Factors Leading Transnational Threats as State Concern

General Aziz Ahmed
Unprecedented Advancement in Information Technology
The last decades have also seen unprecedented advancement of
information technology. Nowadays, people and information are just at one click
distance away from one another. Through the internet and smart communication
gadgets, information can reach around the world in seconds. However, the
advancement of technology has become double-edged, offering the scope of
positive uses on one hand and facilitating the coordination, planning, and
execution of criminals operations on the other.
As transnational threats are conducted across the borders
along a long geographical stretch over a substantial time, continuous
communication, coordination, monitoring, and supervision are of critical
importance for such organized crime. Mobile phone and internet technologies through
enhanced communication have enabled the conduct of such organized crime-related
huge and continuous functions with speed, reliability, and safety through
digital avenues.
The ascent of information technology not only offers quick
and direct communication facilities to the Transnational Organized Crime groups
but also offers advantages in many other dimensions. “First; Organized crime is
familiar with the rapid spread of technological progress and normally gains
faster and more efficient access to technological resources than others. With
strong financial organizing power, they easily acquire and customize the IT
facilities for their criminal purpose to conduct the crimes. Second; through
virtual presence, IT allows the
organizations to be flexible, eliminating the need for an actual base,
office, and physical presence of individuals throughout the channel of
organized crime. It has greatly reduced the frequency of physical movements of
criminals and their associates to avoid detection. Third; IT facilities allows
paperless planning, conduct, and coordination through virtual link causing the
reduction of accumulated paperwork. Hence, it eliminates incriminating
documentary evidence causing security agencies further investigation and proves
difficult. Fourth; identification and detection process of information and
instructions passed to conduct the crimes through IT channels are
high-technology depended” (Kristin 2010).
Many of the security and intelligence organizations of
under-developed and developing countries are not equipped at par with the
technological capability of Transnational Organized Crime Groups. Thus, IT has
offered the transnational threats a hidden channel of communication that is
less vulnerable to a breach of security. “Legislation used to control and curb
some of these online activities may not be applicable when servers are based in
other countries hindering effective pursuit and stamping out of such illicit
activities” (Sangiovanni 2005). Thus, as IT developed in wider and faster space
Transnational Organized Crime groups became less vulnerable to state repression
that facilitated their faster and wider growth over the last decades.
Liberalization of Laws and Rules
Globalization and liberalization are interlinked and
complementary to each other. Liberalization generally means abolishment of
tighter state control on economic activities. It calls for the elimination and
relaxation of economic policies, rules, and regulations for better economic
integration amongst nations. For example, India adopted “New Industrial
Policy (NIP) in 1991 to initiate liberalization that focused on the abolishment
of licensing and documentation in business, liberalization of foreign
investment, relaxation of locational restrictions, liberalization of foreign technology
imports, phased manufacturing programs, public sector reforms, restructuring
monopolies, and restrictive trade policies, etc.” (Jose 2016).
One of the major aspects of liberalization in the economic
sector is trade liberalization that reduces restrictions on imports or exports
and facilitating free trade. Free trade allows the countries to trade goods,
products, services, and technologies without the restriction of regulatory
barriers or related costs. However, the lesser the regulatory control on the
trade of goods and products, the easier it is for Transnational Organized Crime
groups to conduct transnational crimes. With the liberalization in global trade
and commerce, Transnational Organized Crime groups also find reduced barriers
in carrying out their business, both legal and illegal, across the states.
Faster Mobility and Bulk Transportation
Revolutionary improvements in transportation and
communication decreased the physical barriers around the world, making it
easier for Transnational Organized Crime groups to operate across the border.
With the emerging trend of globalization, the international transportation
system came under constant pressure to support the globalization of production
and consumption.
The development of the transportation system has many
dimensions like infrastructure development, interlinking, volume, capacity,
speed, efficiency, and safety. Standard containerization (20ft long, 8ft wide,
and 8ft height) at a global level facilitated worldwide transportation of goods
in freight, ship, road, or railway. This has opened the scope of the intermodal
transportation network to be highly effective. Intermodal transportation is
networked transportation of goods through a network comprising road transports,
railways, ships and freight. Now a container can be air-lifted to port, shipped
through the sea, and distributed in trucks to targeted markets.
