Source: 2002
Released by the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
Kazakhstan continues to be an important transit corridor for drugs being transported to Russia and Western Europe. The Chairman of the Justice Ministry Committee on Combating Drug Addiction and Drug Dealing estimates that approximately one-third of Afghanistan's near-record ca. 3000 metric tons drug harvest (UNODC Estimate) will transit Kazakhstan this year. In addition, reports suggest that Kazakhstan has also become a transit country for illegal drugs going to Europe from China and other parts of Eurasia. Local drug use continues to increase, but local crime associated with drug use seems to have stabilized. Kazakhstan is taking steps to control drug abuse within its own borders. Endemic corruption at all levels of government complicates efforts to improve national controls over drug trafficking. Kazakhstan became a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention in 1997.
Although vast fields of wild marijuana and ephedra, along with some local production of opium, show that Kazakhstan could become a major producer of illicit drugs, evidence continues to suggest that local production is limited mostly to in-country use, with some smuggling into Russia. Drugs transiting Kazakhstan impact Russia and Europe, not the U.S. After last year's destruction of three drug laboratories, no further production labs have been found. Weak legal controls have, however, reportedly led to an increase in the production and illicit trade in precursor chemicals.
Kazakhstan is in the second year of its five-year plan against drug trafficking and use. This year, the government's Security Council met throughout the year to plan ways to combat drug trafficking and revise the country's counternarcotics structures. A Commission on Counteracting Drug Addiction and Drug Trafficking was established on November 10, bringing together representatives from 13 disparate counternarcotics agencies at the national, regional and local level. This is an important first step towards a united national counternarcotics effort. In addition, Kazakhstan announced plans for the formation of a single Central Asia anti-narcotics information center under the aegis of EU's Central Asia Drugs Action Plan (CADA) program. The government also recently announced a U.S. $70 million-dollar joint venture with a German firm to convert 20,000 hectares of wild marijuana in the southern Chui Valley to the commercial production of hemp. As part of its effort to gain control over its borders and improve border and customs controls, Kazakhstan continues to delimit disputed border areas with its neighbors.
In March, Russia and Kazakhstan agreed to set up a "cordon sanitaire" along their common border in order to stop the flow of drugs from Afghanistan. Each country will allocate U.S. $2 million to the project. In April, Kazakhstan and Russia signed an agreement to allow the unobstructed flow of legally traded goods across their common border. The agreement includes provisions to exchange information on contraband. In May, the Law on Medical and Social Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts was passed, establishing drug rehabilitation centers, and counternarcotics programs in prisons and public schools. Also in May, the Law on Trafficking in Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and Precursors was amended to make it more effective.
As a result of the first meeting of the Kazakhstan-sponsored Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in June, seventeen nations signed the "Almaty Act," pledging cooperation in the fight against terrorism, illicit arms trade and drug trafficking. July saw Kazakhstan introduce a ban on sending narcotics, psychotropic drugs and precursor chemicals through the mail and, a new customs code was adopted in November, simplifying customs procedures and eliminating various by-laws that had been a pretext for corruption. In September, President Nazarbayev asked the Security Council to explore the possibility of decriminalizing the use and possession of certain light narcotic drugs, using the Netherlands as a model.
Kazakhstan also works closely with UNODC, which maintains a small office in Astana. UNODC has approval to begin a project on strengthening drug control and training capacities in Kazakhstan.
Law Enforcement Efforts. According to official figures, in the first nine months of 2002, a total of 42 metric tons of narcotics-related contraband were seized, of which 27 tons were precursor chemicals. Most of these seizures (40 metric tons) were made by the police (the Ministry of the Interior). Broken down by drug, the seizures amount to 10 metric tons of marijuana, 87 kilograms of heroin, 79 kilograms of opium, 70 kilograms of hashish and 55 grams of cocaine. All of these numbers, except for opium, are higher than last year. The drop in opium seizures may be due to the fact that, according to police a higher share of opiates is moving as heroin. Heroin is only a tenth of the volume of opium, and sells for a much higher price.
In 2001, nearly 18,000 drug-related arrests were made, leading to 12,000 prosecutions. In the first nine months of 2002, 10,000 drug-related arrests were made, leading to slightly fewer than 7,000 prosecutions.
There were some notable arrests and police actions during the year. In 2002, the Committee for National Security broke up three unrelated criminal gangs consisting of Iranians, Kazakhs and Georgians, respectively. Police seized a total of 14 kilograms of heroin, mostly intended for sale in Russia. In Karaganda Oblast, a local traffic policeman was arrested with 10 kilograms of heroin; in Kustanay Oblast, a woman was arrested for possession of 225 kilograms of marijuana, with a street value of U.S. $20-30,000. In July, the Traffic Police in Astana arrested two women traveling from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan to Yekatarinburg, Russia, with two kilos of heroin worth U.S. $80,000. There were two major police operations during the year. Operation Law and Order, running from 22-28 April, resulted in 176 arrests and the seizure of 300 kilograms of illicit drugs. Operation Poppy 2002, running from May 15 to October 15, resulted in the seizure of 11 tons of narcotics-related contraband. The Agency for Customs Control, previously part of the Ministry of State Revenues, became an independent body in August.
Corruption. Corruption of all types, including cases related to narcotics trafficking, remains endemic at all levels of government. According to the Prosecutor General's Office, in the first half of 2002 more than 2000 civil servants, including seven senior officials, were disciplined for illegal activities and more than U.S. $32 million was returned to the national treasury. Criminal charges were brought against 340 government employees, including the seven senior officials. In 2001, approximately 50 judges were removed from office for official malfeasance. As of August, an additional 20 judges had been removed for the same reason. By September, the Ministry of the Interior (responsible for the national police force) had brought criminal charges against 70 of its employees.
