Today, drugs continue to destroy lives, generate crime and threaten sustainable development. But we also have a better understanding of how to confront drug abuse and trafficking. International cooperation and technical assistance are improving law enforcement capabilities. Anthia Zammit finds out that there is a growing consensus that drug control is a shared responsibility in which we all play a part.
In 1987, the General Assembly of the United Nations decided to observe June 26 as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in order to articulate its resolve to reinforce action and cooperation so as to achieve the aim of an international community free of drug abuse. Since then there has been a concerted effort on all fronts from various international organisations to combat illegal drug abuse and trafficking. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has launched a slogan which this year is focused on drug cultivation and production.
UNODC targets illegal drugs subject to control. These illicit drugs include amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), coca/cocaine, cannabis, hallucinogens, opiates, and sedative hypnotics. The UN states that nearly 200 million people are using these drugs worldwide. Cannabis - marijuana, hashish, THC - leads by far with 162 million users. ATS - amphetamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy - come next with 35 million users. Globally, an estimated 16 million people use opiates - opium, morphine, heroin, synthetic opiates - and some 13 million people use cocaine. The consumption of cocaine in western Europe is reaching disturbingly high levels. Cannabis, which is grown and used all over the world, is increasing in potency, and there are indications that cannabis-related mental health risks may have been underestimated. Opiate use levels along the trafficking routes originating from Afghanistan, the world's top opium producer, are also high. The UNODC's campaign endeavours to raise awareness of the calamity that illicit drugs represent to society.
The problem of illicit drugs is mainly experienced at a local and national level. However, it is a global issue which must be addressed on a transnational level. The European Union has reiterated that the drug problem is a shared responsibility of all countries and it has even been described as a "foreign affairs challenge". Global cooperation has become of paramount importance in a world where border control has been substantially reduced and the development of modern means of communication has taken a tremendous stride forward. This has made it easier for traffickers to transport illicit drugs from country to country. The EU has its own international policy on combating illegal drugs, primarily modelled on UN conventions and resolutions. EU policy is enacted by drawing up resolutions and directives on cooperation between police and customs, the approximation of laws between member states, establishing minimum penalties for drug offences, as well as the suppression of illegal drug trafficking on the high seas The drugs problem can be perceived from various points of view. It is a wide-encompassing problem which affects all sectors of society and has fareaching effects and consequences on all its members. Legislation and policies, through which the approach of tackling the quandary will ultimately take form, have to take account of all these aspects and bring them together in clear and consistent propositions. EU efforts aim at bringing together and coordinating the different aspects involved: from health, to police enforcement, to money laundering and customs control.
Although international efforts are required and are entirely indispensable, there is also a great need for coherent, enforceable controls on the national level. In Malta, the major legislative amendments were brought into force in 1994 and 1998. The frequent updating of drug legislation is a must as the different types of drugs available on the market are ever on the increase. The charge of possession with intent to traffic (where the drug is not intended for the exclusive use of the offender) was introduced and is punishable on the same level as trafficking. The Malta Drug Squad, focusing solely on drug investigations, broke away from the Vice Squad and was instituted as a separate entity in 1995. The Drug Squad is comprised of 60 police officers of various ranks. The number of inspectors has been increased this year and the Drug Squad is now available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Additionally, a new surveillance team has been set up specifically to target high profile drug traffickers. The importance of professionalism, dedication and good training of police officers is paramount. Surveillance and intelligence remain indispensable investigative tools.
The Drug Squad in Malta is headed by Superintendent Neil Harrison. Having graduated from the Police Academy in 1991, where he was immediately promoted to the rank of Inspector, Neil Harrison has been the Superintendent in charge of the Drug Squad since 2003, leading seven investigative teams and reporting directly to the Commissioner of Police or alternatively to the Deputy Commissioner. Superintendent Harrison explains the tasks of the Drug Squad: "The teams carry out searches, inspections and arrests in an investigation. There is also an administrative office which is responsible for compiling and preserving data, police files and records, as well as checking and verifying information and intelligence that is constantly being received through different sources. This office also has the task of giving lectures and talks in schools, youth centers or to any organisation requesting such talks."
