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OAS Assistant Secretary General Calls For Review of Measures to Fight Drug Trafficking in the Western Hemisphere

The Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of American States, Ambassador Albert Ramdin has urged countries in the Western Hemisphere to undertake a comprehensive analysis of the measures currently in place to combat drug trafficking in the region.

Delivering the opening address at the Forty-Eighth Regular Session of the Inter-American Commission for Drug Abuse Control (CICAD) of the Organization of American States (OAS), Assistant Secretary General Ramdin pointed to the challenges to public security posed by drug trafficking, and described it as "one of the most pressing challenges to stability and economic development in the region as a whole.” The second in command of the hemispheric body has suggested a full and comprehensive review of the systems being used by countries in the Americas to deal with the situation. "We need to know what is currently in place if we are to facilitate more effective collaboration and synergies, within the framework of regional tools, mechanisms and institutions."

Assistant Secretary General Ramdin also told delegates attending the conference in Washington DC that "no country acting alone, irrespective of strength and available resources, is capable of fully combating the consequences of organized crime, drug trafficking and consumption.” According to Assistant Secretary General Ramdin, the requirements of public security and the imperative of success in this endeavor “call for a co-coordinated, multilateral approach to the application of resources among states and regional and international organizations.”

Ambassador Ramdin also congratulated the Member States for their adoption of the New Hemispheric Drug Strategy and called on them to move forward with a renewed sense of purpose and efficiency. “Achieving citizen security has become more than just enforcing the law,” said Ramdin, adding that "there are new realities which require a holistic approach to public security, if we are to protect our people, our communities from violence, the drug trade, organized crime and human trafficking.”

The OAS Assistant Secretary General also called on Member States to develop a special assistance program for the Republic of Haiti to combat illegal drug trafficking and organized crime.

During the meeting, Suriname and Argentina were elected new Chair and Vice Chair of CICAD, respectively. Chandrikapersad Santokhi, Minister of Justice and Police of Suriname, and José Ramón Granero, Secretary of the Secretariat for the Prevention of Drug Addiction and the Fight against Drug Trafficking (SEDRONAR) of Argentina, will fulfill the posts.

For his part, the OAS Secretary for Multidimensional Security, Adam Blackwell, highlighted the challenges to public security in countries of the hemisphere, and referred in particular to the recent occupation by the Brazilian army of a “favela” in Rio de Janeiro that was in the hands of drug traffickers, an event he assessed “in a positive way.”

Ambassador Blackwell, who visited the “favela” now under the control of the Government, asserted that it was “an action by the Brazilian state in defending its citizens,” as part of a “strategy of total war against violence.” The high-ranking OAS official indicated it is necessary to legally regulate this type of intervention through protocols that define “the framework in which the armed forces may intervene in the fight against organized crime.”

The Secretary for Multidimensional Security insisted that in the face of threats posed by organizad crime and the illegal trafficking of drugs it is necessary to “redouble our efforts and apply all our capabilities,” since the enemy has “demonstrated being capable of surviving despite our attacks and shows great ability to develop new ways of performing.”

Finally, Ambassador Blackwell said the purpose of the OAS Secretariat for Multidimensional Security is to become “the main hemispheric reference point for the development of cooperation and the strengthening of OAS Member State capabilities, to respond in a more effective way to the security threats in the Americas,” and he indicated that towards that goal he has drafted a plan that seeks the joint work of the drug, terrorism and public security departments.

The Forty-Eighth Regular Session of the CICAD will be held from December 6 to 8, 2010, at OAS headquarters in Washington, DC.

A gallery of photos of the event is available here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-470/10