Multilateral Governance

GENEVA SCHOOL OF DIPLOMACY AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
ACADEMIC YEAR 2012/2013
TRIMESTER III
BA-I

WHAT IS THE UNITED NATIONS ROLE ON THE DRUG TRAFFICKING?

A TERM PAPER SUBMITTED BY
P.H.B

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIERMENTS FOR THE COURSE
MULTILATERAL GOVERNANCE AND THE UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM

PROFESSOR: DR. JULIUS MENSAH

Introduction
Drug trafficking is a subject which I have lived directly while growing up in Colombia, one of the most stigmatized places on this concerned, we have lived one of the worst drug era that has existed, people may think that being there for your whole life you can witness on the streets and on every corner of your hometown people trading money for drugs or that you have a relative that works or has something to do with it, or all of your friends and why not yourself is consuming or trading drugs, the reality is away from that, or at least based on my experience and my own context, drugs for me a new generation of colombians that did not experienced the 1980's and the “gold era” of drug trafficking personally, the drugs are a concerned of mostly the Guerrillas (which is the way they survive) and the “big fishes” and no regular people on the streets in a city like Bogotá, well of course there is a market that exists and people consume and people buy and sell, but the consumers are not an major issue to the government having bigger problems to deal with right now; the drug trafficking, have had its ups and downs and right now the social security, order and statistics and even the regular normal life outside, the simple fact of being able of traveling almost any part of the country you want, you can tell how much the conditions have change and how almost without the intervention of the international law and the international community they situation it is now better somehow, almost may be consider as a miracle.

In the matter between the operating and normative system imbalance in international law and the ineffectiveness of the work together on implementing those laws and making them work on the drug trafficking is not that bad compared to simple human rights themselves, it seems that the work together looking for a common enemy more than a the common good works in a better way, looking on today's experiences and on the international scene.

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According to the World Health Organization Drugs are consider in common usage, the term often refers specifically to psychoactive drugs, and often, even more specifically, to illicit drugs, of which there is non-medical use in addition to any medical use. Professional formulations (e.g. "alcohol and other drugs") often seek to make the point that caffeine, tobacco, alcohol, and other substances in common non- medical use are also drugs in the sense of being taken at least in part for their psychoactive effects. [1]
But of course there's some other drugs that are use in a “proper” way by natives in some countries and are consider illegal but they are not a matter of concern whatsoever because the difference is that they are not commercializing them in a big scale and do not become an economic concern or a massive consumption as are today's more common use drugs that are: Marihuana, Cocaine, Heroine, Crack, Ecstasy, Amphetamines, LSD, all of them are illegal. The more common used drug and the one of more debate of legalization is the Marihuana or Cannabis Sativa, there is a whole culture around it, it started to become more and more usual thanks to the music scene on the 70's and then Bob Marly and the Rasta movement over took all society, giving people more excuses to experiment and then get hooked to it.
According to the United Nations of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) World Drug Report 2011“Cannabis remains by far the most widely produced and consumed illicit substance globally. In 2009, between
2.8% and 4.5% of the world population aged 15-64 between 125 and 203 million people - had used cannabis at least once in the past year. This is similar to last year’s estimates. Cannabis herb is the most common type used, produced and seized.”[2]
Going through the statistics of this world report the illicit drugs consumers from the late 1990 and 2009 it is not really different in fact, it is slightly different, they don't get to any conclusions or analysis about
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it and stick behind the statistics, which again is a sign of the lack of “urgent” interest of this matter on the United Nations, they do say that the production of cocaine have decreased 18% reflecting in Colombia but it has begun to grow in Bolivia and Peru, so it's pretty much the same than before, because the consumption it is still really high. The consumption of drugs is I think is still influenced but the society it self in the way that, people give acceptance more in some places than others, and not only that is really bad but it is more “normal” and they are more consumer-friendly in the more consumer regions like europe, which is a huge problem and sometimes funny when it comes to apply the drug-free policies.
Drugs are a highlight matter in every single policy in any country in the world and in many people are a highlight and usually are the only think they can think of; drugs have the power to work in just one person and influence its family, influence the people around him/her friends and influence society influence then the country's dynamic and then affect the whole world's stability like a domino effect.
Drugs are one of the countries' issues that are not in control like they should, are one of the subjects that are really difficult to take under charge and that it can probably be because of the many factors that comes with it, and even more if they become a serious matter and take over all countries order in a direct on indirect way; being born in one of the most important scenarios and places with the stigma and vivid consequences and damages of drug trafficking in the world, that is Colombia, my point of view it may be more close to the reality in the world's dynamic.
The drugs worry is not only about the society's sake but the every country's economy, each state spend millions and millions of dollars every year on security, and all the possible expenses you can think of on eradicating the problem of production, consumption and trafficking, United States of America have made a step forward on the helping to other countries to battle against drugs production, consumption and trafficking and have several agreements with some of the “big” countries all over the globe,
Until the planet is a perfect place where there is no problems and no sadness then people will be stop
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using drugs, they are to mostly address people's problems and to escape from a reality they do not want to live in, or just simply as a way to be “in” on it's own world that it is mostly his/her circle of friends, drugs are and I think will be here until the end of our times, we even have legalize substances considered as drugs and I am talking obviously about alcohol and cigars (tobacco) which are not as strong or addictive as the others but that does not mean that they are not, but this kind of debate is totally huge and have many colors to it and the big influence in economic interest by the governments on this two huge businesses with the taxes and many more factors, which leads me to the big questioning of legalize or not legalize marihuana?
Well, the United Nations policy about this kind of conflict is been really controversial on the United Nation representatives, specially between the Netherlands' representative and the rest of the board, there are only three treaties against drugs: “The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 as amended by the 1972 Protocol, Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971, and The United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988, I do think that it should be a new treaty among all nations and an more effective policy about the consumption instead of the production. In 2003, the European Parliament committee did a “recommendation” about the 1988 Convention practically to: Despite massive deployment of police and other resources to implement the UN Conventions, production and consumption of, and trafficking in, prohibited substances have increased exponentially over the past 30 years, representing what can only be described as a failure, which the police and judicial authorities also recognise as such ... The policy of prohibiting drugs, based on the UN Conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988, is the true cause of the increasing damage that the production of, trafficking in, and sale and use of illegal substances are inflicting on whole sectors of society, on the economy and on public institutions, eroding the health,

