Stability Pact: WT3 Organized Crime Task Force Document

SP Initiative against Organised Crime in South-Eastern Europe (SPOC)

We, the Partners of the Stability Pact for South-eastern Europe,

Building on objectives identified at the Sarajevo Summit and subsequently at meetings of Working Table III held in Oslo and Sarajevo;

Aware that organised crime

threatens the objectives of the Stability Pact and efforts to institute the rule of law, democracy, human rights and viable social and economic order in South-eastern Europe,
undermines the business climate and discourages domestic and foreign investment, and
is detrimental to the integration of South-eastern Europe into Euro-Atlantic structures;

Noting with concern the growth and diversification of organised criminal groups as reflected in the annual report of the Council of Europe on the organised crime situation in its Member States and in the European organised crime situation report of the European Union;

Are firmly resolved to fight organised crime and related phenomena - in particular corruption and money laundering - at all levels and in a well-coordinated manner;

Agree that measures should be aimed at the strengthening of capacities against organised crime in South-eastern Europe in accordance with European standards;

Take note of the recommendation submitted to the Lisbon European Council on 23 and 24 March 2000 on the need to develop a strategy and action plan to combat organised crime in South-eastern Europe;

Agree that any successful initiative against organised crime under the Stability Pact will benefit from extensive coordination and alignment with other strategies and plans, in particular the 'Pre-accession Pact on Organised Crime between the member States of the European Union and the Applicant countries of Central and Eastern Europe and Cyprus' of 28 May 1998;

Consider that regional cooperation agreements and programmes against organised crime - supported by organisations such as the Adriatic Sea Initiative, the Central European Initiative or the Southeastern European Cooperative Initiative - can contribute to promoting European standards in the fight against organised crime;

Take into account the Stability Pact Anti-corruption Initiative adopted in Sarajevo on 15-16 February 2000;

Are committed, as countries of the region, to implement the present Stability Pact Initiative against Organised Crime;

Are committed, as donors from outside and within the region, to support the countries of the region in this effort through technical cooperation programmes as well as through measures promoting operational cooperation.

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I. The challenge

Organised crime in South-eastern Europe

Organised crime in South-eastern Europe is of increasing concern. It threatens democracy, the rule of law, human rights, security and stability, and social and economic progress within this region and with an impact beyond South-eastern Europe.

While acknowledging that there is no generally accepted definition, for the purposes of this initiative, an organised criminal group means a structured group of three or more persons existing for a prolonged period of time and having the aim of committing serious crimes through concerted action by using intimidation, violence, corruption or other means in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit.

Authorities in South-eastern Europe have only recently begun to analyse and investigate organised forms of crime. Knowledge and reliable information on nature, scope and impact of organised crime in this region is still limited.

Available data suggest that various types of criminal organisations are found, ranging from hierarchical to horizontal, cell-wise structures, and lose networks of individuals. There seems to be no common pattern as regards origin and composition of groups. Some are based on the former political and economic nomenclatura and security services, others on ethnicity and kinship, and others again are managed if not created from abroad. Some are a result of the consolidation of racketeering and extortion activities, others have exploited economic opportunities (such as privatisation) or political conflict. The distinction between legal and illegal activities is often blurred as on the one hand proceeds of crime are laundered and invested into the legal economy and legal fronts are created, and as on the other hand, legal business turn into criminal organisations and the links between politics and organised crime become stronger.

Corruption, violence and intimidation are used as means to expand illegal business and to influence public administrations, criminal justice systems and politics.

While the structure of criminal groups is heterogeneous, a common feature of organised crime in South-eastern Europe is its transnational nature. Often, the fact that crime is organised only becomes apparent when considered from such an international perspective.

Criminal groups in South-eastern Europe are involved in:

extortion and racketeering
the large-scale smuggling in consumer goods, in particular cigarettes
the trafficking in arms
the organisation of illegal immigration
the trafficking in human beings, in particular for sexual exploitation
trafficking in drugs
trafficking in stolen vehicles
intellectual property crime
environmental crime
forgery of documents and money
economic crime, fraud and tax crime
money laundering.

The factors contributing to organised crime in South-eastern Europe are numerous. As in other former socialist countries, criminal groups exploit opportunities in connection with political, social and economic transformation. Reports from several countries also explain the nature and scope of organised crime as a fall-out of the conflicts in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Kosovo.

