement.
Lacking both independent funding and an adequate staff, the committee has not
fulfilled its mandate. In recognition of this deficiency, the Deputy Prime
Minister has proposed that the GOK establish and fund a new agency for
implementing a national drug policy.
In addition to the MVD, the State Customs Service, the State Investigations
Committee (modeled after the FBI) and the Committee for State Security (KNB--
the State Intelligence and Internal Security Agency) also have antinarcotics
departments. The MVD is the only law enforcement agency with a comprehensive
counternarcotics program. Although the MVD administers an annual opium and
cannabis eradication campaign, the program has had little impact because of
the lack of funds and widespread corruption among police officials. Other MVD
programs include research and assessment in the areas of health, crime and
rehabilitation as they relate to drug addiction. The MVD plan also recognizes
the need to draft and introduce narcotics control legislation to the
Parliament.
In 1996, the Kazakhstani Parliament passed a law banning anonymous bank
accounts, a significant step against money laundering. No statistics are
available on money laundering. The government has requested US assistance in
this area as a follow-on to recent FBI training on white collar and organized
crime.
Corruption. Corruption within the GOK in general, and the law enforcement
community in particular, is a significant problem. Nevertheless, the USG does
not have any specific reports of official narcotics-related corruption in
Kazakhstan. The USG has offered to provide public corruption and internal
controls training for Kazakhstani law enforcement officials in 1997, and has
provided consultants to advise the government on this issue.
Agreements and Treaties. In May, Kazakhstan signed an interstate
memorandum on drug control cooperation among Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Kazakhstan has expressed interest in
negotiating a mutual legal assistance treaty with the US. Kazakhstan hopes to
accede to the 1988 UN Convention in 1997, once national legislation is amended
to conform to the Convention. Kazakhstan is a member of the Customs
Cooperation Council (CCC) and Interpol, and has observer status at UN
Commission on Narcotic Drug
Cultivation and Production. Cultivation of opium poppy, cannabis, and
ephedra is illegal in Kazakhstan, but cultivation of all three continues. MVD
officials report that seventy percent of all illicit opium poppy is grown in
southern Kazakhstan, though the extent of the total growth is unknown. The
MVD's "Operation Poppy" does not include the use of herbicides to eradicate
drug crops out of concern that their use would erode the soil, damage the
environment and pose a health risk to local inhabitants. In any case, only
modest amounts of poppy and cannabis are eradicated.
Domestic production of illicit drugs in Kazakhstan consists primarily of
cannabis products from the Chu Valley. Chu valley marijuana and hashish is
regarded in Russian markets as a high quality product. In addition to the
Chu Valley, GOK officials estimate that approximately 30,000 hectares of
cannabis are cultivated in the Taldy-Korgan region. Lesser amounts are grown
in the Almaty city region, Kyzl-Orda and south Kazakhstan districts. Ephedra
plants, from which the illegal drug ephedrine is derived, grow wild in the Chu
Valley, the Zailyiski and Junggar mountain ranges and the Taldy-Korgan and
Dzhambyl regions.
The Chymkent pharmaceutical factory, the only such plant in the NIS, has the
capability to produce five to eight types of opiates for legal use, including
morphine, codeine, promedol, thebaine, and ethyl-morphine. Between 1973 and
1992, the pharmaceutical plant in Chymkent legally processed 150 mt of Indian
opium annually. After a temporary shut down from 1991 to 1992, production
resumed in 1993, with the purchase of 50 mt of raw opium from India.
According to information from GOK officials in 1995, the factory is again shut
down due to financial constraints.
Domestic Programs/Demand Reduction. The Kazakhstani Ministry of
Education is developing the country's first antinarcotics educational
materials and textbooks for use in Kazakhstani schools. The UNDCP also has
begun work on a drug awareness program. The Soros Foundation is beginning a
pilot program with the Ministry of Health that includes drug, alcohol and
tobacco awareness education for high school students.
IV. US Policy Initiatives and Programs
Policy Initiatives and Bilateral Cooperation. The USG continued a
counternarcotics dialogue with the GOK and urged the government to give
increased priority to the drug issue. USG goals and objectives for Kazakhstan
include support for GOK efforts to reform the law enforcement and criminal
justice systems, including (1) the drafting of internationally acceptable
legislation; (2) technical assistance to law enforcement organizations,
including the development of an effective customs control regime; (3) support
in identifying the nature and scope of illegal narcotics trafficking,
cultivation, production, and abuse in Kazakhstan; and (4) promoting
cooperation with international organizations on narcotics-related activities
in Kazakhstan. Against this backdrop, the USG provided counternarcotics
training programs for Kazakhstani law enforcement officers. INL allocated
$100,000 for counternarcotics assistance for Kazakhstan in 1996; the US
Embassy is working with the resident UNDCP office to coordinate all USG
anti-narcotics efforts. The recent activation of the Mini-Dublin Group in
Kazakhstan will facilitate future coordination among donor countries.
The Road Ahead. The US will urge Kazakhstan to expand its counternarcotics
activities and to implement effective antidrug institutional and legislative
changes. At the policy level, US law enforcement and narcotics control
assistance programs will assist the GOK to assess the threat posed by
narcotics production and trafficking and to understand the need for a national
drug strategy. At the working level, US programs have helped develop a core
of law enforcement officials through narcotics training. The US hopes to
provide continued training emphasizing improved interagency coordination and
addressing the issues of internal controls and public corruption.
|
