NAS MONTHLY REPORT FOR APRIL 2007

UNCLAS LIMA 001667 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR INL/LP STATE FOR WHA/PPC ONDCP FOR LT COL RONALD GARNER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SNAR KCRM ASEC PREL PE SUBJECT: NAS MONTHLY REPORT FOR APRIL 2007 REF: A. LIMA 0909 ¶B. LIMA 1270 ¶C. LIMA 1587 ¶D. LIMA 1396 ¶E. LIMA 1412 -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (U) The key developments in April 2007: ** Eradication total of 894 hectares is low compared to this time last year; in April 2006 we had eradicated 3,120. ** Garcia embraced eradication as an important element of GOP policy; taking a tough line against cocaleros. ** CORAH worker killed and 5 police wounded by snipers; suspect Sendero Luminoso involvement. ** To date, DIRANDRO special operations group has destroyed 121 cocaine-production laboratories. ** S.L. threat during interdiction/eradication operations in the Yanajanca area is increasing the hours flown by UH-2s and the risk of combat. ** Peruvians seize a total of 2.2 metric tons of cocaine HCL at air/seaports, border entry points, and cargo terminals. ** DIRANDRO and FAP cooperate in using the C-26s to increase intelligence for interdiction and eradication operations. ** NAS is developing six how-to manuals to teach people to organize and run a community anti-drug coalition. ** With NAS support, Justice Ministry initiates a campaign to create support for a non-penal asset forfeiture law. END SUMMARY -------------- -------------- PROTESTS AND POLITICS SLOW ERADICATION TO A CRAWL -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) As of April 30, CORAH has eradicated a total of 894 hectares and eliminated 6,204 square meters of seedbeds. This is just 29 percent of last year's eradication total at this time last year. For comparison, the figures are: Hectares eradicated Thru April 2006 3,120 Thru April 2007 894 During April 2006 1,393 During April 2007 243 ¶3. (U) This result is due to several factors: ** Cocalero protests in the Tocache area halted eradication from March 11 to April 6, during which Agriculture Minister Salazar signed the Tocache accord with the cocaleros (Ref A). ** Police officers were pulled from the CORAH security detail to handle the rash of local strikes resulting from the initial cocalero strike in Tocache. ** Some police returned, but not enough to allow CORAH to stay overnight in the field--a strategy that saves on transport costs and gives CORAH more time to eradicate. ** On April 12, eradication was suspended for six days when snipers killed a CORAH worker and wounded five police (see Para 6 and Ref B). Eradication resumed on April 19. ** The rainy season started late and is just now coming to a close. The wet conditions hampered eradication operations and often grounded aircraft. ¶4. (U) On April 6, 26 days after the Tocache incident, CORAH started eradicating in the Yanajanca area, south of Santa Lucia. The GOP has yet to reinitiate full-scale eradication operations, although CORAH has been able to conduct small-scale operations, resulting in 243 hectares eradicated this month. If eradication operations were to continue at the current rate, CORAH would not be able to reach the 10,000-hectare annual goal and would eradicate only 3,000 hectares by December 15, the usual cut-off point for operations. Production will remain low unless CORAH has enough police protection to spend 3-4 nights in the field. Eradication is particularly sensitive in the face of strong cocalero opposition and the police are exhibiting nervousness over inevitable social conflict. -------------- -------------- GARCIA CONDEMNS NARCOTRAFFICKING AND DEFENDS ERADICATION -------------- -------------- ¶5. (U) Despite the low eradication figures, there appears to be more good news than bad. President Garcia sees the fight against narcotics as something that touches upon Peru's core security interests (Refs B and C). For the first time in years, the GOP is putting important new resources of its own into the counter narcotics effort. The GOP is also talking about such as initiatives as asset forfeiture and increased interdiction of precursor chemicals. Garcia has now publicly embraced eradication as an important element of GOP policy and taken a tough line against negotiations with cocaleros. DEVIDA's Romulo Pizarro has changed his position and now states that eradication is non-negotiable. At a March 30 press conference, Garcia said he would not retreat a "millimeter" in the narcotics fight. On April 2, Garcia made a dramatic speech that distanced the government from the Tocache Accord (Ref A). Garcia expanded on two themes: his concern over increased drug abuse by Peruvian youth, and politicians who had not acted against drug mafias for fear of unpopularity. If Peru could not stop expanding narcotrafficking, he warned, it could face an insurgency similar to that which occurred in a "neighboring country." -------------- -------------- CORAH