Faster mobility and bulk transportation have also offered
the transnational threat a wider scope to intrude into the global transportation
system. As advancements in mobility and transportation, have facilitated the
integration of domestic markets in a global platform, these same forces have
also fueled the rise of transnational threat.
The spread of Internet Banking Facilities
With the rapid growth of world trade system, a parallel
development in the financial networks has taken place in terms of ease, speed,
and diversification. Unprecedented progress in internet facilities enabled
banking sectors to diversify and develop new options and services with ease and
speed. Riding on unprecedented advancement in IT, financial infrastructure has
gone global. Today ‘bitcoin’ or ‘megabyte money’ can instantly move anywhere in
the world.
The advancement and diversification of the global financial
system have also facilitated organized crime groups to transfer profits gained
from illicit activities rapidly, easily, and without being detected and
punished. “Together with the huge amount of money in circulation within the
system and the ease with which it can be transferred at high speed, have
greatly favored a basic stage in any illegal business: money laundering” (James
2020). Money laundering is only one of the basic aspects, but internet banking
has enabled transnational threats to transfer money, make and receive payments
for their criminal activities across the globe, avoiding physical
transactions.
Complexity and lack of supervision on international
financial activities also make it extremely difficult to enforce regulations.
Such virtual global banking facilities through the internet have made criminal
activities easier through electronic money transfers and transactions.
Additionally, this has also paved the way for transnational cyber criminals to
hack and attack financial institutions to illegally take away a large amount of
money. The cyberattack against Bangladesh Bank in February 2016 showed how
severely the cybercrime has spread over the global banking system.
Cybercriminals managed to hack into the central bank’s security system and illegally
transferred $101 million of funds from its account. However, be it money
laundering or hacking of accounts, in general, internet banking facilities of
virtual financial transaction has facilitated the growth and function of
transnational threat in the last decades.
Increased Migration and Ethnic Link
Post -Cold War era has also witnessed an increasing trend in
migration. The rise of intra-state and regional conflicts caused forced
displacement of people which was facilitated by available knowledge of
well-being prevailing in other parts of the world through social networks and
mass media and the progress made in transportation. Such factors resulted in
two important global trends. Firstly; an increase in immigration flows and
secondly; the gradual creation of ethnic networks throughout the globe.
“Despite the vast majority of immigrants being respectful to the laws of the
host countries, criminal organizations have taken advantage of this ethnic
dispersal to develop their transnational networks within which they are in
permanent contact through advanced communications systems” (Myers 1995).
Post-migration politico-socio-economic challenge of many
immigrants facilitates their intrusion into black markets and chain of criminal
worlds. “Ethnic links, with their systems of loyalty, solidarity, and sanctions
often superimposed on the legislation of the countries where immigrants live,
indirectly facilitates the implantation of organized crime” (Reinares &
Resa 2005). Increased global migration is also exploited by organized criminal
networks. Organized crimes like human trafficking and illegal migration can
easily be submerged under the flow of migration. “Human and commercial flows are too intense
to easily distinguish the illicit from the licit” (Nelken 2008; Sangiovanni
2005).
Factors Leading Transnational Threats as State Concern
Gaining a Global Dimension
Earlier transnational threats were characterized by crimes
that occur across the states. Decades ago, most of the Transnational Organized
Crime networks had a regional dimension, but now it has grown into global ones.
Amongst several factors, globalization, trade liberalization, unprecedented
advancement in the IT sector, and faster communication and transportation
facilities played the most contributing role in the dimensional expansion of
transnational threats. Antonio Maria Costa, former Executive Director of
the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, effectively summarized the
change in transnational threat over the last quarter-century by saying, “as
unprecedented openness in trade, finance, travel, and communication has created
economic growth and well-being, it has also given rise to massive opportunities
for criminals to make their business prosper”
(UNODC 2010).
Leveraging the scopes offered by globalization, IT, and
faster communication and transportation networks, transnationals threats are
spreading faster than before. IT-based communication facilities eliminated
their need for actual contact. Now, they can successfully establish and spread
their links to any part of the world without physical presence. Organizing and
conducting the crimes in another country or region does not require criminal
gangs to cross the boundary to be physically present there. They can organize
and coordinate the conduct of criminal activities across the states and regions
being present in one area or country.
Globalization requires speedy trade and transshipment of
goods and individuals. Consequently, rules and restrictions on trans-border
trade and commerce are liberalized.
