Uruguay 2009-02010 INSCR Part I (draft)

UNCLAS MONTEVIDEO 000614

SIPDIS
INL FOR JOHN LYLE
WHA/BSC FOR MARY DASCHBACH

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SNAR
SUBJECT: Uruguay 2009-02010 INSCR Part I (draft)

REF: STATE 97230


1. (U) Following is Embassy Montevideo's draft text for the
INCSR Part I which was also submitted by email per reftel
instructions.



BEGIN URUGUAY INSCSR DRAFT TEXT:



Uruguay 2010




I. Summary



Uruguay is not a major narcotics producing or transit nation.
Foreign trafficking cartels and individuals, including from Mexico,
Eastern Europe, Colombia, and Bolivia, continue to be active in
Uruguay, often having larger operations in neighboring Argentina or
Brazil. Uruguay also continues to experience increasing local
consumption of the highly addictive and inexpensive cocaine paste,
the crude, cocaine base product known locally as "pasta base." In
June, the Government of Uruguay released a National Plan Against
Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering, which aims to better
coordinate the counternarcotics efforts of the varied agencies
involved in fighting organized crime. Uruguay is a party to the
1988 UN Drug Convention.



II. Status of Country



Though not a major narcotics producing or transit country, Uruguay
is nonetheless exploited by international drug traffickers for
transit and logistics operations. Uruguay's porous borders and
limited inspection of airport and port cargo makes it an attractive
transit point for contraband. Uruguay is not known for narcotics
cultivation or production, and there have been no seizures of
domestically produced narcotics in 2009. This year Uruguay saw its
largest ever seizure (over 2 tons of cocaine),as well as the first
seizure of a chemical precursor, lidocaine, which is used to dilute
cocaine.



The most frequently seized drug in Uruguay is marijuana, though
officials are concerned about the growing popularity of cocaine
paste. Local demand for cocaine paste continued to increase in
2009, as did the incidence of crime related to this drug, according
to the National Anti-Drug Secretariat. Use of cocaine base inside
prisons has led to insecurity and severe health problems in
prisons. Individual drug use is not viewed as a criminal offense
and Uruguay's rehabilitation centers are strained with increasing
addicts seeking assistance. Significant efforts to reduce drug use
and assist addicts continued during 2009.



III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 2009



Policy Initiatives. The GOU made significant strides in
counternarcotics policy in 2009. The newly developed four-year
National Plan Against Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering
outlined the coordination of state resources and participants and
created a governing body made up of undersecretaries from the
agencies working in those areas. In January, special courts for
organized crime began operating, resulting from legislation passed
in 2008. The courts have jurisdiction over drug trafficking, money
laundering, corruption, and banking fraud, as well as trafficking
in persons. Two judges and two federal prosecutors now cover all
cases related to organized crime, which allows them to specialize
and to better identify related. For example, recently, a drug mule
case was also found to have a trafficking in persons component. New
legislation passed in 2009 allows the sale or use of seized assets
before the conclusion of criminal cases that sometimes take years.
Demand reduction efforts also advanced and have reflected the
changing abuse patterns and side effects that come with cocaine
base use. Uruguay is an active member of the Organization of

American States Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
(CICAD),the Southern Cone Working Group of the International
Conference for Drug Control, and other international organizations
fighting narcotics, corruption, and crime.



Law Enforcement Efforts. The GOU is highly conscious of the rising
counternarcotics threat and has made consistent efforts to improve
its response capacity. Efforts to coordinate interagency
strategies and the implementation of improved practices have paid
off in terms of increased seizures. The Uruguayan counternarcotics
police lead the interagency coordination due to their demonstrated
effectiveness over the long term. They continued to improve their
operations and intelligence unit by upgrading investigative
techniques. Port of Montevideo controls are steadily improving,
and in March, customs officials began working with a team of
special operations police who patrol the ports. This team liaises
with the counternarcotics police and has full access to the port
area and flexibility to investigate suspicious activity. In 2009,
the military began integrating a new radar system with the civilian
system to gain better control of airspace in the north, in an
effort to better control the northern borders and the clandestine
airstrips.



In 2009, the GOU seized 2,415 kilograms (kg) of cocaine in both
national and international counternarcotics operations. The GOU
also seized 174 kg of cocaine base, which was almost double the
2008 level; and 547 kg of marijuana, down from 963 kg in 2008.
(Note: numbers are accurate as of Oct 26 and will be updated in
Dec. End note.) Uruguay's interdiction numbers are low in the
context of its neighbors, and reflect lower narcotics consumption
and less trafficking in Uruguay as well as the GOU's proactive and
aggressive efforts to contain these problems.



The seizure of over two metric tons of cocaine in October as part
of an international operation led by the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) was a historical seizure for Uruguay and the
region. After receiving intelligence from DEA and its Argentine
counterparts, the Uruguayan Coast Guard was able to identify and
detain a yacht transporting 2,174 kg of cocaine. One Croatian
national was arrested in Uruguay and three others were arrested in
Eastern Europe. The investigation is ongoing. The operation is an
example of successful information sharing and international
cooperation, in this case with Uruguayan, Argentine, and Serbian
officials under DEA guidance and investigation. Nationally, the
successful operation, which including the Uruguayan Coast Guard,
the counternarcotics police and the organized crime courts, is
evidence of improved interagency cooperation.