The procedure followed in an illicit drug investigation starts first by receipt and review of information about the given case and the attainment of additional intelligence through surveillance. If there is reasonable suspicion, this is followed by searches, arrests and interrogation of the suspect. The advice and authority to prosecute is sought from the Attorney General. If such authority is given, the process ends with Court arraignment and prosecution. "We give priority to the major drug trafficking cases. However, one has to keep in mind that the simple possession or use of any drugs in Malta is illegal, and therefore we are legally obliged to bring charges against anyone who is found in possession of drugs or has made use of illegal drugs. We also pay particular attention to those places where drug trafficking (even if it is street level trafficking) is taking place. Occasionally follow-up investigations which had been initiated from a simple drug possession case or street trafficking case have led to larger seizures of drugs. In high profile drug trafficking cases the aim is not only to seize drugs in order to remove the drugs from the market, but also to use the seized drugs as evidence to successfully obtain a conviction in court."
Superintendent Harrison elucidates that "when a person is found in possession of drugs and the Court is satisfied that the drugs were not intended for the exclusive use of the offender, the punishment upon conviction is the same as for trafficking. Thanks to this amendment, more drug traffickers are getting the deserved punishment - a mandatory prison sentence and a fine. Since its introduction we have managed to put a substantial number of traffickers, including high-profile traffickers, behind bars. I believe that the penalties are fair in Malta. Drug cases are either decided by a magistrate or by a trial by jury. Simple drug possession cases are decided by a magistrate and although the maximum punishment is of one year imprisonment or a fine, in the majority of cases the court orders alternative punishment to imprisonment - usually a conditional discharge, probation or a suspended sentence. Therefore the court gives the drug user several opportunities to reform. It is only a small insignificant number that ends up in prison for the offence of simple possession, and only those who had been given too many previous opportunities to reform and failed to do so end up in prison".
The punishments meted out for drug trafficking are of course another matter entirely. Drug abuse and trafficking has escalated in Malta in recent years. Superintendent Harrison states that "Europe has become the second largest cocaine consumer market after the US, and this is on the increase. Unfortunately, Malta has also registered an increase in the consumption of this drug, and cocaine smuggling trends have shifted to trafficking through west and north African countries. On the other hand, last year we had managed to create a shortage of heroin on the market for a few months, and many heroin addicts showed up for treatment". International cooperation is essential in drug investigations. Malta's geographical location - bordering south European and north African countries, makes the need for transnational control efforts even more crucial. Malta frequently cooperates with international and foreign police forces.
"We collaborate with our foreign counterparts almost on a day-to-day basis. We carry out joint investigations and surveillance duties at their request. For instance, two years ago we had carried out surveillance for the Italian DIA (Direzione Investigativa Anti-Mafia) for over a month. The end result was that the Italians managed to seize more than two tonnes of hashish in Italy. We also request their assistance for surveillance abroad, and on a number of occasions police officers from my unit have carried out joint surveillance duties abroad, including in The Netherlands and in Italy. Since joining the EU, cooperation has become easier with EU countries. We have also assisted and got assistance from the British, Estonian and Spanish police forces, and have also made use of the services of the European agencies Europol and Eurojust. However, there is room for improving cooperation with north African countries, considering that cocaine and hashish are being smuggled to Europe and Malta through west and north African countries."
Maltese law outlines various types of drug offences: simple possession, possession with intent to traffic trafficking, cultivation and association. Simple possession carries with it a maximum sentence of up to one year imprisonment or a fine if the accused is charged before the magistrate in the Court of Criminal Judicature. However, punishment for the same offence goes up to a maximum of 10 years' imprisonment and €11,646 fine if the accused is charged before the Court of Magistrates as a Court of Criminal Inquiry, leading to a trial by jury. The accused may alternatively be charged with possession with intent to traffic. The punishment for this offence is much higher: a maximum of 10 years' imprisonment before the Court of Criminal Judicature, and a maximum of life imprisonment if the accused is found guilty in a trial by jury. This is the same penalty awarded for wilful homicide. Actually, it is even worse as the assets of the accused are frozen pending trial, and all assets are confiscated if a guilty verdict is given.
The law treats the offence of possession with intent to traffic in the same way as the offence of trafficking, so much so that the penalties for one and the other are the same. Giannella Caruana Curran, one of Malta's foremost criminal defence lawyers, says that the different punishments awarded to the same crime may sometimes lead to people thinking that there is not equal treatment for the same crime.