Bulk, faster, and longer transportation networks are also developed to
sustain the speed of globalization. Transnational threats are also exploiting
such scopes and opportunities to spread the crime network across the states and
regions.
As a whole, no transnational threat networks are isolated
today. They are collaborating from one region to another forming global
platforms. Drugs produced in South Asia today can easily reach the market of
the USA, taking advantage of globalization and communication facilities. Such
global stature of transnational threats is turning them beyond the capacity of
states and regions to deal with.
In recent years, that viewpoint has changed. The character
of transnational threat has changed in three major ways since the war on drugs
began. Drug trafficking has become more diversified, criminal networks have
harnessed new methods of conducting business, and the structure of criminal
networks has changed. Organized crime has gone global, giving way to the term transnational
threat. Global governance has failed to keep pace with economic
globalization.
Penetration into State Mechanism and
Institutions
One of the most serious negative effects of transnational
threat is its penetration into the state mechanism and institutions. The effect
is most pronounced in weak and developing countries with fragile socio-economic
infrastructure and the weak rule of law. However, developed countries are not
also immune to the negative effects of transnational threats. The reason being,
transnational threats over the years can corrosively affect the state mechanism
of developed countries too.
“Transnational threat penetration of states is deepening, leading to
co-option in a few cases and further weakening of governance in many others.
The apparent growing nexus in some states among Transnational Organized Crime
groups and elements of government—including intelligence services—and
high-level business figures represent a significant threat to economic growth
and democratic institutions” (US NSC Report 2010).
Transnational threat lives and operates on the collaboration
of state apparatus and mechanism where or through which it runs the crimes.
Thus, forming nexus with the corrupt segment of a particular government and
government institutions assumes primary importance in their network and
activities. “Transnational threat networks insinuate themselves into the
political process in a variety of ways. This is often accomplished through
direct bribery; setting up shadow economies; infiltrating financial and
security sectors through coercion or corruption; and positioning themselves as
alternate providers of governance, security, services, and livelihoods” (US NSC
Report 2010).
“Transnational threats systematically damage the economic,
social, and political development of the subjected country or countries” (BIPSS
2010). Penetration of transnational threat in government machinery and
institutions is done through a gradual process. Their initial target remains
administrative organs, law enforcing and intelligence agencies, and the
judiciary. Once they penetrate and gain a foothold in the above government
system of any state, they gradually expand. Involving more and more
institutions, individuals, and systems they tend to establish an alternative
authority within the legitimate government machinery. Even over the years, they
intrude into the political system of states, turning them to be kingmakers.
This way, in the long term, they corrosively damage the democratic institutions
and governance system of a country. Bureau of International Narcotics Matters
(BINM) in a report says, “it is difficult to have a functioning democratic
system when drug cartels have the means to buy protection, political support or
votes at every level of government and society” (BINM 1994). Events in Somalia,
Afghanistan, or few South American countries can be cited as an example of this
trend.
Growth of Corruption and Corrupt Infrastructure
“Corruption is considered the most powerful promoter of
Transnational Organized Crime where organized crime groups are involved in
corrupting certain government officials such as the security forces, as well as
the judiciary” (Ahmed 2017). Transnational Organized Crime networks promote a
culture of crime and corruption in the government and society. Organized
criminal interests possess a universal tendency to corrupt political
institutions and undermine democratic accountability in states in which they
operate. Many researchers have shown a strong correlation between transnational
threat and corruption. As both transnational threat and corruption are
secretive in norms, their convergence is phenomenal. The poor economic stature
of the government officials in the least developed or developing countries
further accelerate the breeding of corruption by transnational threat cartels.
Mond Tullis in his research stated, “In systems where a member of the
legislature or judiciary, earning only a modest income, can easily gain the
equivalent of some 20 months’ salary from a trafficker by making one
“favorable” decision, the dangers of corruption are obvious” (Tullis 1995).
In fact, without corruption, Transnational Organized Crime
groups cannot sustain their criminal business or crimes. Planning, conduct, and
running of such a pervasive and huge network of criminal activities are not
possible without intimidating a segment of government and society into
corruption. “It is difficult to keep a continuing criminal enterprise
profitable and survive over the long term unless there is a means to protect it
from law enforcement, which ultimately learns of its existence. For example,
border crossings need to be ensured, locations of illicit activity ‘protected’,
police or customs officials paid off, illicit funds delivered and deposited,
court cases “fixed,” stolen property bought and sold, and politicians persuaded
not to interfere” (UNODC, Doha Declaration 2018). These are examples of the
kinds of corrupt activity needed by organized criminal groups to remain in
illicit business and engage in ongoing criminal activity without interruption.
