Global law enforcement has been engaged and active in recent months, providing news organisations with all the reporting excitement they need with coverage of rising arrests and prosecutions in courts around the world involving multinational crime syndicates and criminally profiteering organisations involved in transnational crimes. Authorities in Italy captured 33 people related to the 'Ndrangheta,[1] a prominent organised criminal gang in Calabria, Italy, suspected of drug trafficking, money laundering, and extortion. In another operation, Dutch investigators apprehended 12 people suspected of importing cocaine from South America to Europe[2], and they were charged with money laundering and corruption. In addition, British officials arrested ten people suspected of importing counterfeit items into the country, accusing them of tax evasion and money laundering. These examples demonstrate the serious problem of international crime and its far-reaching consequences. Continuous monitoring of such developments, as well as the creation of effective measures, are required to counteract and mitigate the hazards posed by these illicit activities.
Transnational crimes are a dynamic and adaptable phenomenon that has been facilitated by globalisation. The impact of transnational crime on various aspects of society, including authorities, businesses, courts, international relations, public safety, and the global community, is nothing but alarming. It discusses the financial revenues generated by transnational crime and the response of global governance to combat such activities. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) plays a crucial role in addressing transnational crime, and the study emphasises the need for global collaboration in tackling this issue and highlights the responsibilities of global governance in this regard.
They present complex challenges that necessitate global focus and collaborative endeavours. Drug trafficking dominates the global drug trade in Asia[3], with substances like heroin, methamphetamine, and cannabis being widely trafficked. Human trafficking, involving sexual exploitation and forced labour, also persists in the region. Furthermore, Asia experiences a surge in cybercrime[4], encompassing ransomware attacks, online fraud, and data breaches. Similar issues manifest in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe, demanding attention to drug trafficking, human trafficking, and cybercrime. Whether it's cannabis and cocaine trafficking in Africa[5] or transit routes for drug smuggling in Europe[6], addressing these crimes requires international cooperation and effective law enforcement strategies.
Transnational organised crime encompasses various illicit activities that pose significant global challenges. Drug trafficking remains a pervasive issue, with the global trade estimated to be worth over $300 billion annually[7], leading to violence and corruption. Human trafficking victimizes over 25 million people[8], experiencing forced labour, sexual exploitation, or organ removal, and incidents have risen by over 20% in the past decade[9]. Cybercrime has seen a staggering increase of over 500%[10], encompassing hacking, ransomware attacks, and online fraud. Environmental crime, involving the illegal trade in wildlife and natural resources, threatens ecosystems and livelihoods, with a trade value surge of over 70%[11].
These issues have emerged as a significant global concern, characterised by its distinct and severe nature. While there is no universally agreed-upon definition of what constitutes transnational crimes but it generally refers to large-scale illicit activities driven by profit that involve multiple nations. Exploiting globalisation, transnational crime operates like a multinational organisation, utilizing well-structured networks, evading law enforcement through layered transactions, and strategically selecting locations. These criminal activities often involve acquiring resources in one country, production in another, transit through a third party, and sale in yet another. Weak law enforcement, corruption, and exploitable legislation make certain countries more attractive to transnational criminals. Effectively combating organized crime requires international cooperation, with authorities extending their focus beyond their borders and collaborating with the home countries of perpetrators.
The Economic Scale of Transnational Crime
The 2011 study by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)[12] highlights the significant expansion of transnational crime in global governance. The report reveals that transnational crime is projected to cost approximately 3.6% of the global economy, with illicit cash flows from developed countries reaching $991.2 billion in 2012. The impact of transnational crime is evident worldwide, such as the high death toll in Mexico due to drug trafficking and the exacerbation of illnesses and the spread of drug-resistant strains through counterfeit medications. Environmental crimes devastate ecosystems and endanger innocent civilians, while forced labour affects over 30 million individuals globally. This data underscores the immense economic influence of transnational criminal activities and the scale of illegal money flows they generate.