The Agency for Customs Control is prone to corruption. An investigation of the agency's central office in Astana revealed that nearly half of its 246 staff officers were guilty of abuse of office. In Kazakhstan as a whole, 80 criminal cases were brought against customs officers, 41 were fired for abuse of office and 721 officers were disciplined during the first nine months of 2002. Among the various charges brought against officers of all agencies is the selling of confiscated narcotics.
Government officials have spoken out on the need to take the problem of corruption seriously and taken some steps to address it. In April, the President established a commission to study the problem of government corruption and recommend changes in legislation. The Minister of the Interior has vowed to purge all corrupt officers from the ranks of the police and he said he will dismiss senior police officials even for tolerating corruption among subordinates. Heads of other agencies are likewise intent on prosecuting corruption within the ranks of their own agencies. Until the extremely low salaries at the lower ranks are raised further, however, it is unlikely that pervasive petty corruption can be eliminated (some here speak of "survival-based corruption"). This low level corruption is a major reason the borders of Kazakhstan remain porous.
Agreements and Treaties. U.S.-Kazakh law enforcement and legal cooperation is good and improving. After lengthy negotiations, the GOK and USG signed a Letter of Agreement which will allow enhanced cooperation on law enforcement training between the two countries.
Kazakhstan is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention. The Kazakhstan national counternarcotics law, passed in 1998, specifically gives the provisions of international counternarcotics agreements precedent over national law. The GOK also has numerous cooperative agreements throughout the region governing mutual issues of border control, cooperation in fighting narcotics trafficking, controlled deliveries, etc. Since March, the GOK has signed two agreements with Russia affecting border control and drug trafficking between the two countries.
Cultivation and Production. Marijuana and ephedra grow wild on about 1.2 million hectares of southern Kazakhstan, with the largest single location being the 130,000 hectares of wild marijuana in Chui Valley. In theory, the Chiu Valley alone could supply 150 thousand metric tons of marijuana or 6,000 metric tons of hashish each year. The GOK plans to convert 20,000 hectares of the Chui Valley marijuana crop--increasing to 50,000 hectares by 2005--to commercial hemp production as part of a U.S. $70 million joint venture with a German firm. In the first nine months of 2002, the Prosecutor General's Office identified 284 cases of illicit cultivation of opium poppies, marijuana and ephedra and 497 cases of cultivation of wild marijuana. Most of this is small-time production for local use and sale. The largest opium field discovered, for example, contained 2,000 poppy plants covering 36 square meters.
Drug Flow/Transit. Despite its efforts, Kazakhstan continues to be an important transit country, especially for drugs coming out of Afghanistan and, increasingly, for drugs coming out of China and other parts of Asia. A large share of Afghanistan's opium crop transits Kazakhstan on its way to markets further west. Drug routes change constantly, but the two current main transport corridors are Afghanistan-Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan-Russia-Europe, and Afghanistan-Tajikistan-Kyrgystan-Kazakhstan-Russia-Europe. Drug couriers tend to follow main road and rail routes. Due to a weak maritime tradition, lack of proper equipment and training, and legal defects that prevent the Border Guard Service (the Kazakhstani equivalent of the U.S. Border Patrol and Coast Guard), from making arrests, Kazakhstan's main port on the Caspian Sea has become a transit point for drugs. Illicit drugs are increasingly being transported north by boat through Kazakhstan's coastal waters.
Domestic Demand. There are approximately 250,000 drug addicts in Kazakhstan, about 1.7 percent of the population. After a rapid increase in the 1990's, the increase in numbers of addicts seems to have slowed and is expected to stabilize at about 280,000.
The government recognizes the seriousness of the problem and in May passed a Law on Medical and Social Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts. This act establishes drug treatment centers, as well as counternarcotics programs in prisons and schools. The GOK also allows NGOs to operate counternarcotics programs freely throughout the country.
This year the USG placed its first Regional narcotics officer in the U.S. Embassy at Almaty to establish and coordinate counternarcotics activities throughout Central Asia. The officer is working with the GOK, EU, international agencies, NGOs, and agencies of the USG to strengthen Kazakhstan's control over its porous southern border and to enhance customs and border operations at the country's main Caspian Sea port. Narcotics officers in Kazakhstan and Russia cooperate to enhance Russian-Kazakhstani efforts to control narcotics traffic across their mutual border. State Department narcotics assistance finances counternarcotics training and funds the Regional Legal Advisor (RLA) in Kazakhstan. The RLA will concentrate his efforts on legal training and reform related to counternarcotics and money laundering. The Central Asian Security Initiative/Export Border Security (CASI/EXBS) Advisor continues to cooperate closely with the narcotics officer, as do FBI's two legal attaches.
Bilateral relations between the U.S. and Kazakhstan continue to be good. The GOK provides law-enforcement related information requested by the U.S., including information regarding suspected drug traffickers. U.S. anti-terrorism assistance clearly has some counternarcotics spin-offs. During 2002, U.S. Customs provided weapons of mass destruction (WMD) border interdiction, laboratory analysis and investigation seminars together with delivery of specialized detection equipment.
The Road Ahead. Kazakhstan is trying hard to end its status as a narcotics transit country. To that end, it continues to strengthen its borders, refine its laws and cooperate with the international community. Corruption, lack of resources and training, and a weak infrastructure remain problems, but current trends are encouraging.
The U.S. will continue to cooperate with the GOK and to concentrate its regional counternarcotics efforts here. Kazakhstan is the most economically developed of the Central Asian republics; it is also likely to be the only Central Asian country with the financial resources to seriously fight the narcotics trafficking that plagues the region. Kazakhstan's size and position in relationship to Afghanistan and Europe continue to make it a major drug transiting country.