In some countries, organised crime may not yet have reached critical proportions. In others, however, organised crime is considered to be a threat to the rule of law, democracy and human rights, to social progress and economic reform, security and stability, that is, to the very objective of the Stability Pact.

B. Need for coordinated action

Governments of most South-eastern European countries have adopted policies and initiated measures against organised crime. Some of them have achieved successful results and provide examples which could be followed by other countries and areas. Several of them are part of the EU accession process which makes the fight against organised crime and the development of efficient and democratic criminal justice systems an important issue. In addition, these countries are gradually being incorporated in the EU strategy against organised crime.

Often, however, the weakness of public institutions, difficulties in investigating and prosecuting crimes, the lack of human and other resources, and the limited coordination between criminal justice agencies within and between countries continue to be factors facilitating organised crime.

Needs are vast. A number of bi- and multilateral institutions have provided or are providing assistance. A comprehensive and up-to-date overview of such assistance and its impact is not available, but it appears that it is often limited in terms of resources and approach, and that it requires better coordination to avoid duplication and to build on existing efforts.

Activities must not be restricted to workshops and meetings or the formulation of recommendations and plans without specific follow-up. There is not only an obvious need for coordination but also for concrete action.

Such concerted and well-coordinated action needs to be undertaken by the Governments of the region with the support of the international community. Technical cooperation among the countries of the region will also be of importance.

The Stability Pact process - through the present initiative - can provide added value in this respect by:

identifying problems and formulating agreed upon objectives which could be achieved within a given timeframe;
mobilising resources from the international community in support of these objectives;
ensuring coordination and focusing assistance on strategic points of departure;
fostering the political commitment of the governments of South-eastern Europe and other partners of the Stability Pact towards the achievement of these objectives by following up on the provision of assistance through continuous policy dialogue;
ensuring that links between organised crime and corruption as well as other social, economic and political problems are taken into account;
monitoring the implementation of this initiative.

II. Framework of reference

Although the countries of South-eastern Europe are heterogeneous in many ways, as far as measures against organised crime are concerned they can refer to common European standards:

The Council of Europe has at its disposal a broad range of conventions and recommendations against organised crime, money laundering and corruption as well as instruments facilitating cooperation in criminal matters. Like the Member States of the European Union, almost all countries of South-eastern Europe are members of the Council of Europe (Bosnia and Herzegovina has applied for membership).
The European Union has undertaken important steps in recent years towards a union of freedom, security and justice, including legislation, institutions, standards and best practice against organised crime. This 'acquis' in the field of justice and home affairs is not only of relevance to those countries of South-eastern Europe which are candidates for accession to the European Union, but also for other countries of the region which are to be linked to the European Union through the Stabilisation and Association Process. Without prejudice to existing commitments accepted by candidate countries to the European Union, the Stability Pact initiative against organised crime offers an opportunity to complement and expand European Union strategies such as the pre-accession strategy on organised crime or the European Union strategy for the beginning of the new Millennium.

The standards set by the Council of Europe and the European Union thus constitute an appropriate framework of reference for measures against organised crime in South-eastern Europe.

Relevant United Nations conventions (in particular the three Conventions against drug abuse and trafficking - they are part of the 'acquis' of the European Union) and the forthcoming United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime are also important points of reference for all European countries. The same is true for the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force. As members of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) they have declared their political will to act in the framework of OSCE regional documents and resolutions.

Trans-atlantic cooperative arrangements and practices give major impetus to this initiative.

III . Objective and expected results

The aim of the Stability Pact has been formulated as to "strengthen countries in South-eastern Europe in their efforts to foster peace, democracy, respect for human rights and economic prosperity in order to achieve stability in the whole region".

The SPOC will make a significant contribution towards the aim of the Stability Pact. Its objective is:

to strengthen capacities against organised crime in South-eastern Europe in accordance with European and other internationally accepted standards.

This rationale - that is, the link between the objectives of the SPOC and the Stability Pact, and the reference to European standards - implies that measures against organised crime must pay full respect to the principles of the rule of law, democracy and human rights as these are the very values which this plan will help protect. In the final analysis, the success of this plan is to be determined by its impact on the lives of people in South-eastern Europe.

The initiative will have an initial duration of four years upon which it will be reviewed.