The convergence of crime, terrorism, and insurgency presents a formidable challenge as transnational organised crime increasingly intersects with these activities. Criminal organisations, terrorist groups, and insurgent networks exploit various illicit activities for funding and support. They engage in drug trafficking, human smuggling, weapons trafficking, intellectual property theft, and cybercrime to finance their operations and advance their objectives. These activities have significant repercussions, including violence, corruption, and threats to public health and safety. Addressing this complex nexus requires international cooperation, enforcement efforts, and the development of specialized expertise. Efforts to combat these crimes must focus on disrupting the financial networks and supply chains that sustain criminal organizations. By understanding the interconnections between these criminal activities, governments and law enforcement agencies can work together to protect global security, public well-being, and economic stability.
Transnational crime poses significant challenges to the global economy, with estimates revealing substantial economic revenues generated from various illicit activities. Counterfeit goods, including pirated and digitally pirated items, contribute an astounding $466 billion annually[13], with electronics and pharmaceuticals being major contributors. The illegal drug trade generates estimated revenues between $426 billion and $652 billion, emphasising its significant impact.[14] The economic exploitation of humans, including human body parts and trafficking, generates revenues ranging from $840 million to $150.2 billion[15]. Illegal activities involving resources such as art, fish, mining, oil, timber, and wildlife yield considerable economic gains. The trade-in small arms and light weapons generates revenues of $1.7 billion to $3.5 billion[16]. Combining all forms of illegal trade, the estimated annual revenue ranges from $1.6 trillion to $2.2 trillion.[17]
The engagement of this crime on the global economic scale has such a significant influence that they can clean up massive profits and expand the crime to a more extensive scope. Transnational crime can undermine the integrity of politicians, judges, and authorities such as the police, customs, and other related agencies due to these magnified earnings.
Transnational crime and the global governance
Across the world, transnational crimes pose significant challenges that require global attention and collaborative efforts. In Asia, drug trafficking is a pervasive issue, dominating the global drug trade by 60% of total volume with heroin, methamphetamine[18], and cannabis being the most commonly trafficked substances. The region also grapples with human trafficking, where sexual exploitation and forced labour remain prevalent. Meanwhile, cybercrime is on the rise in Asia, with ransomware attacks[19], online fraud, and data breaches posing serious threats. Similar challenges are observed in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe, where drug trafficking, human trafficking, and cybercrime demand attention[20]. From cannabis and cocaine trafficking in Africa to transit routes for drug smuggling in Europe.
The expansion of the global economy has facilitated the rise of the illicit economy, leading to an unprecedented increase in global crime. Criminal networks have adapted to leverage technology and establish complex structures that are difficult to dismantle. Transnational crimes such as arms smuggling, human trafficking, narcotics, corruption, money laundering, and terrorism pose significant challenges to global governance. These crimes undermine governments, fuel violent conflicts, and inflict immense suffering on individuals.[21] Traditional law enforcement systems, designed for territorial boundaries, struggle to address the complexities of transnational crime. Various countries are impacted differently, with some having strong connections to criminal networks, while others rely on them for essential services or economic support. Collecting reliable data on transnational crime remains challenging, yet crucial for assessing the scope of the problem and evaluating the effectiveness of responses.
Global governance cooperation toward transnational crime activities
Since the end of the Cold War, global governance and international collaboration in criminal justice have evolved, leading to increased cooperation in combating crime[22]. International agreements and organisations like Europol and Interpol have expanded their roles to prosecute transnational crimes such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, and corruption. Funding for crime prevention has also increased. The United Nations (UN) is funded by member countries through assessed contributions and voluntary contributions. Assessed contributions are compulsory payments based on a country's GDP, while voluntary contributions are given at the discretion of each Member State[23]. In 2022, assessed contributions reached $3.1 billion, a 2% increase from the previous year, while voluntary donations reached $11.6 billion[24]. UN financing has increased by 15% in the last decade, reaching $2.7 billion in 2012 and $9.8 billion in 2022. [25] The global anti-crime drive, initially based on state-centric treaties, has shifted towards a focus on global governance and the involvement of non-state actors. This has led to diverse actors engaging in global governance and collaborative efforts in addressing crime.
The accomplishments and limitations of the current global arrangements centered on the UNODC
Global crime governance involves collaborative efforts between local and international organizations to prevent, prosecute, and monitor criminal activities. Institutions like the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), United Nations (UN), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and Financial Action Task Force (FATF) (Mention the full form) play crucial roles in administering treaties, sharing practices, and combating corruption and money laundering. These global governance models emphasize coordination, information exchange, and peer evaluation to ensure the effective implementation of anti-crime measures. Transnational crimes pose complex political challenges, necessitating a global consensus and technical exercises. The Contact Group approach, based on comprehensive policy and implementation understanding, exemplifies how diverse state and non-state actors can work together towards a common global goal. This approach should be replicated in future scenarios to address transnational crime effectively.