She was saying this in light of the fact that the same crime is awarded different punishment, depending on which court the accused is charged before. For example, if one is judged for trafficking or possession with intent to traffic before the Magistrate's Court the maximum sentence is that of 10 years imprisonment and €11,646, whereas if the person is judged in a trial by jury the maximum sentence is life imprisonment (which in Malta actually means life) plus the confiscation of all assets plus an hefty fine, which if not paid can be converted to a prison sentence.
Surely the law identifies some criteria for this, for example, amount, past conduct or some other circumstances. Alas, the law sets no criteria and leaves the choice of court at the discretion of the Attorney General. Apparently this was constitutionally challenged, however to no avail. A recent amendment which was greeted with some sense of reprieve was the removal of the mandatory prison sentence if the trafficking is sharing and not actual trafficking. Before this amendment, even if one shared a joint among friends, the court had no option but to hand down a mandatory prison sentence, the minimum of which was six months. This often would ruin the life of young teenagers who might be experimenting with drugs and suddenly find themselves in prison. Surely this was not the best way to stop them.
When the accused is found guilty of drug cultivation and trafficking, the court must mandatorily impose a minimum prison sentence of six months.
"The judge or magistrate has no choice in this case and must award a prison sentence. However, no mandatory prison sentence is imposed if the accused successfully pleads the defence of 'trafficking by sharing'. This defence has been introduced by a recent amendment. However, it can only be availed of by the same defendant once."
Reducing drug crime and abuse is an ongoing battle that every country prohibiting illicit drug abuse faces. It is the crime arising out of drug abuse which perhaps scars society the worst. Crimes like theft and prostitution can often be traced to illegal substance abuse. States must invest in adequate prevention and early intervention programmes as this is the most effective way to address the drug problem.
According to Superintendent Harrison, more emphasis should be placed on demand-reducing initiatives. This means introducing new initiatives, particularly in schools, to target younger generations and vulnerable children. "It is worth considering introducing trained and skilled professionals in all schools, to identify children with antisocial behaviour and the would-be future drug abusers. We can therefore be more effective in preventing future generations from turning to drugs. As regards law enforcement, zero tolerance should remain."
In 1987, the General Assembly of the United Nations decided to observe June 26 as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in order to articulate its resolve to reinforce action and cooperation so as to achieve the aim of an international community free of drug abuse. Since then there has been a concerted effort on all fronts from various international organisations to combat illegal drug abuse and trafficking. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has launched a slogan which this year is focused on drug cultivation and production.
UNODC targets illegal drugs subject to control. These illicit drugs include amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), coca/cocaine, cannabis, hallucinogens, opiates, and sedative hypnotics. The UN states that nearly 200 million people are using these drugs worldwide. Cannabis - marijuana, hashish, THC - leads by far with 162 million users. ATS - amphetamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy - come next with 35 million users. Globally, an estimated 16 million people use opiates - opium, morphine, heroin, synthetic opiates - and some 13 million people use cocaine. The consumption of cocaine in western Europe is reaching disturbingly high levels. Cannabis, which is grown and used all over the world, is increasing in potency, and there are indications that cannabis-related mental health risks may have been underestimated. Opiate use levels along the trafficking routes originating from Afghanistan, the world's top opium producer, are also high. The UNODC's campaign endeavours to raise awareness of the calamity that illicit drugs represent to society.
The problem of illicit drugs is mainly experienced at a local and national level. However, it is a global issue which must be addressed on a transnational level. The European Union has reiterated that the drug problem is a shared responsibility of all countries and it has even been described as a "foreign affairs challenge". Global cooperation has become of paramount importance in a world where border control has been substantially reduced and the development of modern means of communication has taken a tremendous stride forward. This has made it easier for traffickers to transport illicit drugs from country to country. The EU has its own international policy on combating illegal drugs, primarily modelled on UN conventions and resolutions. EU policy is enacted by drawing up resolutions and directives on cooperation between police and customs, the approximation of laws between member states, establishing minimum penalties for drug offences, as well as the suppression of illegal drug trafficking on the high seas The drugs problem can be perceived from various points of view. It is a wide-encompassing problem which affects all sectors of society and has fareaching effects and consequences on all its members. Legislation and policies, through which the approach of tackling the quandary will ultimately take form, have to take account of all these aspects and bring them together in clear and consistent propositions. EU efforts aim at bringing together and coordinating the different aspects involved: from health, to police enforcement, to money laundering and customs control.
