MOZAMBIQUE: 2007-2008 INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MAPUTO 001287 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KCRM PREL PGOV SNAR MZ SUBJECT: MOZAMBIQUE: 2007-2008 INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL STRATEGY REPORT (INSCR) PART I REF: STATE 136787 ¶I. Summary ¶1. Mozambique is a transit country for illegal drugs such as hashish, herbal cannabis, cocaine, and heroin consumed primarily in Europe, and for mandrax (methaqualone) consumed primarily in South Africa. Some illicit drug shipments passing through Mozambique may also find their way to the United States and Canada. Drug production mostly is limited to herbal cannabis cultivation and a small but growing number of mandrax laboratories. Evidence suggests considerable use of herbal cannabis and limited consumption of "club drugs" (Ecstasy/MDMA),prescription medicines, and heroin primarily by the country's urban population. Porous borders, a poorly policed seacoast, inadequately trained and equipped law enforcement agencies, and corruption in the police and judiciary hampered Mozambique's enforcement and interdiction efforts. The United States, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC),and other donors have established cooperation programs to improve training of drug control officials and provide better interdiction and laboratory equipment. Mozambique is a party to all three UN Drug Control Conventions. II. Status of Country ¶2. Mozambique is not a significant producer of illegal drugs and not a producer of precursor chemicals. Herbal cannabis remains the most produced and most consumed drug in the country. While herbal cannabis for local consumption is produced throughout the country, seizure quantities and statistics from 2006 indicate higher levels in Maputo City, Manica, Sofala, and Cabo Delgado provinces. Limited amounts are trafficked to neighboring countries, primarily South Africa. Mozambique's role as a transit country for illicit drugs and precursors and a favored point of disembarkation in Africa continues to grow, mostly because of its proximity to South Africa (the major market for illicit drugs) as well as weak law enforcement capacity at borders, major seaports, and airports. Southwest Asian producers ship cannabis resin (hashish) and synthetic drugs through Mozambique to Europe and South Africa. Limited quantities of these shipments may also reach the United States and Canada. Heroin and other opiate derivatives shipped through Mozambique usually originate in Southeast Asia and typically transit India, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, and later Tanzania, before arriving by small ship or, occasionally, overland to Mozambique. Many traffickers are of Tanzanian or Pakistani origin. There were fewer reports of cocaine entering the country via couriers on international flights from Colombia and Brazil. Government authorities attribute the decrease to a change in tactics by traffickers and, to a lesser extent, more stringent police efforts at airports. However, they also acknowledge that fewer reports may not represent a decrease in the overall amount of cocaine entering the country. ¶3. Government authorities have noted an increase in the use of heroin and Ecstasy among the urban population. The abuse of mandrax, which is usually smoked in combination with cannabis, continues to be a matter of concern for countries in southern Africa. Shipments of mandrax enter South Africa from India and China, sometimes after transiting Mozambique. As of 2007, the country has dropped visa requirements for citizens of all six neighboring countries, further complicating interdiction and enforcement efforts. III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 2007 ¶4. Policy Initiatives - Mozambique's accomplishments in meeting its goals under the 1988 United Nations Convention against the Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances remain limited. Government resources devoted to the counternarcotics effort are meager, and little or no donor funds have been available in recent years. The Mozambican government carries out drug education programs in local schools in cooperation with bilateral and multilateral donors as part of its demand reduction efforts. ¶5. Law Enforcement Efforts - Mozambique's antidrug brigade operates in Maputo and reports to the Chief of the Criminal Investigation Police in the Ministry of Interior. The brigade suffers from a general lack of resources and is operating at reduced levels compared with previous years. The brigade has not received training for several years. Since 2005, a small, specialized police unit designed to strengthen efforts to fight organized crime, including narcotics trafficking, has operated at airports in provincial capitals. In 2006 Mozambican and Brazilian authorities signed a memorandum of understanding on principles, in preparation for an eventual MAPUTO 00001287 002 OF 003 extradition agreement for those convicted of trafficking drugs between the two countries. From January to June, Mozambican authorities seized 900 kg of cannabis, 12 tons of hashish, 1958 mandrax pills, and 3000kg of cocaine. As interdiction efforts improve at the Maputo airport, traffickers have used alternate airports, including those of Beira, Nampula, Quelimane and Vilankulos. Police reported that in 2006 50 Mozambican and foreign nationals were arrested, of which 20 were tried, and 7 convicted of drug trafficking. On several occasions during the year, Mozambican authorities highlighted a severe lack of resources for destroying seized drugs, particularly hashish, cannabis, and cocaine. ¶6. Corruption - The government does not as a matter of policy encourage or facilitate the illicit production or distribution of narcotics, psychotropic drugs, other controlled substances, or the laundering of proceeds from illegal drug transactions, nor were there reports in 2007 that any senior government official was engaged in such practices. While corruption is pervasive in Mozambique, the government has continued efforts to prosecute police and customs officials charged with drug trafficking offenses. ¶7. Agreements and Treaties - Mozambique is a party