Therefore, initially, transnational threat recruits individuals from the
corrupt segment through bribing. They face no difficulty to do so due to their
huge illegal financial power. At the initial stage, they mostly penetrate
amongst the low-level employees, although the opportunity for top brasses is
not missed if available.
On recruitment of individuals from various segments of the
government and the society, they gradually form a nexus involving them. Top
officials, political and business figures are also integrated at this stage.
Communication and collaborative network amongst these corrupt individuals and a
corrupt segment of the government institutions are also patronized and
organized by Transnational Organized Crime Groups. This nexus overtime is
extended across the states to foster a regional or global network. Thus, a
corrupt infrastructure is developed within and between the states. “With the
development of corrupted infrastructure, they gradually accumulate authority in
various organs and institutions. At this stage, they adopt coercion and power
game besides bribing to bring any individual or segment on corrupted terms.
Corruption supports the ongoing existence of organized crime because corrupt
public officials protect organized criminal groups from law enforcement and
disruption” (Rose & Palikfa 2016).
And in this manner corruption gets institutionalized in
various organs and institutions of a country where transnational threat
operates. Once institutionalized, corruption does not remain confined within
the domain of transnational threat only. It multiplies and proliferates in
other sectors and departments. Corruption becomes a cultural phenomenon in
society and country in the long run.
The threat to National Economy
“Transnational crime ring activities weaken economies and
financial systems and undermine democracy” (Voronin 2000). It deprives a state
of its legitimate revenues and duties through smuggling. Human trafficking
drains a substantial amount of foreign remittance a country is due to its human
resources. Through money laundering, bulk money goes out of the country
damaging the national economic strength.
Transnational threat tends to damage financial systems
through subversion, exploitation, and distortion of legitimate markets and
economic activities. The legal business of a country is challenged
multi-dimensionally by the illegal and criminal business networks of
transnational threats. “Business firms and systems are being put at a competitive
disadvantage by transnational threat and corruption, particularly in emerging
markets where many perceive that rule of law is less reliable. The World Bank
estimates about $1 trillion is spent each year to bribe public officials,
causing an array of economic distortions and damage to legitimate economic
activity” (US NSC Report 2010).
Transnational threat creates economic disparity amongst the
segment of the population. It injects illegal money through the corrupt and
involved segment of society. Availability of illegal money increases commodity
process and living costs pushing the non-involved segments into poverty and
poor living standard. “Reports from
Afghanistan and Bolivia suggest that the cost of foodstuff has increased as a
result of greater drug cultivation, with people who are unwilling or unable to
integrate into the coca or opium poppy economy facing further impoverishment”
(Tullis 1995).
Transnational threat accompanied by corruption discourages
foreign investment as investors face difficulties in doing business due to
corrupt culture and environment. The cost of doing business also rises due to
corruption and additional budgets for security purposes. “Transnational
(transnational) threat activities can lead to disruption of the global supply chain,
which in turn diminishes economic competitiveness and impacts the ability of
industry and transportation sectors to be resilient in the face of such
disruption. Further, transnational criminal organizations, leveraging their
relationships with state-owned entities, industries or state-allied actors,
could gain influence over key commodities markets such as gas, oil, aluminum,
and precious metals, along with potential exploitation of the transportation
sector” (US NSC Report 2010).
Cultural and Social Disorder
One of the significant long term negative impacts of
transnational threat is cultural and social disorder. The most common
accompanying facets of transnational threat are drug abuse, crime, corruption,
and the spread of illegal money in society. All these accumulate in causing
serious social and cultural disorders in the long run.
Illicit drugs have a considerable impact at each step along
the chain of production, distribution, and consumption. The illicit drug
creates an a-pronged detrimental impact on society. On one hand, it spreads the
trends of drug abuse amongst the youths and involves a segment of the society
in drug smuggling and business on the other. Of these menaces, most mentioning
it damages the strength of the youth segment of the population. It derails them
from the enlightened values of life; dis-integrates them from the family and
societies. “The country study on Thailand attributes increasing use of heroin
and psychotropic substances to urbanization, rapid cultural change and a
breakdown in family cohesion” (Renard & Singhanetra 1993).