The GOU made 1,185 drug-related arrests leading to 483 convictions.
These numbers are a slight decrease (Note: likely to change with
end of year numbers. End note.) from 2008 in both overall arrests
number of convictions.

Corruption. Uruguay has taken legal and law enforcement measures
to prevent and punish public corruption as related to narcotics
production, processing or shipment. Corruption cases are now under
the jurisdiction of the organized crime courts. The GOU
Transparency Law of 1998 criminalizes various abuses of power by
government authorities and requires high-ranking officials to
comply with financial disclosure regulations. Public officials who
do not act on knowledge of a drug-related crime may be charged with
a "crime of omission" under the Citizen Security Law. There were
no corruption cases in 2009.



Agreements and Treaties. Uruguay is a party to the 1988 UN Drug
Convention; the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances; the
1961 UN Single Convention, as amended by the 1972 Protocol; the
Inter-American Convention Against Corruption; the Inter-American
Convention Against Terrorism; the Inter-American Convention Against
Trafficking in Illegal Firearms; the UN Convention Against
Transnational Organized Crime and its three Protocols; and the UN
Convention against Corruption. It is also a member of the OAS
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) and in 2009
Uruguay held the presidency for the CICAD Money Laundering Experts
Group. The USG and Uruguay are parties to an extradition treaty
that entered into force in 1984, a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty
(MLAT) that entered into force in 1994, and a Letter of Agreement

through which the USG funds counternarcotics and law enforcement
programs. Uruguay has also signed drug-related bilateral
agreements with Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Chile,
Mexico, Panama, Peru, Venezuela and Romania. Uruguay is a member
of the regional financial action task force Grupo de Accion
Financiera de Sudamerica (GAFISUD).



Cultivation/Production. Neither USG nor Uruguayan agencies have
evidence of significant cultivation of illicit drugs in Uruguay.
Production is also rare, and no processing plants were seized in

2009.

Drug Flow/Transit. Limited law enforcement presence along the
borders, in the ports, and in the northern Uruguayan airspace opens
up Uruguay to drug trafficking by private vehicle, bus, small
private airplanes, trucks, commercial aircraft flights, and
containerized cargo. Colombian and Bolivian traffickers have
smuggled cocaine into Uruguay by flying directly into remote
regions from Bolivia, using make-shift airstrips located on
foreign-owned residential farms. This practice is being targeted
by implementing radar systems in northern Uruguay, currently
continues.

From Uruguay, narcotics are generally transported to Brazil for
domestic consumption there or transshipped onward to Europe. In
2009, the largest seizure was a yacht carrying over 2 metric tons
of cocaine heading out to meet a ship on the high seas.



Domestic Programs (Demand Reduction). Uruguay's demand reduction
efforts focus on prevention programs, rehabilitation and treatment.
In 2009, the National Drug Rehabilitation Center continued to train
health care professionals and sponsored teacher training, public
outreach, and other programs in community centers and clubs. This
year Uruguay produced a new anti-drug education program for
adolescents that is taught in schools across the country. The
interagency treatment and prevention program "Portal Amarillo"
continued to serve as a primary outlet for addicts seeking help.
It features drug rehabilitation clinics and a hotline, services for
both in-patient and out-patient drug users in northern Montevideo
and in the Department of Maldonado. In a specialized program
targeting prison populations, prison personnel and inmates were
trained to develop, plan, and perform activities to reduce drug
abuse. Uruguay continues to develop methods to track trends in
drug use. In 2009, Uruguay completed a survey of drug use in youth
populations, including secondary schools and prisons, and in 2010
they will undertake a survey of drug use in the general population.
Those findings will allow them to better shape demand reduction
programs.



IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs



Bilateral Cooperation. U.S. strategy has been to prevent Uruguay
from becoming a major point for narcotics transit or processing.
Although DEA does not have an office in Uruguay, the regional DEA
office has provided support and guidance to Uruguay authorities, in
both general operations and specific investigations. The regional
DHS office also provided training and support to officials in
border areas and ports. USG assistance to the GOU in 2009 included
support to demand reduction programs; support for narcotics
interdiction operations, including provision of equipment; and
assistance with police training. USG programs also provided
training in maritime law enforcement leadership, port security
including container inspection, and border security training to the
Uruguayan Navy, Coast Guard, and Marines. As part of the State
Partnership Program, the Connecticut Air National Guard is
providing technical assistance to the Uruguayan Air Force on radar
integration, maintenance, operations and training.



The Road Ahead. With the National Plan Against Drug Trafficking
and Money Laundering and the new legislation on organized crime
courts and asset forfeiture, Uruguay has set the foundation for
solid counternarcotics work. The counternarcotics police's
improving investigative capacity and international cooperation are
further steps towards making Uruguay less attractive to drug
traffickers. Regardless, as a small country, Uruguay lacks the
resources to maintain state-of-the-art technology and the field
experience to provide local training. The USG encourages Uruguay

to continue interagency and international cooperation and increase
investment in its counternarcotics efforts. Uruguay has several
dedicated demand reduction programs, and needs to continue reaching
out to youth and at risk groups to stop abuse before it starts.
MATTHEWMAN