Although international efforts are required and are entirely indispensable, there is also a great need for coherent, enforceable controls on the national level. In Malta, the major legislative amendments were brought into force in 1994 and 1998. The frequent updating of drug legislation is a must as the different types of drugs available on the market are ever on the increase. The charge of possession with intent to traffic (where the drug is not intended for the exclusive use of the offender) was introduced and is punishable on the same level as trafficking. The Malta Drug Squad, focusing solely on drug investigations, broke away from the Vice Squad and was instituted as a separate entity in 1995. The Drug Squad is comprised of 60 police officers of various ranks. The number of inspectors has been increased this year and the Drug Squad is now available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Additionally, a new surveillance team has been set up specifically to target high profile drug traffickers. The importance of professionalism, dedication and good training of police officers is paramount. Surveillance and intelligence remain indispensable investigative tools.
The Drug Squad in Malta is headed by Superintendent Neil Harrison. Having graduated from the Police Academy in 1991, where he was immediately promoted to the rank of Inspector, Neil Harrison has been the Superintendent in charge of the Drug Squad since 2003, leading seven investigative teams and reporting directly to the Commissioner of Police or alternatively to the Deputy Commissioner. Superintendent Harrison explains the tasks of the Drug Squad: "The teams carry out searches, inspections and arrests in an investigation. There is also an administrative office which is responsible for compiling and preserving data, police files and records, as well as checking and verifying information and intelligence that is constantly being received through different sources. This office also has the task of giving lectures and talks in schools, youth centers or to any organisation requesting such talks."
The procedure followed in an illicit drug investigation starts first by receipt and review of information about the given case and the attainment of additional intelligence through surveillance. If there is reasonable suspicion, this is followed by searches, arrests and interrogation of the suspect. The advice and authority to prosecute is sought from the Attorney General. If such authority is given, the process ends with Court arraignment and prosecution. "We give priority to the major drug trafficking cases. However, one has to keep in mind that the simple possession or use of any drugs in Malta is illegal, and therefore we are legally obliged to bring charges against anyone who is found in possession of drugs or has made use of illegal drugs. We also pay particular attention to those places where drug trafficking (even if it is street level trafficking) is taking place. Occasionally follow-up investigations which had been initiated from a simple drug possession case or street trafficking case have led to larger seizures of drugs. In high profile drug trafficking cases the aim is not only to seize drugs in order to remove the drugs from the market, but also to use the seized drugs as evidence to successfully obtain a conviction in court."
Superintendent Harrison elucidates that "when a person is found in possession of drugs and the Court is satisfied that the drugs were not intended for the exclusive use of the offender, the punishment upon conviction is the same as for trafficking. Thanks to this amendment, more drug traffickers are getting the deserved punishment - a mandatory prison sentence and a fine. Since its introduction we have managed to put a substantial number of traffickers, including high-profile traffickers, behind bars. I believe that the penalties are fair in Malta. Drug cases are either decided by a magistrate or by a trial by jury. Simple drug possession cases are decided by a magistrate and although the maximum punishment is of one year imprisonment or a fine, in the majority of cases the court orders alternative punishment to imprisonment - usually a conditional discharge, probation or a suspended sentence. Therefore the court gives the drug user several opportunities to reform. It is only a small insignificant number that ends up in prison for the offence of simple possession, and only those who had been given too many previous opportunities to reform and failed to do so end up in prison".
The punishments meted out for drug trafficking are of course another matter entirely. Drug abuse and trafficking has escalated in Malta in recent years. Superintendent Harrison states that "Europe has become the second largest cocaine consumer market after the US, and this is on the increase. Unfortunately, Malta has also registered an increase in the consumption of this drug, and cocaine smuggling trends have shifted to trafficking through west and north African countries. On the other hand, last year we had managed to create a shortage of heroin on the market for a few months, and many heroin addicts showed up for treatment". International cooperation is essential in drug investigations. Malta's geographical location - bordering south European and north African countries, makes the need for transnational control efforts even more crucial. Malta frequently cooperates with international and foreign police forces.
