Source: 2000
Released by the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
Australia is a committed partner in international efforts to combat illicit drugs. Australia is a consumer, rather than a producer, nation. There is no evidence of narcotics destined for the U.S. transiting Australia. U.S. and Australian law enforcement agencies have excellent cooperation on narcotics matters. Drug policy is an issue of increasing importance in domestic affairs in Australia, with the passage of state legislation allowing for safe heroin injecting rooms (clean needles provided, no prosecution for drug offenses) in two Australian cities; implementation of this legislation has been delayed, however. Australia is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention.
Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in Australia. According to a 1998 survey for Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), nearly 40 percent of Australians over the age of 14 have used the drug at least once, with 17 percent having used it in the last 12 months. The survey revealed that 46 percent of all Australians report having used at least one illicit drug in their lives, with 22 percent having done so in the previous year. Australia has also seen a growth in the use of the synthetic drug Ecstasy: a recent survey by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Center (NDARC) found that 20 percent of men surveyed ages 20 to 29 and 10 percent of women in that age group had tried the drug.
Heroin use is on the rise in Australia. 2.2 percent of all Australians reported using heroin in the 1998 AIHW survey, up from 1.4 percent in 1995. Among men aged 20-29, 6.2 percent reported heroin use in 1998, up from 3.6 percent three years earlier. The state of New South Wales (NSW) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) have passed legislation allowing for the creation of "safe heroin injecting rooms." Neither state has actually established a safe injecting room, due to numerous procedural and legal hurdles.
Policy Initiatives. The government's comprehensive drug strategy remains the "Tough on Drugs" program first announced by Prime Minister John Howard in 1997. Since its inception, more than U.S.$250 million has been spent on implementation of the strategy, according to the Prime Minister's office. Drug policy remains an issue in which both the federal and state governments have a role. This leads to variations in laws and punishments across Australia.
Law Enforcement Efforts. Law enforcement agencies continued aggressive antinarcotics law enforcement activities in 2000. Responsibility for these efforts is divided between the federal and state governments, with the various law enforcement agencies generally working well together.
According to a report from Australian Customs, from July 1999 to December 2000, Customs seized 717 kilograms of cocaine, 269 kilograms of heroin and 144 kilograms of ecstasy. The most significant seizures of the year 2000 were a 317 kilograms shipment of cocaine seized in Sydney and, in late December, 184 kilograms of heroin. Police also seized Australia's two largest shipments of ecstasy ever: 76 kilograms in January and 105 kilograms in December 2000. In a report issued in March 1999, the Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence (ABCI) reported that between July 1, 1997 and June 30, 1998, federal and state/territory enforcement authorities seized 320.9 kilograms of heroin and other opiates, 103.1 kilograms of cocaine, and 182.2 kilograms of methamphetamine and other amphetamines.
The AFP has established a number of overseas liaison posts to assist in narcotics-related investigations. These liaison officers, particularly those in the Pacific Island nations, also assist local law enforcement agencies in training and institution building. The AFP, both in country and overseas, has a close working relationship with U.S. agencies, such as DEA and FBI. In October, the AFP, in conjunction with other international law enforcement agencies, played a central role in the seizure of 357 kilos of Southeast Asian heroin in Fiji. This was Australia's first direct enforcement activity outside its borders. The Australian government is working through the court system to extradite a prominent Mexican money launderer back to Mexico pursuant to that country's request. In 2000, Australia transferred to the U.S. three persons wanted for narcotics crimes.
Corruption. The Australian government is vigilant in its efforts to prevent narcotics related corruption. There is no indication of any senior official of the government facilitating the production or distribution of illicit drugs or aiding in the laundering of proceeds from such activities.
Agreements and Treaties. The U.S. and Australia cooperate in law enforcement matters under a bilateral mutual legal assistance treaty and an extradition treaty. Australia is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention. The USG has concluded a Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement (CMAA) with Australia. Australia signed the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime in December, 2000.
Cultivation/Production. The only significant illicit cultivation in Australia is cannabis, which remains at less than 5,000 hectares throughout the country. Australia has a significant licit opium crop, primarily on the island of Tasmania. Controls against diversion of that crop are excellent.
Drug Flow/Transit. Australia has been and continues to be a target for Southeast Asian heroin trafficking organizations and South American cocaine traffickers. The U.S. Embassy continues to monitor the possibility of these drugs transiting Australia to the U.S., but to date there has been no information that this is occurring.
U.S. Policy Initiatives. The primary U.S. counternarcotics activities in Australia remain looking for signs of traffic from Australia to the U.S. and providing mutual assistance and sharing intelligence in an effort to disrupt and dismantle international trafficking organizations. Cooperation between U.S. and Australian authorities in achieving these goals is excellent.
The Road Ahead. Australia shows no sign of lessening its commitment to the international fight against drug trafficking, particularly in Southeast Asia. The U.S. can expect to enjoy excellent bilateral relations with Australia on the counternarcotics front and the two countries should work well together in UNDCP and other multilateral fora.
The Government of Australia (GOA) has in place a balanced, comprehensive system to detect, prevent, and prosecute money laundering. In 1995, a comprehensive money laundering study commissioned by the GOA estimated that each year approximately US $2.8 billion is laundered in or through Australia, or offshore. The major sources of criminal proceeds laundered in Australia are narcotics trafficking and financial fraud.
The Government of Australia (GOA) has enacted comprehensive anti-money laundering legislation that criminalizes money laundering related to serious crimes, and mandates various forms of reporting. Moreover, the legislation provides for assistance to other governments with asset seizure and forfeiture. Three pieces of legislation form the basis of Australia's anti-money laundering regime: the Financial Transaction Reports Act (FTR) of 1988; the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act (MACMA) of 1987; and the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) of 1987.
The FTR was enacted in 1988 to combat tax evasion, money laundering and serious crime. The FTR requires that the following entities report suspicious transactions, cash transactions in excess of Australian $10,000, and international funds transfers to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (AUSTRAC), Australia's financial intelligence unit: financial institutions; insurance businesses; securities dealers; trustees; sellers of monetary instruments; bullion dealers; gaming establishments and services; persons who collect, hold, or deliver currency on behalf of others; and persons who prepare payrolls for others in whole or in part from collected currency. AUSTRAC was established under section 35 of the FTR, and was given a regulatory role vis-a-vis Australia's financial services sector. The MACMA allows Australian authorities to assist other countries in identifying, freezing, seizing, and confiscating the proceeds of crime. The POCA criminalized money laundering for all serious crimes, and contains provisions to assist investigations and prosecutions in the form of production orders, search warrants, and monitoring orders.
Australia is a member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the Asia Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG), the South Pacific Forum, and the Commonwealth Secretariat. AUSTRAC is a member of the Egmont Group. Australia continues to promote the adoption of effective anti-money laundering measures by countries in the Asia/Pacific region, through its funding and hosting of the Secretariat of the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering and by raising the issue of money laundering to a priority concern at the Asia/Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum. In September 1999, a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty between Australia and the United States entered into force. AUSTRAC and FinCEN have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the exchange of information. AUSTRAC also has bilateral agreements allowing the exchange of information with the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Belgium, France, Hungary, and Denmark.
Australia is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention, and in December 2000, signed the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.
Australia continues to have a comprehensive and effective anti-money laundering regime that adheres to the FATF Forty Recommendations. Australia's approach to combat money laundering and its demonstrated ability to adapt to change, serve as a model for other countries to emulate. The GOA should continue to support the APG and provide money laundering training and technical assistance for the Asia/Pacific region.