In a country or society where transnational threat
penetrates deeply in various organs, crime, corruption, illegal money etc.,
become the norm of that society in the long run. Drug abuse is also interlinked
with other crimes. “A review of the relevant literature indicates a strong
probability that drug addicts tend to be deeply involved in criminal
activities, with daily users of drugs showing a significantly higher rate of
criminality than non-drug users” (Tullis 1991). Human trafficking puts women,
unemployed youths, and children to be vulnerable to exploitation. Corruption,
illegal money, competition for control of criminal business lead to anarchy and
social disorder.
As a whole, transnational threats and their related criminal
facets and trends damage the societal and cultural values and ways of
life. Crime, corruption, and illegal
means override the positive trends of life. In the long run, such trends
destabilize the social and cultural equilibrium of a country or region. Peru,
Chili, Venezuela of South America or for that matter Thailand, Myanmar, Laos,
and Afghanistan of Asia can be cited as examples of such socio-cultural decay
caused by transnational threat mainly drug cartels.
Crime-Terror-Insurgency Nexus
One of the most dangerous trends accompanying transnational
threat is the growth of a crime-terror-insurgency nexus. Terrorists and
insurgents are increasingly turning to the transnational threats to generate
funding and acquire logistical support to carry out their violent acts.
Terrorists and insurgents have substantial armed power but lack a regular and
pervasive system of financial support. On the contrary, Transnational Organized
Crime groups have a large financial power of permanent nature but lack armed
power in comparison to terrorists and insurgents. Thus, in most of the world,
they forged a strong nexus in a complementary role to compensate for
each-others lacking and shortfalls.
Examples of such nexus and collaboration are many.
“Hezbollah has been active in Latin America since the 1980s when it began
working with drug cartels to raise funds for operations and the purchase of
arms” (Levitt 2016). “The government of Burma over 30 years has been engaged in
a struggle with irredentist (rebel) groups that are financed substantially by
the drug trade” (National Research Council 1999). Involvement in the drug trade
by the Taliban and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) is a
well-established fact. “90 percent of opium produced in the Triangle comes from
territory controlled by the Shan State Army – an insurgent group ostensibly
waging war to secure rights for the Shan minority from the Burmese majority”
(Behera 2017).
Many say the crime-terror-insurgent nexus is opportunistic
but bears the potential to gain permanency. Whatever its may nature be, this
nexus and collaboration have greater implications for any state. One of the
principal means of counter-insurgency or counter-terrorism is starving them of
financial support. Financial support
provided to insurgency or terrorists by the transnational threat cartels adds
to their protraction and survivability for a long time. Thus transnational
threat acts as a catalyst to the solvability of both insurgents and terrorists,
both of which are a grave threat to states.
A Threat to National Security
The transnational threat was in vogue from time immemorial.
However, “within the last decade, these crimes have gone from being considered
a problem limited to certain countries or regions to become one of the basic
factors when defining threats to the national security in general and
democratic governance in particular” (Godson & Olson 1995). Nevertheless,
before we ascertain how transnational threat assumes to be a threat to national
security, we need to take a relook at the changing perception of security in
the post-cold war era. The demise of the cold war and events in its aftermath
brought about a paradigm change in the security perception. The collapse of the
Soviet Union has shown the world that a powerful nation can be dissolved from
ideological and political bankruptcy without fighting any war. The disintegration of Yugoslavia and events
in the Balkans proved that an internal fraction of the population could cause
the breakup of a modern state. Turning of Somalia and Afghanistan into failed
states, for example, has projected that fragile politico-socio-economic
condition can risk the existence of a state itself. Such events and many others
established the fact that the security of a state cannot be restricted to the
threats from across the border. Rather a state’s existence can be dissolved due
to the corrosive effect of ideological or political failure, intra-state
conflicts, and fragile politico-socio-economic infrastructure, and so on. Thus,
a threat to national security cannot be confined within the scope of external
aggression only. Instead, any tension, conflict, or precarious
politico-socio-economic fault lines can turn into a grave threat to national
security.
