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ECOWAS and Conflict Prevention in West Africa - Center on ...

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dur<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g the 2008 electi<strong>on</strong>s <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> Ghana, as the various parties<br />

accused each other of receiv<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g f<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ancial support from<br />

drug cartels. 47 the <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>fusi<strong>on</strong> of drug m<strong>on</strong>ey <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>to nati<strong>on</strong>al<br />

politics would significantly alter the terra<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>, giv<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g<br />

an edge to parties that are will<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g to engage with the<br />

cartels. <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> the end, when such parties are elected to office,<br />

they become hostages of the drug bar<strong>on</strong>s with significant<br />

impact <strong>on</strong> the ability <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> will<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>gness of law enforcement<br />

agencies to deal with the scourge, due to either political<br />

pressure or cooptati<strong>on</strong>. This would significantly erode<br />

public <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ternati<strong>on</strong>al c<strong>on</strong>fidence thereby <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>creas<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g<br />

the risk of relapse <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> post-c<strong>on</strong>flict countries or the collapse<br />

of <strong>on</strong>ce stable states. 48<br />

1.4.2 N<strong>on</strong>-<str<strong>on</strong>g>ECOWAS</str<strong>on</strong>g>-Led Initiatives<br />

Meanwhile, due to the grow<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g magnitude of drug flows<br />

through the sub-regi<strong>on</strong>, several <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ternati<strong>on</strong>al multilateral<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> bilateral operati<strong>on</strong>s have been <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>itiated to help<br />

west <str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g>’s weak states <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> ECowAs fend off this new<br />

<strong>on</strong>slaught. some of these are:<br />

•<br />

•<br />

•<br />

operati<strong>on</strong> westbridge, Ghana. This is a jo<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>t<br />

Uk Government <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> Government of Ghana<br />

collaborati<strong>on</strong> which has tra<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ed <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> positi<strong>on</strong>ed<br />

officers <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> equipment at Accra’s Airport. Due<br />

to the arrests <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> impris<strong>on</strong>ments <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> Ghana, the<br />

whole scheme has already paid for itself due to<br />

the low pris<strong>on</strong> charges <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> Ghana as compared to<br />

Uk pris<strong>on</strong>s;<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>terpol, Project CoCAF – (Coca<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>e <str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g>) to<br />

m<strong>on</strong>itor large-scale coca<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>e traffick<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g routes<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> previously unaffected regi<strong>on</strong>s such as west<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g>. Up to the end of 2007 Project CoCAF had<br />

registered 497 significant seizures of coca<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>e<br />

transported <strong>on</strong> commercial air flights from west<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g> to Europe. Through its CoCAF database,<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>terpol deals exclusively with flights emanat<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g<br />

from west <str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g> to Europe;<br />

The Maritime Analysis <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> operati<strong>on</strong>s <str<strong>on</strong>g>Center</str<strong>on</strong>g>-<br />

Narcotics (MAoC-N), an <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ternati<strong>on</strong>al agency<br />

headquartered <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> Lisb<strong>on</strong>, Portugal <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> dedicated<br />

to stopp<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g drug traffick<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g across the Atlantic<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> formed by seven European nati<strong>on</strong>s; <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

•<br />

UNoDC <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> collaborati<strong>on</strong> with ECowAs, UNowA<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> iNTERPoL recently launched the west Coast<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>itiative (wACi) to c<strong>on</strong>fr<strong>on</strong>t the threats posed by<br />

organized crime. The scheme would <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>itially focus<br />

<strong>on</strong> capacity build<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g efforts for law enforcement<br />

agencies <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> sierra Le<strong>on</strong>e, Liberia, Cote D’ivoire<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> Gu<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ea-Bissau.<br />

while these <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>itiatives are laudable, <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> some<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>stances have yielded positive results, better<br />

coord<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ati<strong>on</strong> as is envisaged <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> the waCI <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>itiative<br />

would c<strong>on</strong>tribute to optimiz<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g their outcomes. it<br />

is <strong>on</strong>ly through such coord<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ated <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> complementary<br />

efforts that nati<strong>on</strong>al, regi<strong>on</strong>al <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ternati<strong>on</strong>al efforts<br />

would make a significant impact <strong>on</strong> the activities of<br />

the cartels. This is critical because, without proper<br />

coord<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ati<strong>on</strong>, the drug bar<strong>on</strong>s would merely shift their<br />

operati<strong>on</strong>s to those countries that are c<strong>on</strong>sidered the<br />

weak l<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ks <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> the system either because of weak nati<strong>on</strong>al<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>stituti<strong>on</strong>s or limited <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>ternati<strong>on</strong>al support.<br />

1.5 Small Arms <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> Light Weap<strong>on</strong>s<br />

1.5.1 From Moratorium to a C<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong>: a sub-regi<strong>on</strong>’s<br />

resp<strong>on</strong>se to the threat of SALW<br />

west <str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g> has been plagued by the proliferati<strong>on</strong> of<br />

licit <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> illicit small arms <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> light weap<strong>on</strong>s for many<br />

years. The magnitude of the challenge led the former UN<br />

secretary-General, kofi Annan, to describe it as ‘weap<strong>on</strong>s<br />

of mass destructi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> slow moti<strong>on</strong>’. 49 The President of<br />

the ECowAs Commissi<strong>on</strong>, Dr. Mohammed ibn Chambas,<br />

similarly described sALw as ‘west <str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g>’s weap<strong>on</strong> of mass<br />

destructi<strong>on</strong>’. <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> this secti<strong>on</strong>, we assess the extent to which<br />

ECowAs has ‘securitized’ this particular issue through an<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>itial ‘voluntary’ <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>strument first <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> 1998 <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> extended <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

2001 until the sign<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g of a legally <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> politically-b<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>d<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>ECOWAS</str<strong>on</strong>g> C<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> Small Arms <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> Light Weap<strong>on</strong>s,<br />

their Ammuniti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> Other Related Materials <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> June<br />

2006. 50 However, as of April 2009, this C<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong> has not<br />

come <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>to force because not enough ECowAs member<br />

states had ratified it.<br />

The <str<strong>on</strong>g>ECOWAS</str<strong>on</strong>g> Moratorium <strong>on</strong> the Importati<strong>on</strong>, Exportati<strong>on</strong><br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> Manufacture of Light Weap<strong>on</strong>s adopted <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> May<br />

1998 <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> the C<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong> represent a normative <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

practical framework designed to ensure the effective<br />

implementati<strong>on</strong> of various nati<strong>on</strong>al <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> sub-regi<strong>on</strong>al<br />

ECowAs <str<strong>on</strong>g>and</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>C<strong>on</strong>flict</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>Preventi<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g> west <str<strong>on</strong>g>Africa</str<strong>on</strong>g>: C<strong>on</strong>fr<strong>on</strong>t<str<strong>on</strong>g>in</str<strong>on</strong>g>g the Triple Threats<br />

11<br />

NYU<br />

CIC

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