CAPE VERDE SUBMISSION FOR 2010 INCR REPORT, PART I

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 PRAIA 000211

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR INLJOHN LYLE AND AF/W

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SNAR PREL EFIN ASEC CV
SUBJECT: CAPE VERDE SUBMISSION FOR 2010 INCR REPORT, PART I

REF: STATE 097230


1. Per reftel, Embassy Praia submits the following draft text
for the 2010 INCSR report in addition to the e-mail version we
have sent in for review. Please direct questions or comments to
Dana Brown (browndml@state.gov)



Cape Verde




I. Summary



Because of its location in the Atlantic Ocean, Cape Verde is an
important transit country for narcotics entering Europe from
South America and Africa. Narcotics enter Cape Verde by
commercial aircraft and maritime vessels, including yachts.
Cape Verde works with international donors like the United
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Governments of
Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Brazil, and the United States
to fight international narcotics trafficking and reduce local
demand. Cape Verde is a party to the 1988 United Nations
Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and
Psychotropic Substances.



II. Status of Country



Cape Verde's strategic location on the maritime and aerial
routes between mainland Africa, Europe, and South America makes
it an attractive transit point for drug shipments from the
Caribbean, Venezuela, Colombia, and Brazil en route to Europe.
The country's numerous beaches, extensive territorial waters,
and an inadequately-monitored economic zone allow drugs to pass
through undetected. Cocaine is the most trafficked narcotic,
mainly coming from Brazil, but crack cocaine, "cocktail" (a
mixture of cannabis and crack, called "cochada" in Cape Verde),
and locally-cultivated marijuana are also trafficked. There are
also reports that Ecstasy is trafficked through Cape Verde from
Europe. Cape Verdean authorities are concerned about drug abuse
within the prison system and drug-related crime.



III. Country Actions against Drugs in 2009



Policy Initiatives.



Cape Verdean law makes "consumption [of drugs], drug
trafficking, and revenues resulting from drug trafficking"
criminal offenses, punishable by one to twenty years'
imprisonment. In May 2009, the Cape Verdean Parliament approved
a new law designed to combat money laundering allowing for
greater control of offshore banks, and granting authorities more
power to seize assets of drug traffickers. In September 2009,
the United States African Command (AFRICOM) and the U.S.
Department of the Treasury sponsored, with the assistance of the
U.S. Embassy and the Cape Verdean Judicial Police, a course in
the capital city of Praia on financial investigation techniques
and processing of evidence. Representatives from the Cape
Verdean Central Bank, Financial Information Unit (FIU),Customs,
and Naval Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS) attended the
course, as well as members of the Judicial Police from Cape
Verde and Guinea-Bissau.



Law Enforcement Efforts.



Cape Verde has two separate law enforcement agencies that fight
narcotics trafficking: the Judicial Police and the National
Police. The Judicial Police is a unit of the Ministry of Justice
with overall responsibility for coordinating criminal
investigations. The National Police reports to the Ministry of
Interior. To date in 2009, the Judicial Police has detained 141
persons, primarily Cape Verdean, Nigerian, and Portuguese
nationals, for drug trafficking, and seized 21 kilograms of

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cocaine and 640 kilograms of cannabis.



Specific cases included:



* July 10, 2009: two suspects arrested in Sco Vicente for
transporting the equivalent of 5, 200 hits of cocaine;



* October 7, 2009: two suspects arrested in Sco Vicente for
transporting 164.7 grams of cocaine;



* October 9, 2009: four suspects arrested in Sco Vicente
for transporting 63.8 grams of cocaine;



* October 13, 2009: three suspects arrested in Sal for
transporting 7,035 kilograms of cocaine in the city of Praia; and



* October 27, 2009: the Sal Criminal Court sentenced five
individuals to sentences ranging from 12 to 24 years for
trafficking 70 kilograms of cocaine. As part of the same
proceeding, the court sentenced a Cape Verdean border patrol
officer to twenty-five years in prison for involvement in a drug
trafficking ring.







Corruption.



The government of Cape Verde does not encourage or facilitate
the illicit production or distribution of drugs, or the
laundering of proceeds from illegal drug transactions.
Nonetheless, in June 2008, three Judicial Police officials were
arrested for diverting over 135 kilograms of cocaine seized in a
drug investigation to the black market. The Judicial Police
conducted a full investigation, and the three suspects are
currently awaiting trial.