Improving global governance in the face of transnational crime
The UNODC aims to keep the world safer from transnational crime. To be successful and long-lasting, solutions to these threats must be in corporate tactics that address several elements of governance.
Crime Prevention
Effective crime prevention strategies are crucial for reducing crime, and victimisation, and promoting long-term development. The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs emphasises the importance of prevention in achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16, which aims to reduce violence, crime, and injustice while creating safe and resilient cities and combating transnational crime. To achieve this, the legal system must collaborate with other sectors to proactively address conflict, violence, and human rights violations. This involves shifting away from punitive approaches and adopting evidence-based crime and violence prevention methods. It also requires the involvement of sectors such as social workers, prosecutors, and defence attorneys to implement preventive programs and ensure effective communication and referrals to support services.
Police reform
To effectively prevent and combat crime, police and law enforcement institutions must embody principles of democracy and diversity. As the first responders in criminal incidents, their interactions with offenders, victims, and witnesses significantly influence the entire criminal justice system and victims' access to justice. This necessitates high-quality investigations and case files that lead to successful prosecutions in cases involving international crime, terrorism, and corruption. However, criminals may attempt to bribe law enforcement officials, highlighting the risk of corruption. Building public trust in the police is essential, as cooperation and compliance rely on this trust. While law enforcement can employ strong measures to achieve lawful goals, the use of force must always respect international human rights obligations. Holding police accountable for their actions is crucial. Additionally, involving the community in police service delivery has numerous benefits, including increased public confidence.
Restorative justice
Combating transnational crime necessitates an open and adaptable approach, with restorative justice serving as a complementary or alternative method to conventional criminal justice. Restorative justice provides opportunities for the victim, perpetrator, families, and the community to address the crime's impact and facilitate healing. This approach has gained recognition and popularity, as it allows victims to actively participate in the legal process and seek compensation for their losses. Restorative justice recognizes the community-wide consequences of criminal behaviour. This has resulted in the UNODC reforming its support to the Member States in the following ways:
- Working with legislators to create or improve restorative justice programmes.
- Establishing, implementing, and improving restorative justice initiatives.
- Increasing the capability of criminal justice actors.
The rise of restorative justice has prompted the development of training programs for practitioners in this field. These programs have a clear objective to educate legislators, policymakers, and other professionals in the criminal justice system about the goals, values, and benefits of restorative justice. Through these training initiatives, participants gain a comprehensive understanding of the principles and practices of restorative justice. They delve into its core goals, which include repairing harm, fostering healing, and promoting accountability. The training also highlights the values of empathy, inclusivity, and community engagement. By equipping key stakeholders with this knowledge, restorative justice training paves the way for its effective implementation in the criminal justice landscape.
Reforming international extradition
Transnational crime has increased due to the presence of a person who performs criminal misbehaviour in their own country and flees to another country for legal protection. Such cases necessitate international cooperation, such as an extradition treaty. According to international law, no government is obligated to extradite offenders to another country. This is one of the sovereignty ideas that allows each country legal control over the people who live inside its borders. Due to the lack of such international obligations and the country's wish to have the ability to prosecute foreign offenders, the nations concerned must sign several extradition treaties. However, neither country has approved an extradition pact with each other. For example, the United States does not have extradition treaties with more than 50 countries, including China, Namibia, and North Korea. Two international treaties may have created the groundwork for extradition as a weapon for law enforcement, crime prevention, and eradication. The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime (UNTOC), signed in Palermo, Italy, in 2000, and the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), signed in Merida, Mexico, in 2003, are the two conventions. Given the large number of states that have signed and approved the two International Conventions, these constitute watershed moments in the evolution of extradition as a weapon in law enforcement. Ultimately, both International Conventions declare that if a country specifies that extradition can only be carried out based on a treaty, that country may interpret the convention as an extradition treaty with other party states at the time of ratification.