Under such context, growing trends of transnational threat
in recent era have turned to be a major threat for national security as it has
long term and deeply damaging effect on the politico-socio-economic
infrastructure of a nation. “Transnational threats systematically damage the
economic, social, and political development of the subjected country or
countries” (BIPSS 2010). With the expansion of their network and nexus,
transnational threats build alliances with corrupt segments in all important
national spheres. This may include political leaders, financial institutions,
law enforcement organizations, foreign intelligence, security agencies and
segment of a vulnerable population, ethnic groups and many more. “transnational
threat penetration of governments exacerbates corruption and undermining
governance, the rule of law, judicial systems, free press, democratic
institution-building, and transparency” (NSC Reports to White House 2010).
Nexus forged, mostly in underdeveloped and developed countries, amongst TOC
groups and elements of government pose serious threats to economic growth and
democratic institutions. Through evasion of legal taxes, money laundering,
accumulation of black money transnational threats can destabilize the economy
of the small and weak countries. They can destabilize the social equilibrium
through the spreading of drug abuse and drug business as drugs accompany crime,
corruption, and social disorder.
Transnational threats can antagonize the people in border areas with
financial bribing to acquire support for their illegal business. They may
foster a strong complementary unity with insurgents, non-state actors, and
terrorist groups providing them financial and logistic support. And when the
question of state sovereignty and national security is in question, the
transnational threat will undoubtedly be in the insurgent’s or terrorist’s
side. The reason being their motivation for financial gain is much stronger
than the stake of the state they belong to. This way, over the time, the
transnational threat can corrosively damage a country to turn into a failed
state destroying its politico-socio-economic infrastructure. Thus it assumes to
be a serious threat to national security.
The Threat to International Security
Transnational threats threaten international security in
many ways, both directly and indirectly. Trafficking of arms and ammunition is
the most serious crime that ensures the availability of arms to insurgents,
terrorists, and in conflict-prone areas of the world. Availability of arms in
the conflict-prone areas of the world escalates conflict and violence. In today’s globalized and interconnected
world, escalation of any conflict bears the potentials to destabilize regional
and global security. The reason being in many cases, escalation of conflict
tends to draw down the regional or global geostrategic factors and actors in
the affair to threaten the peace and security at regional or global levels.
Global terrorism is the most common global threat in this
era. Today state armies are more involved in fighting terrorism and non-state
actors than in fighting another state army. The growing nexus of cooperation
between terrorism and transnational threats are a major global security
concern. Such nexus and collaboration help the terrorist organizations to
survive and protract with the financial and logistic support from transnational
threat networks that include arms and ammunition too. One of the principal
tools of counter-terrorism is isolating them from financial and logistic back
up. While states are taking strict measures to starve the terrorists from
financial support, transnational threats are offering them alternative sources
of funding, thereby, the ability to survive and operate. Thus, given that global
terrorism is the prime threat to international security today, transnational
threats are the principal contributors the growth and survivability of such a
global threat.
One of the serious negative impacts caused by transnational
threat is the damage of the politico-socio-economic infrastructure and
democratic system of a state where it penetrates. Through penetration in the
government and democratic institutions, it corrosively ruins the state
mechanism. In the long run, it can turn a country into a failed state. Such
failed states are of serious concern for international security as these states
serve as the hub of global terrorism and radicalism. Terrorists and non-state
actors use this failed state’s sponsorship to grow and proliferate. The world has
seen such state-sponsorship for Al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan or for
that matter in many countries of Africa. The world has also seen how
state-sponsored terrorism can destabilize the peace and security of the entire
world following the attack on the US Twin Tower on 9/11.
Challenges Posed by Transnational Threat on Traditional
Border Management System
The Complexity of Law Enforcement
Bringing transnational threats on legal terms is a critical
and complex task. Complexity arises as transnational threats are borderless
threats and their networks prevail in several countries. This multi-national
dimension of transnational threats invites multi-pronged challenges for law
enforcement against them. Offenders frequently commit crimes in territories of
more than one state and try to evade law enforcement by moving between states.
The traditional border management system of most countries relies on
traditional state laws for law enforcement against transnational threats that
often prove to be ineffective due to a lack of compatible legal platforms
amongst the states. “Transnational threats are difficult to be dealt with
decisively due to varied national-level legislation and lack of transnational
collaborative mechanisms” (BIPSS 2010).
