Properties For Sale In Cyprus

Corruption. Corruption has been the most significant problem within Georgia's law enforcement agencies. Georgia's anti- corruption efforts continue to be hampered by the widespread tolerance of corruption within Georgian society. During 2001 the Government of Georgia formed a commission to reform the law enforcement agencies (so-called "power ministries"). The commission developed a strategy for reorganization that was forwarded to the Georgian National Security Council; however, no significant changes were made. In any case, none of these proposed measures can truly ameliorate the situation given the low wages of officials and poor standard of behavior from those in charge that nourish wide-scale, low level corruption. The new hope of eradicating corruption within the system emerged with the appointment of a new Minister of Internal Affairs, who has publicly and repeatedly announced his commitment to combating corruption and the trafficking ... [Read More]

Romania

The Government generally respected the rights of its citizens; however, its human rights record was poor in some areas.  Police use of excessive force resulted in four deaths.  Police officers continued to beat detainees and reportedly used excessive force and harassed Roma.  The Government investigated some police officers suspected of abuse and in some cases indicted those accused of criminal activities in military courts.  However, investigations of police abuses generally are lengthy and inconclusive and rarely result in prosecution or punishment.  While some progress was made in reforming the police, cases of inhuman and degrading treatment continued to be reported.  Prison conditions, although somewhat improved, remained harsh, and overcrowding remained a serious problem.  At times authorities violated the prohibition against arbitrary arrest and detention.  The judiciary remained subject to executive branch influence.  Authorities evi ... [Read More]

J) Europe and Central Asia

Drug Flow/Transit. Steady supplies of heroin and cocaine enter the UK. Although some 90 percent of heroin in the UK (amounting to around 30 tons a year) normally comes from Southwest Asia, chiefly Afghanistan, the quantity of opiates entering the UK in 2001 was distorted by the ban on opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan instituted by the Taliban in July 2000, and thereafter effectively enforced. Trafficking was not banned, however, and supplies of Afghan opium stock from previous years’ crops were released and supplied to the markets in Western Europe and the UK. This situation resulted in an initial decline in opiates reaching the UK, followed by a sharp increase from depressed levels, beginning in the fall of 2001. A significant amount of the heroin eventually imported into the UK is handled at some point by UK-based Turkish criminal groups although Turkish criminals in the Netherlands and Belgium also channel heroin to the UK. Pakistani traffickers also play a significant par ... [Read More]

J) Europe and Central Asia

The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) is neither a major producer of, nor a major transit point for, illicit drugs, although it is located along a southern variant of the Balkan Route, used to ship Southwest Asian heroin to the West European consumer market. Drug seizures in 2002 declined slightly in number, and to a greater extent in quantity of drugs seized, from 2000-2001. In that period police made record high seizures. Law enforcement officials attribute the fall to less effective enforcement during a period when they did not have complete control over their borders. Macedonia suffered an internal conflict in 2001, and during 2002 police were only beginning to return to and effectively police former conflict areas. The conflict created more porous borders with Kosovo, southern Serbia, and Albania. Trafficking to and from Kosovo remained high in 2002, following an increase that began in 2000, indicating the province’s ... [Read More]

Europe and Central Asia

Agreements and Treaties. Italy is a party to the 1961 UN Single Convention, the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances, the 1972 Protocol and the 1988 UN Drug Convention. In December 2000, an international conference was held in Palermo, Italy, for the signing of treaty on transnational crime. The treaty must be ratified by a quorum of 40 countries before it comes into force. This new treaty will strengthen governments against serious crimes, including drug trafficking, money laundering, trafficking of human beings and arms trafficking. As a member of the European Union, Italy participates in the Dublin Group, UNDCP Pompidou group, Europol, the EU Commission, and attendant committees and working groups.Cultivation/Production. There is no known coca bush cultivation in Italy. However, opium poppy grows spontaneously in the southern part of Italy and the island of Sicily. It does not present a threat due to the low alkaloid content. [Read More]

M) Money Laundering and Financial Crimes

The following are summaries of the most significant priority issues:Refocus Efforts of High Intensity Financial Crime Areas (HIFCAs). HIFCAs are special, high-risk areas or sectors where law enforcement will concentrate its resources and energy to combat money laundering. The 2001 Strategy mandated that the HIFCA task forces become operational and conduct investigations designed to result in indictments, convictions, and seizures, rather than focus primarily on intelligence gathering. Each of the six HIFCA Task Forces is now actively working cases. HIFCA Task Forces are composed of, and draw upon, all relevant federal, state, and local agencies. The Departments of Treasury and Justice jointly supervise the HIFCA Task Forces, and the 2001 Strategy primarily tasks the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) and Justice’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section to develop an advanced money laundering training program to enhance the HIFCA Task Forces’ abili ... [Read More]

Belarus

On February 24, the Ministry of Information ordered the opposition newspaper Vcherny Stolin to suspend its printing activities for 3 months for alleged "flagrant violations" of the law, inciting social intolerance, and publishing classified material about a police investigation into corruption in the local government without permission. The Ministry also cited the newspaper's failure to properly report that the newspaper was switching the focus of its reporting from economic issues to political issues. On March 8, following Vcherny Stolin's suspension, Alexander Ignatyuk, editor-in-chief of Vcherny Stolin, launched another newspaper, Provintsialka, which continued to provide critical reporting of local officials. A local official successfully sued the newspaper over a report accusing the official of accepting a bribe and was awarded approximately $990 (2 million rubles). On April 18, the Ministry of Information suspended Provintsialka for 3 months on the grounds that Provi ... [Read More]