Global Programmes
The UNODC safeguards the world against transnational crime and devises several strategies to build equitable, inclusive, and resilient societies that leave no one behind[26]. Significant and ongoing worldwide initiatives have been launched since the establishment of the UNODC programme to combat transnational crime. The Global Programme to Strengthen Domestic Violence Prevention and Justice Responses, for example. Gender-based violence has an impact on people, families, and communities, as well as slowing economic growth. This Global Programme, which supplements the 2030 Agenda, strives to abolish all kinds of violence against women and girls. This Global Programme also works to help female victims of violence.
The UNODC has also restructured and now understands the need to develop new leaders among the youth. As a result, the Global Programme for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration was established. In addition, to assist in the implementation of the Doha Declaration, UNODC has devised a global juvenile crime prevention programme that leverages sports as a tool for peace. The world may utilise sports to keep youngsters out of trouble by making them less prone to crime, violence, and drug use through this effort.
UNODC also aided the worldwide Education for Justice Initiatives effort by providing innovative teaching materials for primary, intermediate, and tertiary educators. The goal of this effort is to teach future generations about the rule of law and human rights. Furthermore, UNODC has created comprehensive and multidisciplinary University Modules on criminal justice and crime prevention. UNODC trains and supports an interdisciplinary network of academics who teach human rights, criminal justice, and crime prevention.
Academic experts and law makers unanimously agree that standard global governance reform is necessary, fostering international collaboration to combat transnational crime[27]. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development underscores the need for shared solutions that transcend borders. Effective global governance requires cohesive, secure, and resilient societies. Transnational crime is quick to exploit the global economy and adapt to technological advancements. However, efforts and cooperation to combat it are sometimes perceived as lacking seriousness or relevance. Recognizing the significance of international conventions and initiatives like the UNODC in addressing transnational crime is crucial for inclusive discussions. Strengthened global governance coordination empowers the fight against transnational crime, promoting safety and dignity for individuals in their homes and communities worldwide.
Sources:
[1] https://www.arabnews.com/node/1854001/world
[2] https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/balkan-cartel-trafficking-cocaine-south-america-to-eu-dismantled
[3] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/frontpage/2023/June/interview_-policing-one-of-the-worlds-biggest-drug-trafficking-corridors.html
[4] https://www.hfw.com/The-rise-of-cybercrime-in-Asia-Pacific-and-Considerations-for-organisations-operating-in-the-region-August-2019
[5] https://www.unodc.org/easternafrica/en/illicit-drugs/drug-trafficking-patterns.html
[6] https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/eu-drug-markets/cocaine/europe-and-global-cocaine-trade_en
[7] https://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/ib/2001/110801.htm
[8] https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en/human-trafficking
[9] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/faqs.html
[10] https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/cybercrime-went-up-by-500-per-cent-during-pandemic-chief-of-defence-staff/article37457504.ece
[11] https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/482771571323560234-0120022019/original/WBGReport1017Digital.pdf
[12] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/WDR-2011.html
[13] https://www.oecd.org/sti/ind/2090589.pdf
[14] https://www.unodc.org/pdf/technical_series_1998-01-01_1.pdf
[15] https://www.forbes.com/sites/carmenniethammer/2020/02/02/cracking-the-150-billion-business-of-human-trafficking/
[16] https://gfintegrity.org/issue/transnational-crime/
[17] https://www.pmi.com/illicit-trade-prevention/fighting-illicit-trade-how-can-we-tackle-this-global-problem
[18] https://www.unodc.org/documents/wdr/WDR_2010/2.0_Drug_statistics_and_Trends.pdf
[19] https://techwireasia.com/2022/02/asia-pacific-region-affected-by-ransomware-attacks/
[20] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/drug-trafficking/mexico-central-america-and-the-caribbean.html
[21] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5370589/
[22] https://www.unodc.org/documents/terrorism/Publications/Manual_Int_Coop_Criminal_Matters/English.pdf
[23] https://www.sipri.org/commentary/topical-backgrounder/2022/transnational-organized-crime-threat-global-public-goods
[24] https://press.un.org/en/2021/gaab4372.doc.htm
[25] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/organized-crime/intro/UNTOC.html
[26] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/organized-crime/intro/UNTOC.html
[27] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/es/untoc20/index.html