by Charlie Edwards | May 13, 2009 | UK
SOCA’s recent claim (see Alex’s post ) that the world cocaine market is in retreat is looking more and more like a failed attempt to distract us from the news that the troubled agency is going to be overhauled – big time. The orphan of Whitehall‘s task was spectacularly grand – made all the worse by the launch of the agency in a blaze of glory a few years back. The simple truth is that not only do we not have a clear idea of the scale and nature of the problem(s) but we continue to take a primarily enforcement-led approach. This ain’t clever in the 21st century. Not least because such an approach is unliekly to succeed.
Obama and Clinton’s new approach to the ‘narco- insurgency’ in Mexico is a timely admission that a ‘war on drugs’ which doesn’t take account of the social and economic implications of organised crime is destined to fail. Unfortunately there are no simple solutions or answers to the problem of organised crime and drugs in particular. The resounding success of Portugal’s approach to decriminalising drugs is a triumph for the Portugese Government and should be carefully considered. However it is unclear whether the Portugese approach would work in the UK – which is different in context and scale – however that shouldn’t mean we don’t experiment with new approaches and initiatives.
SOCA’s failure was exacerbated by its secrecy. Given the very public nature of the challenge we face from organised crime, the decision by the senior management of Soca to operate under a veil of secrecy since its inception in 2006 has been not only misguided but potentially damaging. The tentacles of organised crime reach into cities, towns and villages across the UK. Unfortunately, one of the victims of the organisation’s secrecy has been SOCA itself.
As The Times reports:
The Prime Minister’s strategy unit at No 10 has been carrying out a review of Soca, which has been criticised for failing to halt the spread of organised crime from the cities to the shires. Soca, which is due to publish its annual report tomorrow, is seeking a new chairman to take over from Sir Stephen Lander, the former head of MI5, who retires in July.
I doubt whether the conclusions and recommendations in the PMSU report were very different from a previous report by the same unit on the subject a few years ago however it may provide some impetus for a much needed change in approach.
by Richard Gowan | May 13, 2009 | Europe and Central Asia
Living in the U.S., I had overlooked the fact that it’s the week of the Eurovision Song Contest – being held, for the first time ever, in Russia. A quick tour of the website suggests that the music is as reliably dreadful as ever, but the highlight must be the three-paragraph history of the host nation:
The history of Russia is long and complicated. Generally, it is believed that the cultural foundations of modern Russia were laid down a bit over 1000 years ago. After Kyiv lost its leading position within the empire, the Grand Duchy of Moscow laid down the political foundations for what we know as the Russian Federation. Between 1300 and 1800, the Russian influence stretched out from Eastern Europe all the way to Alaska.
As for many countries, the 20th century was a difficult period in history. After a bloody Civil War, Russia and three other territories formed the Soviet Union in 1922. In 1941, Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union with the largest invasion mankind had ever seen. The Union paid a high price and millions lost their lives, but the bond of countries emerged as a superpower.
Between the 1950s and the late 1980s, the Soviet Union and the United States entered into a tentious and competitive era also known as the Cold War. With the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Cold War ended.
Always good to mix a bit of imperial nostalgia with the Euro-pop…
by Alex Evans | May 13, 2009 | What we're watching
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kRP5x2MsAw&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
by Alex Evans | May 12, 2009 | Influence and networks
The Serious Organised Crime Agency has been trumpeting to the BBC that the international cocaine market is “in retreat” after a year of successful operations around the world:
It says its undercover work has helped send wholesale prices soaring. Prices per kilo have risen from £39,000 in 2008 to over £45,000 (50,000 euros), but street prices have remained stable.
What this means in practice:
Data collected by the Forensic Science Service reveals how drug gangs are using increasing amounts of chemicals – so-called cutting agents – to dilute cocaine powder sold on the streets of Britain. They include the cancer-causing drug phenacetin, cockroach insecticide and pet worming powder.
Analysts at Drugscope say the shortage of supply has not seen a fall in street prices although purity levels have dropped. “At the moment price is relatively stable for cocaine,” says Drugscope director Martin Barnes. “What is happening is that dealers are maximising their profits by selling a product that is potentially more harmful and much less pure and a lot of people buying it probably don’t realise that’s what’s going on.”
Brilliant. A triumph. Well done SOCA; well done indeed.
(For what a non-asinine approach to drug control would look like, click here.)
by Jules Evans | May 12, 2009 | Middle East and North Africa
I wrote a few days ago about a member of the Royal Family in the United Arab Emirates – brother to both the ruler of Dubai and the minister of interior – who had videod himself torturing a business partner in the desert in UAE.
The video then made its way into the western press, causing much indignation, and threatening a deal for the US to sell civil nuclear equipment to the country.
The sheikh was arrested yesterday. It is apparently the first time ever in the Gulf that a royal has been arrested. Who next – Osama bin Laden? Perish the thought.