Tangible outputs are expected to be achieved in the following areas:

National policies and strategies against organised crime will have been adopted and implemented by the Governments of the region. This will include crime prevention strategies and policies.
Multi-disciplinary national coordinating mechanisms will have been established.
Legislation against organised crime, money laundering and corruption will have been enacted in line with European and international instruments.
In-country cooperation between agencies involved in measures against organised crime will have been improved, specialised units will have been established and investigative capacities of agencies will have been strengthened with measurable results in terms of cases successfully prosecuted and proceeds of crime confiscated.
Regional and international cooperation will have been strengthened. This will be reflected in the ratification of relevant European and other international conventions, the conclusion of a network of bilateral cooperation agreements and concrete operational cooperation.

The initiative is thus aimed at inducing structural change. Such a process requires time and ownership to ensure sustainability. However, it should be possible to achieve tangible results with a lasting impact within a period of four years.

The factor most often quoted as contributing to the success of policies and strategies against organised crime is 'political will'. The achievement of the above targets would certainly be a clear reflection of the political will of the Governments of the region and the international community to prevent and suppress organised crime in South-eastern Europe.

IV. Coordination, assessment and review

In each country and area of the region, a high-level representative will be appointed by the highest executive body and directly report to the Government. This representative will be responsible for the implementation of the initiative in cooperation with key law enforcement and judicial authorities, thus using a multi-disciplinary approach.

These representatives will meet as the Regional Steering Group . The group will be chaired by the Co-chair of Working Table 3.

The Regional Steering Group will have the following functions:

Monitor progress in the implementation of this initiative in the form of a peer review, and report progress to Working Table 3
Review priorities for action to be taken in different countries
Coordinate planned and ongoing projects and other measures
Promote operational cooperation between countries.

A small Secretariat will be established to service the Regional Steering Group.

The Regional Steering Group will be assisted by an Advisory and Contact Group which will be composed of institutions with relevant subject-matter expertise, that is, the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, the Council of Europe, Europol, Interpol, the Southeastern Europe Cooperation Initiative (SECI), the Central European Initiative (CEI), the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Stability Pact, and the Adriatic Sea Initiative. This group will have the following functions:

Advise the Regional Steering Group
Support monitoring and peer reviews carried out by the Regional Steering Group
Bring in the know-how and the information available in these institutions
Facilitate contacts between the Regional Steering Group and these institutions
Ensure coordination among these institutions with regard to measures under this initiative
Help mobilise resources for technical cooperation programmes
Advise the Office of the Special Coordinator.

Their local representations should meet regularly as the local SPOC-group in each country of the region to further strengthen coordination and policy dialogue.

The Regional Steering Group and the Advisory and Contact Group will meet jointly at least twice a year prior to the meetings of Working Table 3. Both groups may also convene separate meetings as appropriate.

V . Strategies

A. Overall strategy

In order to meet the above objectives:

Governments will develop and implement national strategies against organised crime. Such strategies should contain measures on a continuum from prevention to enforcement. They should be designed to contribute to the rule of law, democracy and human rights.
Governments will base their strategies on a continuous assessment of the organised crime situation, of risks and opportunities facilitating organised crime, and of best practices and new methods and technologies used against organised crime. Results of such analyses should systematically be fed back into strategies and policies and be shared internationally.
Governments will establish a multi-disciplinary mechanism at national level to provide policy advice and coordinate and monitor the implementation of policies and strategies.
Governments will ratify and implement relevant international legal instruments and sign bi- and multi-lateral agreements to facilitate international cooperation.

B. Specific measures

Such policies and strategies should be implemented through the following measures:

Prevention

Develop a framework for the structured and systematic collection, analysis and processing of data on organised crime as a basis for prevention and control strategies.
Increase the risks for criminal organisations by strengthening control mechanisms and by identifying and reducing loopholes in legislation, the criminal justice system and vulnerable sectors in general.
Introduce means to encourage cooperation with the criminal justice system.
Enhance awareness and information on organised crime. Disseminate information on organised crime and create awareness on nature, scope and impact of organised crime among public officials and the public in general. Stimulate the adoption of codes of conduct in public and private sectors. Involve the education system and the media, train journalists, report on cases successfully prosecuted. Design campaigns, not to generate but to overcome fear of organised crime. Take measures to prevent victimisation.
Strengthen cooperation of civil society and the business sector with the criminal justice system. Promote corporate governance and responsibility. Provide for corporate liability.
Collect information on registered legal persons with a view to preventing the penetration of the legal economy by criminal organisations. Exclude companies involved in organised crime, money laundering and corruption from public bidding.
Implement the Stability Pact Anti-corruption Initiative (SPAI) in order to prevent and control corruption and fraud .
Reduce the rewards of criminal activities by preventing money laundering , including: rules against the excessive use of cash payments and cash currency exchanges; requirements for certain vulnerable professions, to 'know their customers' and to report suspicious transactions; ensure that the increasing use of information technology in the financial sector, such as cyber-payment methods or transactions through virtual banks, is accompanied by appropriate security features that prevent or reduce opportunities for misuse
Prevention of juveniles and other vulnerable groups from becoming involved in organised crime. Research on links between juvenile delinquency and organised crime in South-eastern Europe. Diversion policies and alternatives to custody. Pilot programmes aimed at communities at risk using multi-agency approaches, community policing or local-level partnerships. Cooperation between criminal justice and social institutions.
Adopt measures to ensure transparency and accountability in the financing of political parties .
Design and implement measures for the prevention of substance abuse .
Carry out research on computer and computer-related crime as a basis for possible prevention and control strategies. Promote the adoption of a European instrument on cyber-crime.