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They are seeing as my point of view the problem in a superficial way, first of all everyday there is many people trying drugs for the first time and then we have to add to the graphic the people who has been consuming for decades and then add the people who have died because of drugs, not only who is on drugs second, they do realize just now the the way the drugs inflicts on a overall proportion and not only on people's life, as I was investigation on the internet I came across with the United Nations website related to drugs that is the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and I founded the website not helpful at all, the development of the theories and treaties and campaigns against illicit drugs is poor compare to other issues as human rights, which I think it should be as important as it is or more but it is a little discouraging to see that the United Nations do not care as much for this issue as it should be and I am not making this judgement just based on the website but in the experience and the recompilation of memories and articles and new I have ever came across to in Colombia I have barely listen to this matter in any press or media, because like its a little common International Organizations are a parallel to the governments in some way like it is, they think that just with sending money to one cause can magically solved an issue, which is impossible, this reminds me of the “Plan Colombia” led by the United States Government as a finance of the “war against drugs” this was created in 1999 on the period of the ex-president Andrés Pastrana of Colombia and Bill Clinton from United States of America which has been continued by the ex-president Alvaro Uribe Vélez for his two periods and Juan Manuel Santos the actual president of Colombia and George W. Bush and Barack Obama of the United States, “Plan Colombia was developed by former President Pastrana (1998-2002) as a six-year plan to end Colombia’s long armed conflict, eliminate drug trafficking, and promote economic and social development. The Andean Counterdrug Initiative (ACI) is the primary U.S. program that
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supports Plan Colombia. In addition, Colombia receives assistance from the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program and the Department of Defense’s central counternarcotics account. ACI funding for Plan Colombia from FY2000 through FY2005 totals approximately $2.8 billion.
When FMF and DOD assistance is included, the total level of U.S. support to Colombia is $4.5 billion. The Administration has requested Congress to continue support for Plan Colombia beyond FY2005, with an additional $463 million in ACI funding, and $90 million in FMF requested for FY2006. The objectives of Colombia and the United States differ in some aspects, although there is a significant overlap of goals. The primary U.S. objective is to prevent the flow of illegal drugs into the United States, as well as to help Colombia promote peace and economic development because it contributes to regional security in the Andes. The primary objectives of Colombia are to promote peace and economic development, increase security, and end drug trafficking. Both U.S. and Colombian objectives have also evolved over time from a strict counternarcotics focus to encompass counterterrorism activities".[4]
As this was created as a way to help us in one of the worst eras, it was created in reality as a way to get extra money because the corruption was taking over in every single level and intensity, even Pablo Escobar the most known drug dealer was part of the congress as a senator, it was absolutely unbelievable and jaw dropping, now that gives you an impression where you can draw a line and imagine how messed up it was, the corruption in that time (an still now) it is something everybody knows in the sense that we do know who works for who and still it is been turned into normality, into a regular state into a demon living in harmony on the limbo like the drug consumption in people's “advance” way of thinking, and just to learn to live with the problem in our beds, “Plan Colombia” was effective in the military way and on the statistics but if we actually read the statistics well with the
