convergence

Fighting Networks with Networks
In October, the Trans-Pacific Network met for a third time, in Phuket, Thailand. More
than 125 law enforcement and other government officials from 30 Asia-Pacific economies and
representatives of regional and international organizations participated. The Phuket workshop
was cohosted by the governments of Thailand and the United States, in partnership with
The Colombo Plan and other international partners. Law enforcement officials from across
the transpacific region underscored the growing sophistication and increasing joint ventures
among illicit organizations from regions such as Asia, West Africa, Latin America, the Middle
East, and Eurasia.
It was noted that while regional law enforcement agencies had made significant narcotics
seizures, arrests, and confiscations and recovery of bulk cash related to drug trafficking in their
cross-border operations, participants were growing increasingly concerned about the expansion
and influence of Latin American cartels, West African gangs, and Iranian-based criminal
organizations in the Asia-Pacific region. In the other direction, discussion also focused on the
growing threat posed by Chinese organized crime syndicates across the Americas. Another
concern raised was the high purity of drugs such as Afghan heroin, compared to the impurities
and toxic cutting agents present in Latin American crack cocaine, causing a public health crisis
that aggravates regionalized drug epidemics.
The Trans-Pacific workshop in Phuket also placed a priority on environmental crimes,
specifically illicit logging and associated trade. The objective of this session was to provide
participants with a greater understanding and ability to practically respond to the broad array
of illegal logging and related enforcement issues in the region. Discussion focused on ways
to establish an interregional network to enhance cross-sector regional cooperation to combat
criminal networks illicitly trading in illegally harvested or stolen timber. Partners emphasized
the need to reinforce commitments to strengthen forest law enforcement sectors and criminal
justice communities both within and across national borders. This included the need to take
concrete measures to combat illicit logging and associated trade in three areas: prevention,
detection, and suppression.
Falsified or fake medicines, medical products, and other dangerous counterfeits and defective
and tainted products imperil the safety of our citizens and shake market confidence. The
illicit trade of these counterfeit products is another profitable area for transnational criminals,
especially given its high reward/low risk calculus. Another of the streams at the Trans-Pacific
workshop in Phuket focused on how dangerous counterfeits continue to enter regional and
global supply chains and markets, with harmful impacts on communities, healthcare institutions,
and businesses. Participants have carried the momentum of this discussion into other
fora such as APEC, where the Anti-Corruption and Transparency Experts Working Group
has begun to focus on counterfeit pharmaceuticals as a major threat to the health and safety
of APEC communities and markets.
Transpacific partners agreed, in essence, to shut down illicit markets, put criminal entrepreneurs
out of business, and continue to cooperate across borders to dismantle transnational
criminal threats and illicit networks. In addition to showcasing case studies and sharing best
practices, partners agreed to further leverage intelligence- and information-sharing arrangements;
promote mutual legal assistance that enables evidence-sharing to assist in carrying
out investigations and prosecutions; expand capacity-building efforts at the interregional,
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