WORKER KILLED BY S.L. SNIPERS; FIVE POLICE WOUNDED -------------- -------------- ¶6. (U) On April 12 while conducting interdiction and eradication operations in the vicinity of Churuyacu, Maranon province, Huanuco Department, CORAH workers and its PNP security escort were ambushed by an unknown number of suspected Sendero Luminoso cadre. One CORAH worker was killed and five DIRANDRO personnel were wounded by gunfire. According to CORAH workers at the scene, the attack involved automatic and semi-automatic rifle fire from all four quadrants, suggesting the attackers were pre-positioned and waiting. The casualties were evacuated by dusk. Both CORAH and PNP security forces remained in the field. The PNP believes the attackers were part of the Sendero Luminoso (SL) column that operates in the Aucayacu area (Ref D). -------------- -------------- THREE DIRANDRO TEAMS OPERATE THE COCA-GROWING REGIONS -------------- -------------- ¶7. (U) To date, DIRANDRO has destroyed 121 cocaine-production laboratories and seized 207,558 kg of chemical precursors, 3,700 kg of cocaine base, and 2,057 kg of HCl cocaine. The DIRANDRO special operations group consists of three different teams. The first one specializes in interdiction (destroying cocaine-production labs and precursor chemicals) and intelligence gathering. This team seizes the vast majority of drugs and chemicals. ¶8. (U) The second team is charged with securing the perimeter during eradication operations and providing security support for the eradicators and base camp. The third team is the road interdiction team, which operates throughout the coca-growing region, depending on intelligence. They set up roving checkpoints and inspect all types of vehicles. About 20 percent of the precursor chemicals seizures are done by this team. ¶9. (SBU) The interdiction-eradication operation that took place in the Yanajanca area, 12 cocaine-production laboratories were destroyed. In the first days of eradication in Yanajanca (April 6-7),the canine unit detected improvised explosive devices that were removed with no injuries. On April, 26-27, DIRANDRO personnel based in Mazamari and Palma Pampa destroyed 10 cocaine-production laboratories during operations in Boca Mantaro-Canaire in the VRAE. On April 5, members of a PNP special operations group arrested six of their fellow PNP officers as they attempted to extort money from a Spanish national who reportedly came to Lima to purchase and export 3,000 kg of cocaine HCl. (Ref E). -------------- -------------- AVIATION SUPPORT AFFECTED BY "SL" AND COCALERO STRIKES -------------- -------------- ¶10. (U) The number of helicopter hours flown has increased significantly for interdiction and eradication operations with CORAH's move to the Yanajanca area, a known Sendero Luminoso (SL) stronghold. The risk of combat has been increasing daily. In the attack that killed the CORAH worker (see Para 6),the helicopters were initially unable to land because of the heavy gunfire. The helicopter crews were able to provide some suppressing fire with their M-60D machine guns, firing approximately 1500 rounds of ammunition. On another occasion, a PNP security patrol was transported by helicopter to an area where they stumbled into a suspected SL base camp and detained 15 suspects. ¶11. (U) With the cocaleros on strike and blocking the roads to Santa Lucia, getting aviation fuel became a critical issue. Fuel trucks were offered police escorts, but the owners refused because of death threats. Some of the bridges had also been damaged or destroyed. In situations such as this, MI-17 helicopters would normally be used to ferry fuel from Tingo Maria, but all were down for repair. The pilots of the PNP Antonov 32 aircraft then offered to transport the fuel even though the Santa Lucia runaway was being repaired and was thus shorter than what is normally required for that size of aircraft. The offer of the PNP Antonov 32 pilots was highly unusual and unexpected, but thanks to them there was sufficient fuel to continue operations. ¶12. (SBU) The cocaleros did not seem to be aware that the strikes and roadblocks could have shut down NAS and GOP CN operations due to lack of aviation fuel. NAS always prepares alternate routes for fuel and supply trucks, but in some cases the options are limited to one or two possibilities. -------------- -------------- FAP AND PNP COORDINATION MAKES BETTER USE OF C-26S -------------- -------------- ¶13. (U) Increased coordination between DIRANDRO and FAP intelligence has the C-26 providing more support for interdiction and eradication operations. The C-26 attempted to detect nocturnal movement of potentially hostile vehicles and personnel moving toward CORAH and DIRANDRO positions. In a "first-ever" joint operation, DIRANDRO personnel participated in the C-26 missions as observers to assist in the FLIR collection effort. Operating out of the FAP base in Talara, the C-26 used FLIR