Agreements and Treaties.



Cape Verde is a party to the 1988 United Nations Convention
Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic
Substances, the 1961 United Nations Single Convention on
Narcotic Drugs, as amended by the 1972 Protocol, and the 1971
United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances. Cape
Verde is also a party to the United Nations Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime and its protocols against
trafficking in persons and migrant smuggling. Also, on April
23, 2008, Cape Verde ratified the UN Convention against
Corruption.



Cultivation/Production.



Cape Verde is not a significant producer of narcotics. Small
quantities of marijuana, however, are sometimes cultivated
domestically. In September 2009, for example, the Judicial
Police seized 120 kilograms of marijuana cultivated on Santiago
Island.



Drug Flow/Transit.




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Cape Verde is located in the mid-Atlantic off the coast of West
Africa, and therefore occupies a strategic location on the
maritime and aerial routes between mainland Africa, Europe, and
South America. As such, it is an attractive transit point for
cocaine, marijuana, and other illegal drugs trafficked to Europe
from the Caribbean, Colombia, and Brazil. In addition,
narcotics from Europe are sometimes smuggled through Cape Verde.
The U.S. has not been identified as a significant direct
destination for drugs transiting through Cape Verde.



Domestic Programs/Demand Reduction.



The National Commission for Combating Drugs (CNLCD),organized
under the Ministry of Justice, is responsible for coordinating
Cape Verde's counter-narcotics programs. The CNLCD gathers
statistics, disseminates information on narcotics issues, and
manages government treatment programs for narcotics addictions.
It also runs a hotline and manages several public awareness
campaigns. In addition, Cape Verde has a drug rehabilitation
shelter located on Santiago Island.



Moreover, an administrative body, CAVE INTERCRIN (Cape Verde
Integrated Crime and Narcotics Programme),supports the
self-sustainable and healthy development of Cape Verde by
preventing the spread of illicit drugs, crime, and other
anti-social behaviors. CAVE INTERCRIN aims to improve Cape
Verde's law enforcement and border patrol capabilities through
upgrades to the government's communication, intelligence, and
communication capabilities, as well as through computer-based
training programs.



IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs



Bilateral Cooperation.

In 2009, the United States and Cape Verde cooperated on many
fronts to combat drug trafficking. One of the largest
cooperative efforts, led by AFRICOM and coordinated by the U.S.
Embassy, is the Counternarcotics Maritime Security and
Interagency Fusion Center (CMIC),an institution to be operated
by Cape Verdean military and police to coordinate maritime
security and law enforcement.



Moreover, this year the Cape Verdean and U.S. Governments
continued their groundbreaking joint law enforcement activities.
In June 2008, the U.S. Coast Guard deployed a cutter with a
Cape Verdean law enforcement detachment (LEDET) aboard to
conduct law enforcement operations in Cape Verdean territorial
waters-representing the first multilateral combined maritime law
enforcement operation ever conducted in Africa. It also marked
the first time a non-U.S. LEDET worked with the U.S. Coast Guard
on a U.S. military vessel. In 2009, another LEDET operation,
involving four Cape Verdean Coast Guard officers and two members
of the Judicial Police on board a U.S. vessel, took place. In
addition, the U.S. Government is negotiating an agreement to
allow future LEDETs with the Cape Verde Ministry of Defense.
According to Cape Verde's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the
agreement will be approved in the near future.



The Africa Partnership Station initiative, funded by AFRICOM,
also continued work with the Cape Verdean military this year,
paying for officers to attend training classes. For example,
three officials-one each from the Cape Verdean Coast Guard,
Judicial Police, and Ministry of Justice, participated in a
training program in Dakar, Senegal. Lastly, as described above,
AFRICOM and the U.S. Department of Treasury sponsored a course
on financial investigation techniques and evidence processing,
which was attended by Cape Verdean law enforcement officials.



The Road Ahead.

Under current timetables, in 2010 the CMIC will develop into a
platform for government-wide information-sharing, and further

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progress will be made on the LEDET program. The United States
and Cape Verde are also discussing the implementation of a
Status of Forces Agreement, to further improve cooperation on
counter-narcotics issues.
MYLES