Legislation

Strengthen and implement legislation against organised crime and money laundering in accordance with provisions of relevant international instruments.

Establish as a serious crime in particular:

As a separate criminal offence - the participation of any person in an organised crime group , irrespective of the place in which the group is concentrated or carries out its criminal activities
The laundering of any kind of criminal proceeds , in particular those originating from organised crime
The trafficking in human beings . Adopt the relevant protocol of the forthcoming United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime.

Take measures in order to:

Criminalise the intentional failure to report suspicious financial transactions when committed by those bank and non-bank institutions and professions, which are under a reporting obligation.
Introduce or improve legislation aimed at the confiscation of proceeds from crime. Consider the possibility of penal, civil and / or administrative sanctions against 'illicit enrichment', that is having no justifiable explanation for one's economic wealth reasonably suspected to originate from organised criminal activity.
Establish the liability of legal persons and examine the possibility of introducing corporate criminal liability.
Adopt data protection legislation in line with European standards.
Adopt legislation on witness protection .
Adopt legislation permitting and regulating the use of special investigative means .
Participate in mutual evaluation mechanisms (such as the Council of Europe's PC-R-EV on money laundering measures and GRECO on measures against corruption).

Interagency cooperation, specialised units and investigative capacities

Implement measures to improve the co-ordination, communication and exchange of information and intelligence within the criminal justice system and with other relevant public authorities while taking into account the necessary confidentiality and data protection requirements.
Establish intelligence systems in accordance with European and other international standards.
Create specialised multi-agency teams or units to investigate and prosecute economic and organised crime either in the form of permanent specialised units, or teams working together on a case by case basis, or task forces focusing on specific types of crime.
Develop and implement systematic and consistent training programmes for law enforcement agencies and other components of the criminal justice system. Specifically in the use of special investigative means, in the area of financial investigations and new methods of police work. Carry out joint training with officers from different agencies and the judiciary.
Consider new methods of police work by shifting focus from reactive policing to pro-active policing , including the use of strategic intelligence and crime-analysis.
Adopt legislation allowing or extending the use of investigative measures that enable law enforcement agencies to gain insight into the activities of organised crime groups, including surveillance, interception of communications, undercover operations, controlled deliveries and the use of informants. At the same time, the necessary control mechanisms need to be established. To enable the implementation of such techniques, Governments should provide law enforcement agencies with the required technology.
Focus on financial investigations. Pay special attention to tax or fiscal offences linked with organised crime; establish financial intelligence units; establish investigative strategies that target the assets of organised crime groups through inter-connected financial investigations; set up quick legal mechanisms to lift bank secrecy and adopt provisions under which bankers, fiduciaries, accountants, notaries and lawyers may be compelled by judicial order to produce financial records or statements and, if necessary, give testimony; adopt legislative measures for the tracing, freezing, seizure and confiscation or forfeiture of assets originating from organised crime activities; introduce the possibility of confiscation or asset forfeiture in relation to the proceeds of organised crime by means of judicial procedures that may be independent from other proceedings and, exceptionally, may require the reversal of the onus of proof.
Implement measures to provide effective protection to vulnerable targets such as witnesses who require protection because of their testimony in relation to organised crime, to victims of organised crime and to criminal justice officers involved in measures against organised crime. Witness protection programmes, including specialised units, possibility for witnesses to give testimony via telecommunication links, limiting the disclosure of their addresses and other identifying particulars, enlarging the admissibility of pre-trial statements and temporarily relocating witnesses who are in custody.
Establish units to investigate and prosecute those responsible trafficking in human beings, in particular for sexual exploitation . Adopt multi-agency approaches and measures to protect victims, provide legal, medical, psychological and financial assistance, and encourage their cooperation with criminal justice agencies. Promote the involvement of NGOs. Prevent the criminalisation of victims. Implement programmes to raise awareness and educate the public.
Strengthen border and customs controls to combat illicit trafficking as appropriate.