to detect possible narcotrafficking activity along northern Peru's coast in support of Phase Two of "Operation All Inclusive". -------------- -------------- NAS-DEA COORDINATION NETS LARGE COCAINE SEIZURES -------------- -------------- ¶14. (SBU) In April, Peruvian counterdrug elements seized a total of 2.2 metric tons of cocaine HCL while conducting counternarcotics operations at various Peruvian air/seaports, coastal maritime locations, roadblocks near land border entry stations, customs terminal facilities, and the Peruvian Post Office. The interdiction program at the international airport in Lima seized 748 kg of cocaine HCL in 62 incidents. The largest airport seizure was 500 kg of cocaine HCl masked in "Maca" (powdered herbal vitamin supplement) seized in air cargo on April 2. During the first four months of 2007, nearly 1.9 metric tons of cocaine HCl have been seized and 266 arrests made at the airport. This four-month total is roughly equal to the amount seized in all of 2006, which was twice as much as was seized in 2005. ¶15. (SBU) On April 24 at the Port of Callao, Peruvian Customs seized a container carrying 589 kg of cocaine HCl masked in 60 tons of barium sulfate. Eight arrests were made, i.e., a Lebanese, a Lithuanian, a Russian, and five Peruvians. The Manifest Review Unit (MRU) provided the intelligence that led to this seizure. On April 21-30 as part of Operation "All Inclusive", the Peruvian Air Force and Navy conducted joint maritime counterdrug searches for Peruvian fishing vessels involved in drug smuggling. This was the first-ever joint counternarcotics operation by the two services. Intelligence has indicated a marked increase in drug transshipments via fishing vessels off the Peruvian coast, and this operation marks the beginning of a new emphasis on Peru's northern coast. ¶16. (SBU) Peruvian Customs (SUNAT) conducted border roadblocks during Operation "All Inclusive" this month. Using a mobile x-ray van, ion-scans, and drug-sniffing dogs, joint SUNAT/PNP teams inspected vehicles using different points of entry into Ecuador. Several loads of contraband were seized, i.e., 108,611 gallons of gasoline, smuggled cultural patrimony items, USD 48,515 in counterfeit dollars, a drug lab/distribution center, and 752 kg of sulfuric acid. Thirty-nine U.S.-bound Chinese with false passports were detained. Due to the lawlessness along the Peru-Ecuador border, SUNAT has not conducted interdiction operations there for the last five years. Only 37.35 kg of cocaine was seized during this operation; however, SUNAT is willing to participate in more joint operations in the area. In addition, during the month of April, the Peruvian Post Office (SERPOST) interdicted over 70 kg of cocaine HCL that was being exported in 47 postal shipments. ¶17. (SBU) Peruvian CN police conducted two seizures in the Iquitos port area on the Amazon River. On April 13, 66 kg of cocaine HCL was seized. On April 15, 220 kg of cocaine HCL was found in false compartments in boats. NAS only supports intelligence-driven operations in the ports in Iquitos, i.e., one official and four non-official ports with the non-official ports being larger and more heavily used than the official port. -------------- -------------- NAS IS CREATING HOW-TO MANUALS FOR ANTI-DRUG COALITIONS -------------- -------------- ¶18. (U) The NAS Demand Reduction team is working with CRESER, a local NGO, to develop six how-to manuals (or toolkits) to teach people how to organize and run a community anti-drug coalition (CAC). On April 10-13, CRESER conducted workshops to solicit input from community members of the six CACs as well as from the NGO technical assistance teams. It is important that the manuals are written with the community members in mind. The manuals will express concepts in terms and examples appropriate for a Peruvian audience. The word usage and illustrations will take into consideration people's reading ability. Before each of the six manuals is produced, CRESER will test and validate them again with the community members. The first manual should be ready for publication by the end of June. -------------- -------------- PERU PUSHES NEW CRIME CODE AND ASSET FORFEITURE LAWS -------------- -------------- ¶19. (U) In April, President Allan Garcia announced that he wanted to speed up the timetable for implementing the new accusatory criminal code throughout Peru. To help with this process, NAS assisted the Peruvian Attorney General's staff in the introductory phase of implementing the code in Trujillo, the capital of the Department of La Libertad. This is the GOP's first effort to expand beyond the small pilot program in the Department of Huara. NAS also contributed to the Justice Ministry's campaign to create a non-penal asset forfeiture law by organizing a roundtable and workshop for Congressmen and their aides on the use of asset forfeiture as a legal tool against drug trafficking and organized crime. STRUBLE