Police Reform

International Scientific and Practical Conference on Combating Drug-Crimes

The International practical and theoretical conference “International Cooperation in the Field of Combating Organized Transnational Drug-Crimes” took place in Dushanbe, in the premises of the National Library of Tajikistan on 10th of April.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan has initiated organization of the conference by financial support of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan. Prior to the beginning of the conference, an awareness-raising campaign by children and youth “Say No to Drugs!” was conducted.

The conference involved the participation of the Head of the Executive Office of the President of Tajikistan Mr. Bakhtiyor Khudoyorov, the Chairperson of the Committee on Defense and Law & Order of Majlisi Namoyandagon of Majlisi Milli of the Republic of Tajikistan Mr. Amirkul Azimov, the Chairperson of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Tajikistan Mr. Nusratullo Abdulloev, the General Prosecutor of the Republic of Tajikistan Mr. Sherkhoni Salimzoda, the Director of the Agency on State Financial Control and Anticorruption Mr. Fatoh Saidov, as well as other heads of ministries, agencies of the Republic of Tajikistan, and representatives of international organizations, embassies, accredited in the Republic of Tajikistan.

The Minister of Internal Affairs Mr. Ramazon Rakhimov opened the conference with welcome speech. The US Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in Tajikistan Ms. Suzan Elliott made a speech, as well as the OSCE Office in Tajikistan’s representative Mr. Luka Bukhin, who marked in his speech that “the OSCE activities, related to police functions, is a key element in the Organization’s efforts in combating threats to security and stability in the OSCE region, occurring as a result of organized crimes, including terrorism and drug & human trafficking, and an impartial part of it (Organization’s efforts) in the field of conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.”

“Taking, inter alia, this Concept as a basis, the Organization makes its contribution into international efforts in combating organized transnational drug-crimes and other transnational threats. The OSCE’s contribution in the capacity building in the field of border management and its security in the Central Asian region, in particular, in strengthening and development of the Border Management Staff College of the OSCE OiT, in Dushanbe. We have also signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the OSCE and the Government of Tajikistan on Police Reform, which will become “Police” according to the drafted Law.” Mr. Bukhin also noted that “the consolidation of law enforcement agencies’ efforts in Central Asian region to combat against organized criminal groups with transnational connections is highly topical. The increasing volumes of illegal transit and Afghan drugs trafficking, increasing speed of spreading the drug addiction, HIV deceases and crime levels becomes a common problem of countries in the region, where the so-called “northern route” (Afghanistan-Central Asia-Russia-Europe), are is laid across.”

According to the UNODC assessment, almost all existing Organized Criminal Groups (OCG) in Central Asian region are connected to illegal drug operations. Part of the OCG specializes in narcotic substances smuggling from Afghanistan; another part deals with its delivery from Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to Kazakhstan and further - to Russia; the third one distributes drugs over CIS and big industrial centers of Russia. The most structurally created OCGs performed the complete cycle of drug business: from drug smuggling from Afghanistan up to transit into final destinations, mainly, in the area of Russian Federation. The income of Central Asian OCGs from heroin trafficking at present time is $1.4 billion, which equals to 31 % of Tajikistan’ GDP, 33 % of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP, 5 % of Uzbekistan’s GDP and 1 % of Kazakhstan’s GDP.

According to the data from the CIS Ministries of Internal Affairs, only in 2012, about one thousand citizens of Tajikistan, involved in illicit drug trafficking, were detained in the “northern route.” “That is why we hope that today we will have a frank exchange of opinions on the drug distribution problems in Central Asia, as well as on combating drug traffic from Afghanistan. I think that we will hear also the experts’ opinions on possible consequences of international efforts reduction in Afghanistan for drug situation in our region and in the field of border security,” said in the conclusion the OSCE representative.

The Director of the Drug Control Agency under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Mr. Rustam Nazarov, First Deputy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr. Makhmudjon Sobirov, Deputy Director of the Bureau for coordination of combating organized crime and other serious crimes in the territory of CIS member-states Mr. Oleg Konovalov, representative of Qatar criminal and information center on combating drugs of the Cooperation Council of Arab States of the Persian Gulf Mr. Ibrahim Hasan Sulton Abdulatif Al Rumaykhi, the German Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in Tajikistan Ms. Dorris Hertrampf, the British Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in Tajikistan Mr. Robin Jeremy Ord-Smith and others also made speeches during the conference.

As a result of the event, a press-conference was held for mass media representatives, where the OSCE representative Mr. Bukhin together with other officials has also responded to the journalists’ questions concerning the drug situation in the Central Asian region.