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context they deserved and all the factors that helped we can conclude it was not a matter of the money put into the army and all the institutions that help the fight against drugs, the reason why the number of production had reduced was mostly because of the policies and influences on people and guerrillas applied by the following governments, of course the help is help and it is very useful but surely the influence on the facts that came and come out to the world on this kind of matters where the United States of America's evidence of effectiveness have to come out in their favor are going to be slightly different to the truth always on their favor and it is totally logical but do not misunderstand what I am trying to explain here the final result so far it is not 100 per cent good or bad and it is not the result of just one factor, the international help in this particular case (not “Plan Colombia” but the drugs problem in Colombia) either is a foreign government or an International Organization, their policies and solutions to implement in Colombia would be hard to penetrate into the operating system because it is so broken and dysfunctional to all of the members involved and points of view and interests they have that the international “norm” to hypothetically adjust something inside would be a helpless thought to sink on high sea, the only way would be through an existing standard.
I do agree with Antonio Maria Costa former Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna UNOV) when he said that money from drug dealing saved the world from a financial collapse, just like when Spain conquer America, and just like it did and is in Colombia with this money flowing combined with the corruption, the corruption it is the main reason why economies get stock in the same place or go back to times of lack of every single basic necessity.
It is true that the United Nations efficiency had been question on this field but we have to understand how big and broad it is this matter and stop putting energy on judging or giving a not good attitude, but to start thinking what could be a potential group of solutions that can work on harmony together to destroy the power of this machine that is consuming like an octopus with tentacles more and more
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every day, every second the world, "Though this be madness, yet there is method in't." - William Shakespeare, Hamlet 2.2 – I can think of a few strategies that are really basic on the way that we can help, first, the fight against corruption is vital for every fight against drugs and money an therefore poverty and boost of the economy in a local matter, which leads to the international field of course, corruption is the root of almost every malfunction in the state system thus the way the world goes around would change dramatically, second, something so elemental like giving more strong regulations and laws as in the international field, the regional and local field it is really important, it helps to what
I just mentioned and gives to the people the right message, and third create policies that can help to create the base of the society on a more strong bow and help to create better human beings, and that is the family.
As Shakespeare said it could be madness but I think there is still hope, and maybe the only link we have as a global entity is the United Nations consequently this should get all the tools it can get to establish a better order and take the “bull by the horns” in this aspect. Let's hope the best for the future and that the path in the future can be made by the right people with true interests.

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Bibliography
1. Lexicon of alcohol and drug terms published by the World Health Organization, Drugs, http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/terminology/who_lexicon/en/ 2. United Nations Office of War and Crime, World Drug Report 2010 http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/WDR2011/WDR2011-ExSum.pdf 3. European Parliament, Recommendation on the reform of the conventions on drugs http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+MOTION+B5-2002-0541+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN 4. Federation of American Scientist (FAS), CRS Report for Congress, Plan Colombia: A Progress Report http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL32774.pdf

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[ 1 ]. Lexicon of alcohol and drug terms published by the World Health Organization, http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/terminology/who_lexicon/en/
[ 2 ]. . World Drug report 2011 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/WDR2011/WDR2011-ExSum.pdf
[ 3 ]. .European Parliament,Proposal for a recommendation, 23 December 2002 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+MOTION+B5-2002-0541+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN
[ 4 ]. Congressional Research Service, Report for Congress, Plan Colombia: A progress report, June 22nd 2005http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL32774.pdf