"We collaborate with our foreign counterparts almost on a day-to-day basis. We carry out joint investigations and surveillance duties at their request. For instance, two years ago we had carried out surveillance for the Italian DIA (Direzione Investigativa Anti-Mafia) for over a month. The end result was that the Italians managed to seize more than two tonnes of hashish in Italy. We also request their assistance for surveillance abroad, and on a number of occasions police officers from my unit have carried out joint surveillance duties abroad, including in The Netherlands and in Italy. Since joining the EU, cooperation has become easier with EU countries. We have also assisted and got assistance from the British, Estonian and Spanish police forces, and have also made use of the services of the European agencies Europol and Eurojust. However, there is room for improving cooperation with north African countries, considering that cocaine and hashish are being smuggled to Europe and Malta through west and north African countries."
Maltese law outlines various types of drug offences: simple possession, possession with intent to traffic trafficking, cultivation and association. Simple possession carries with it a maximum sentence of up to one year imprisonment or a fine if the accused is charged before the magistrate in the Court of Criminal Judicature. However, punishment for the same offence goes up to a maximum of 10 years' imprisonment and €11,646 fine if the accused is charged before the Court of Magistrates as a Court of Criminal Inquiry, leading to a trial by jury. The accused may alternatively be charged with possession with intent to traffic. The punishment for this offence is much higher: a maximum of 10 years' imprisonment before the Court of Criminal Judicature, and a maximum of life imprisonment if the accused is found guilty in a trial by jury. This is the same penalty awarded for wilful homicide. Actually, it is even worse as the assets of the accused are frozen pending trial, and all assets are confiscated if a guilty verdict is given.
The law treats the offence of possession with intent to traffic in the same way as the offence of trafficking, so much so that the penalties for one and the other are the same. Giannella Caruana Curran, one of Malta's foremost criminal defence lawyers, says that the different punishments awarded to the same crime may sometimes lead to people thinking that there is not equal treatment for the same crime.
She was saying this in light of the fact that the same crime is awarded different punishment, depending on which court the accused is charged before. For example, if one is judged for trafficking or possession with intent to traffic before the Magistrate's Court the maximum sentence is that of 10 years imprisonment and €11,646, whereas if the person is judged in a trial by jury the maximum sentence is life imprisonment (which in Malta actually means life) plus the confiscation of all assets plus an hefty fine, which if not paid can be converted to a prison sentence.
Surely the law identifies some criteria for this, for example, amount, past conduct or some other circumstances. Alas, the law sets no criteria and leaves the choice of court at the discretion of the Attorney General. Apparently this was constitutionally challenged, however to no avail. A recent amendment which was greeted with some sense of reprieve was the removal of the mandatory prison sentence if the trafficking is sharing and not actual trafficking. Before this amendment, even if one shared a joint among friends, the court had no option but to hand down a mandatory prison sentence, the minimum of which was six months. This often would ruin the life of young teenagers who might be experimenting with drugs and suddenly find themselves in prison. Surely this was not the best way to stop them.
When the accused is found guilty of drug cultivation and trafficking, the court must mandatorily impose a minimum prison sentence of six months.
"The judge or magistrate has no choice in this case and must award a prison sentence. However, no mandatory prison sentence is imposed if the accused successfully pleads the defence of 'trafficking by sharing'. This defence has been introduced by a recent amendment. However, it can only be availed of by the same defendant once."
Reducing drug crime and abuse is an ongoing battle that every country prohibiting illicit drug abuse faces. It is the crime arising out of drug abuse which perhaps scars society the worst. Crimes like theft and prostitution can often be traced to illegal substance abuse. States must invest in adequate prevention and early intervention programmes as this is the most effective way to address the drug problem.
According to Superintendent Harrison, more emphasis should be placed on demand-reducing initiatives. This means introducing new initiatives, particularly in schools, to target younger generations and vulnerable children. "It is worth considering introducing trained and skilled professionals in all schools, to identify children with antisocial behaviour and the would-be future drug abusers. We can therefore be more effective in preventing future generations from turning to drugs. As regards law enforcement, zero tolerance should remain."