Combating the current threat of drug smuggling by sea

Abstract

The thesis examines the worldwide threat of illicit drug smuggling by sea as a worldwide current problem on an international, regional, sub-regional, European and national level and in the case of Malta, as a member State of the UN and a MS in the EU. Ports security and vulnerability are two major elements for combating the world’s drug problem, since most of the illicit drugs are smuggled inside containers transported by cargo vessels. In the first chapter I have examined the different types of illicit narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances smuggled worldwide, while focusing on the trafficking of illicit drugs and psychotropic substances which are found in the region of Africa and Mediterranean countries, including Malta. Other licit substances are also being abused, depending on the amount absorbed or inhaled inside the human body and the type of substance used. The legal obligations of Malta as a member of the United Nations and as a Member State in the United Nations Conventions against illicit drug trafficking by sea are explained in Chapter Two. The United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 signed in New York, as amended by the 1972 Protocol, the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 signed in Austria and the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances adopted in 1988 in Vienna are the drugs Conventions adopted by the United Nations to combat the illicit trafficking phenomenon of drugs on an international level. Other United Nations legal instruments that have been enacted to tackle the current threat of drug smuggling by sea, namely the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime adopted in 2000 are also discussed in this Chapter. Certain legal concepts in regard to the Law of the Sea are discussed in Chapter Two, such as the Innocent Passage in the territorial sea, the legal principle of Hot pursuit in the internal waters, Territorial Sea, Contiguous zone, Fishing Zones, Continental Shelf, the Exclusive Economic Zone and the High Seas are discussed in this Chapter. The notion of reasonable suspicion of a person on board a vessel is an important legal point which has been extensively explained and supported by my point of view. The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime adopted in 2000 and ratified by Malta in 2003 is another important legal instrument dealing with international organised crimes, including the illicit drug trafficking by sea. I have also referred to other relevant International Agreements and Conventions in Chapter Three and Four of this legal study. It would have been impossible to discuss all the existing International, Regional, Sub-Regional and national legal instruments. I have also referred to other Agreements, Memorandums of Understanding and Conventions between Malta and other sovereign States in regard to organised crime, narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances which are included in Appendix A. In Chapter Three I have explained the legal obligations attributed to Malta and the legal sanctions exercised by Malta in the Mediterranean region as a full member of the United Nations to combat the current threat of drug smuggling by sea. The work done by the International Institutions of the United Nations is described in this Chapter, including the actions taken by the United Nations, the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and the recent actions taken by the Security Council to fight the drug problem in the Mediterranean region. The actions taken by other Institutions of the United Nations such as the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship, The International Court of Justice and the Secretariat are discussed in this Chapter. The Maltese legal obligations and sanctions of the Maltese authorities in the Mediterranean region as a member State of the European Union are discussed in Chapter Four. This Chapter also focuses on the European Council Decisions, Regulations and Directives concerning the drug war and other legal initiatives and recommendations taken by the European Parliament and Commission to combat the current threat of drug smuggling by sea in the Mediterranean Sea. Throughout the thesis, I have expressed my opinions on different issues. Finally, I have given my recommendations and opinions for future initiatives against the international drug phenomenon of illicit traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.