U.S. Department
of StateU.S. Department
of State
NETHERLANDS ANTILLES
I. Summary
The Netherlands Antilles serves as a transhipment point for
cocaine from South America (specifically Colombia, Venezuela, and
Suriname) to the US and Europe, primarily the Netherlands. The
islands of the Netherlands Antilles are located strategically
near the country that is the driving force behind the cocaine
trade, Colombia, and its neighbor, a major transit zone,
Venezuela. The location of the Netherlands Antilles presents drug
control challenges. However, it made progress during 1996 in
confronting international narcotics trafficking.
The Netherlands Antilles comprises the islands of Curacao,
Bonaire, St. Eustatius, Saba and the Dutch half of Sint Maarten,
and is used extensively by illicit courier organizations sending
shipments to the US via air drops, cruise ships, commercial
aircraft, and container cargo shipments. The Netherlands Antilles
is a part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Since 1954, it has
been a separate entity. Under the Kingdom's constitution, it has
autonomy over internal affairs, but not foreign affairs or
defense.
The Dutch half of the island of Sint Maarten still shows
evidence that it is a major center for cocaine and heroin
shipments to both the US and Europe. Money laundering
organizations appear to be directing large cash deposits into new
building and land development projects. There are increasing
indications that money launderers are using legitimate businesses
as front operations. On Bonaire, financing from sources linked to
drug trafficking organizations has been offered to hotels facing
financial difficulties. Such problems require the governments of
the Netherlands (GON) and the Netherlands Antilles (GONA) to
focus more on addressing the developing problems in international
narcotics trafficking there.
The Netherlands has not extended the 1988 UN Convention to the
Netherlands Antilles because the Netherlands Antilles lacks
revisions in its Criminal Procedure Code that would implement the
Convention.
A joint GONA-GOA commission is reviewing the code to make the
technical revisions, which it will then submit to the parliaments
of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba for approval. After the
revisions are approved, the Criminal Procedure Code is expected
to facilitate the implementation of the 1988 UN Convention and
other GONA laws. Those other laws are expected to combat
international and local drug trafficking and money laundering
activities, broaden the investigatory powers of local enforcement
agencies with regard to search, seizures, extradition of
nationals, and questioning and detaining of suspects.
II. Status of Country
The five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are
geographically split into two distinct groups. The islands of
Bonaire and Curacao are located off the South American coast near
Colombia and Venezuela. Saba, St. Eustatius and the Dutch half of
Sint Maarten are hundreds of miles away east of the Virgin
Islands and the Anegada Passage, just above the Leeward Islands
of the Caribbean. Cocaine is the principal drug transiting the
Netherlands Antilles. The majority of cocaine enters Bonaire and
Curacao on commercial maritime vessels originating in Colombia,
and small fishing vessels from Venezuela. The cocaine is then
transhipped via couriers on cruise ships or commercial airliners.
Large-scale commercial shipments of cocaine, as evidenced by
large seizures of cocaine in air-freight shipments and on
container cargo vessels, are smuggled primarily through the major
ports in these islands, and then on to the US and Europe.
In Curacao, local drug traffickers who are responsible for
transhipments of drugs are paid in cocaine instead of cash. This
results in increased crime and drug abuse problems. Heroin also
enters Curacao via couriers from Colombia. The drug is
transhipped to the US and Europe via couriers who ingest 500-700
grams of heroin encased in rubber packages.
The area around Saba, called the Saba Banks, appears to be a
favored zone for traffickers' aerial drops of multi-hundred kgs
amounts of cocaine destined for Puerto Rico. There is no evidence
that indicates large shipments of cocaine continue to enter Sint
Maarten by sea. Colombian-based narcotics trafficking
organizations appear to wield significant influence in the
Antillean island economies and are more than a match for the
modest law enforcement resources there. Consequently, narcotics
trafficking on a large scale continues.
Sophisticated off-shore corporate banking facilities offering
secret bank accounts, casino/resort complexes, high volume
tourism, and a stable currency make the Netherlands Antilles
attractive to money laundering organizations. Local governments,
with the assistance of Dutch officials, are attempting to enact
legislation that would place more controls on banking and
financial institutions, and give local law enforcement officials
greater authority to investigate money laundering activities and
suspicious transactions. But the problem of controlling money
laundering is formidable because launderers rely on
sophisticated, highly paid advisors, adept at maneuvering assets
out of the purview of local and other authorities. The local
governments charged with monitoring money laundering have modest
resources, and are relatively unfamiliar with conducting
financial investigations.