International and regional cooperation

Make use of existing instruments and tools facilitating international cooperation. They should eliminate obstacles to effective cooperation in international agreements, for example, lift their reservations entered into the conventions to which they are Parties; reduce grounds of refusal, especially those related to fiscal or political offences; progressively give up the requirement of dual criminality in respect of offences committed by organised crime groups.
Render the execution of letters rogatory more efficient. Ensure that a response is promptly given to all requests for mutual legal assistance especially when related to offences committed by organised crime groups; ensure that the procedural requirements of the requesting State are taken into account when executing its request for mutual legal assistance, to enable it to make easier use of the evidence collected on its behalf in criminal proceedings; appointing judicial contact points, other than the central authority, for a quicker identification of the requested judicial authorities and for enabling direct transmission of requests for mutual legal assistance in cases of urgency or for the exchange of information.
Strengthen cooperation at the operational level . Identify, within nationally existing structures, central contact points to facilitate contacts with foreign operational agencies; post liaison officers in other states; establish regional networks of prosecutors and specialised police officers; undertake joint training exercises; carry out joint law enforcement operations with other States.
In order to add impetus to such cooperation, establish joint task forces or investigative teams at operational levels as soon as possible to focus on specific issues or types of crime, for example, on the trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation.
Establish direct and swift avenues and methods of information and intelligence exchange while taking into account the necessary confidentiality and data protection requirements. Aim at compatibility of national information systems with international systems such as Interpol, Europol and the Schengen Information System.
Enable, for the purpose of facilitating the investigation of the economic background of organised crime groups, legally and practically the exchange of information between the relevant authorities of member States with respect to legal persons and other legal entities registered in their jurisdiction and the natural persons involved in their creation, ownership, direction and funding.
Introduce provisions enabling asset sharing among those countries involved in the tracing, freezing, seizure and confiscation or forfeiture of assets originating from organised crime activities.
Make witness protection schemes/programmes available to foreign witnesses, e.g. by entering into bilateral or multilateral agreements.

VI . Implementation

The primary responsibility for the implementation of this Stability Pact Initiative against Organised Crime rests with the countries of the region. In fact, many of these strategies and related activities are already being implemented by the Governments of the region with or without international assistance.

Obviously, not all of the measures proposed above are appropriate to the same extent to all countries, and not all of them can be carried out at the same time or within the timeframe of this initiative. Country-specific measures and priorities will need to be developed.

This approach not only requires a clear commitment of the countries of the region but also of the international community. The partners of the Stability Pact will need to provide support through two types of measures:

Technical assistance programmes to strengthen policies, institutional structures and capacities as well as legislation against organised crime and money laundering.

Measures and mechanisms to promote operational cooperation between criminal justice institutions of the countries of the region as well as with other partners of the Stability Pact.

The present initiative will build on ongoing plans, programmes and activities and existing structures as much as possible. It leaves sufficient flexibility in the design of technical assistance programmes while providing an overall framework with agreed upon objectives as well as a mechanism (the Regional Steering Group) to ensure coordination and monitoring and review of progress.

The implementation of the SPOC is to be initiated through the following steps:

Heads of Governments of the region will nominate a high-level representative who in cooperation with key law enforcement and judicial authorities and using a multi-disciplinary approach will be responsible for the implementation of the initiative.
In each country, these representatives will arrange a review of existing information on organised crime and measures to counter organised crime, and - with the support of experts made available by other members of the Regional Steering Group or the Advisory and Contact Group - carry out additional needs assessments.
On the basis of these reviews and needs assessments country-specific priorities, workplans and technical assistance programmes as well as measures to promote regional cooperation will be formulated.
The Regional Steering Group and the Advisory and Contact Group will review, coordinate and monitor the implementation of these workplans, measures and programmes and will report to Working Table 3.

These steps may take time for completion. However, this should not prevent projects for which sufficient information is already available and for which arrangements are in place to start as soon as possible in the spirit of this initiative.