to the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, as amended by the 1972 Protocol, the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the 1988 UN Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Substances. In September 2006, Mozambique deposited its instrument of ratification on the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. Mozambique has signed, but not yet ratified the UN Convention Against Corruption. ¶8. Cultivation/Production - Cannabis is cultivated primarily in Maputo City, Manica, Sofala, and Cabo Delgado provinces. Intercropping is the most common method of production. The Mozambican government has no reliable estimates of crop size. Authorities have made efforts in 2007 to eradicate cannabis crops through controlled burns. ¶9. Drug Flow/Transit - Assessments of drugs transiting Mozambique are based upon limited seizure data and the observations of local and UNODC officials. Mozambique increasingly serves as a transit country for hashish, cannabis resin, heroin, and mandrax originating in Southwest Asia, owing to its porous borders, long and unpatrolled coastline, lack of resources for interdiction efforts, and improving transportation links with neighboring countries. Drugs destined for the South African and European markets arrive in Mozambique by small ship, mostly in the coastal provinces of Cabo Delgado, Nampula, Sofala, and Inhambane, before being repackaged and sent by land to neighboring countries. ¶10. The Maputo corridor border crossing at Ressano Garcia/Lebombo is an important transit point to South Africa. Hashish and heroin are also shipped on to Europe, and some hashish may reach Canada and the United States, but not in signifcant quantities. Arrests in Brazil, Mozambique, and South Africa indicate drug couriers trafficked cocaine from Colombia and Brazil to Mozambique, often through Lisbon, for onward shipment to South Africa. In addition, Nigerian and Tanzanian cocaine traffickers have targeted Mozambique as a gateway to the South African and European markets. ¶11. Domestic Program/Demand Reduction - The primary substances of abuse are alcohol, nicotine, and herbal cannabis. The Mozambican Office for the Prevention and Fight Against Drugs (GCPCD) reported in 2007 that the use of heroin, cocaine, and psychotropic "club drugs," such as Ecstasy and mandrax, was increasing in Mozambique's urban population. GCPCD maintains an office in each provincial capital and coordinates a drug prevention and education program for use in schools and with high risk families; the program includes plays and lectures in schools, churches, and other places where youths gather. It has also provided the material to a number of local NGOs for use in their drug education programs. GCPCD received no treatment assistance from bilateral donors in 2007. Despite an increase in the number of drug users, government funding and resources are scarce (the GCPCD operated on a budget of approximately $45,000 in 2007),limiting abuse and treatment options. The Ministry of Health does not have a specific program to assist drug abusers; those seeking assistance are referred to the Psychiatric Hospital. IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs ¶12. Bilateral Cooperation - The United States continues to sponsor Mozambican law enforcement officials and prosecutors MAPUTO 00001287 003 OF 003 to attend regional training programs at the International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) for Africa in Botswana. Law enforcement officials have also received training at ILEA in New Mexico. The United States has supported the police sciences academy near Maputo, through training and technical assistance in the areas of drug identification and investigation, as well as other areas of criminal sciences including fingerprint identification, forensic photography, and the identification of fraudulent documents. The assistance included construction of a forensic laboratory and the supply of related forensic analysis equipment. Additionally, technical assistance programs at the police academy also focus on methods to foster better relations between the community and the police. USAID provides training support to the Attorney General's Central Office for the Combat of Corruption (GCCC),formerly the anticorruption unit. In October 2007, an assessment team from the State Department's Office of Anti-terrorism Assistance visited to assess appropriate assistance levels for improving the capabilities of Mozambican security forces to combat terrorism. Part of this assessment included an evaluation of security capabilities at the land border station at Ressano Garcia, the Maputo seaport, and Maputo,s international airport. Also, the USG provided training to guards and senior officers of the Mozambican Border Guards in techniques of securing borders, managing border crossing (document checking, inspections) at two different locations within Mozambique. Advanced training is scheduled to take place in December. ¶13. The Road Ahead - U.S. assistance in support of the GCCC will continue in 2007. In October a short-term regional legal advisor arrived to work with the unit and other judicial offices for a period of several months through the Department of Justice Overseas Prosecutorial Development Assistance and Training program. Additionally, efforts to improve Mozambique's border security capabilities continue. Building on the success of the initial training, the USG will sponsor additional basic and advanced border security courses for Mozambican border guards. Inspection materials, vehicles and alternate transportation options, equipment for distant posts, and computer equipment will also be supplied to border guards to assist in putting into practice the techniques taught in the training courses. The U.S. military has also provided shallow draft vessels for limited coastal security work in conjunction with USCG training on ship/vessel boarding and search and seizure techniques. The GRM would benefit from increased funding for counternarcotics and drug treatment efforts and should continue its focus on reducing corruption to ensure that progress with its narcotics control efforts continues. Chapman