III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 1996
Policy Initiatives. In January 1996, the
Netherlands Antilles, Aruba and the Netherlands established a
joint coast guard to improve drug interdiction efforts in the
coastal waters of the Kingdom's Caribbean islands. The US began
working with the GON on a Maritime Law Enforcement Agreement.
Such an agreement would allow for improved cooperation on
surveillance and interdiction efforts in the waters surrounding
the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. The Hague, after consulting
the Antillean and Aruban governments, renewed a port visit and
overflight agreement which allows US vessels and aircraft
pre-clearance and access to docking, overflight and landing
privileges in the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.
Law Enforcement Efforts. Antillean law
enforcement officials maintained good working relations with
their USG counterparts. This relationship has been one of the key
factors in the increased arrests of drug couriers transiting
through the Antilles. The GONA seized 650 kgs of marijuana and
710 kgs of cocaine in 1996, a significant increase from the 111
kgs of cocaine seized in 1995.
The GONA began customs checks in Sint Maarten, including
limited vessel inspection. The GONA implemented detection dog
controls at all Antillean airports and ocean cargo facilities.
The parliament approved laws that permit the establishment of a
law enforcement entity designed to detect and counter money
laundering, but such entities, called MOT's, are not yet
functioning. The Antilles hosted the first International Crime
Symposium, focussing on the Caribbean perspective, to better link
its efforts with regional anti-crime activities.
Implementing asset forfeiture regulations enacted in 1996, the
GONA seized about $1.2 million in real estate and other property,
jewelry and two luxury yachts. Authorities confiscated the assets
from individuals engaged in activities directly associated with
drug trafficking.
The GONA arrested 594 suspects from 48 different nations on
narcotics-related charges during the year. In addition,
approximately 500 individuals carrying drugs were arrested upon
arrival in the Netherlands on international flights originating
from the Netherlands Antilles.
Corruption. Corruption is a serious problem
in the Netherlands Antilles. The potential for corruption is
magnified by the gaming industry and tight bank secrecy, which
facilitate money laundering. Limited economic options contribute
to a requirement for constant vigilance and severe penalties to
prevent corruption from emerging as a main factor eroding frail
democratic institutions in the Antilles.
Agreements and Treaties. The GONA is part of
the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The 1988 UN Convention does not
yet apply in the Netherlands Antilles. The GON became a party to
the Convention in 1993. The Netherlands has not yet acceded to it
on behalf of the GONA because the Netherlands Antilles has not
enacted domestic legislation necessary to fulfill its
obligations.
An extradition treaty in force between the USG and the GON was
extended to the GONA. The GONA does not currently extradite its
nationals.
Demand Reduction. Drug-related petty crime
has increased in the Antilles, further demonstrating growing
narcotics problems. Drug abuse is growing at an alarming rate in
Curacao, especially the use of crack. Crack seizures confirm this
trend. At the national level, the National Drug Coordinator is
responsible for the production and distribution of demand
reduction materials and media releases. Mobile teams also provide
training and coordination assistance to local and neighborhood
demand reduction activities. The government is seeking resources
for more in-country rehabilitation programs and treatment
centers.
IV. US Policy Initiatives and Programs.
The GONA works closely with USG officials on the exchange of narcotics information. Curacao is seeking to implement a Joint Information Coordination Center (JICC). Progress on the JICC was stalled because of in-fighting between police and customs forces.
Signature of a Maritime Agreement between the Netherlands and
the USG may increase the international emphasis on
counternarcotics activities in the Caribbean. These should be of
particular benefit to the Antilles with its disparate groups of
islands separated by hundreds of miles.
The Road Ahead. Good cooperation on counternarcotics issues will remain an important factor in law enforcement on the islands and in their surrounding waters. Corruption will be a problem in the Antilles, as narcotics traffickers and money launderers attempt to discourage further changes which would bolster enforcement against trafficking and money laundering. Continued GON financial and material support, especially on the counternarcotics front, will be essential to successful law enforcement in the Netherlands Antilles. The US, through JIATF EAST will augment, where possible, military assets in the region in collaboration with Combined Task Group 4.4. The signing of the maritime ship riders agreement between the USG and the GON is a key objective. The GONA's clearly articulated interest in passing tough laws and receiving antinarcotics training programs conducted by USG agencies bodes well for its counternarcotics progress in the coming year.