“The challenges in dealing with transnational crime arise
from the national orientations of laws and law enforcement. Every country has
its laws and law enforcement system to deal with a crime” (Finckenauer 2000).
Jurisdiction and legal procedures vary from country to country. Transnational
threats, therefore, expand their network and activities across the states in
such a way as to broaden their reach and make it critical for law enforcement
to counter them. Because more countries they involve in conducting the crimes,
more mutual consent, agreement, coordination, and cooperation are needed
amongst concerned agencies of different stakeholder countries. In most cases,
investigation and prosecution procedures differ across the countries, causing
complexities in legal enforcement.
There are problems with standardization too. Some countries
have specialized jurisdiction units for legal procedures against organized
crimes, whereas others follow common legal procedures. Jurisdiction on
high-level seas also differs from country to country. Some countries exercise
similar legal jurisdictions on both land and sea while some exclude flagged
ships from the jurisdiction of state law. “Many countries have multiple
agencies with enforcement authority (e.g., national police agency, customs
services, local police agencies, specialized organized crime agencies), so
jurisdictional issues and communication are crucial considerations” (UNODC,
Doha Declaration 2018).
However, despite differences, there are working relations
amongst the law enforcing agencies across the states too. The network of
professional law enforcers often tends to cooperate on information and
intelligence sharing, but cooperation is frequently undermined by competing
national agendas and interests.
Technological Inferiority
One of the significant edges that transnational threats
enjoy over traditional border management systems is their technological
superiority mainly in the IT sector. Unprecedented development has occurred in
the IT sectors throughout the last decades.
People and information are just one click away from each other today.
Transnational threats were very quick and prompt to adopt these IT facilities.
With their huge illegal financial power, they were faster to integrate IT
facilities in their network with sophisticated modern gadgets and experts. They
can now plan, coordinate, and conduct the crimes without crossing the border or
physical presence.
On the contrary, traditional state border management systems
were not as quick as transnational threats to adopt IT in their system.
Lukewarm response of government machinery, bureaucratic process, constitutional
norms, lack of resources and infrastructures in border areas, etc. led the
traditional border management system in most of the countries particularly in
the least and underdeveloped ones to be technologically inferior in comparison
to transnational threats. Therefore, transnational threats could virtually
outsmart the traditional border management system and agencies in conducting
criminal activities.
IT has also offered other advantages to transnational
threats where law enforcement against them has difficulty. Through virtual
presence and coordination, they could evade the need for physical activities.
Virtual transfer of information, instructions, and documents also made it easy
for them to delete evidence. Both have made it difficult for a traditional
border management system to apprehend criminals, acquire witnesses and evidence
to enforce legal procedure.
Multi-Agency Tasks
Fighting transnational crimes is not a single agency task;
rather, it is a multi-agency enterprise. Different border management agencies
have different stakes in this regard. Border security force, Customs,
Passports, and Immigration, Drug and Narcotics Control Department, Police all
perform their respective roles in enforcing effective border management. Thus, a well-coordinated scheme is an
essential element of strong border management.
In many cases, smooth coordination amongst different
agencies and organs are absent. In most of underdeveloped countries, the lack
of an all-encompassing coordinating platform or framework acts as a debacle in
fostering effective border management systems. Sometimes frameworks are
available on pen and paper but lack harmony at the functional level.
Lack of coordination amongst various concerned agencies
allows the transnational threats to exploit the opportunities. Taking advantage
of cooperation and coordination lapses, they spread their criminal networks and
activities.
Lack of well-knitted cooperation and coordination amongst
all concerned border management agencies appears to be a more pronounced
drawback of traditional border management system in recent times. As
transnational threats are spreading and diversifying taking advantage of
globalization and technological ascendancy, a coordinated border management
system integrating all relevant agencies under central direction and platform
assumed greater importance. Traditional border management in most of the
countries is still trailing behind. Thus, effective border management against
diversified transnational threats has been efficient successful.
Nexus Power of Transnational Threat
One of the basic characteristics of transnational threats is
that they penetrate in and form nexus with the corrupt segment of the
government and society. They form such nexus over the years and integrate
members from various segments of the societies. This nexus includes important
personalities and institutions of the state. Judiciary, law enforcing and
intelligence organizations, administration, and even the corrupt political
figures are also integrated with their nexus gradually. The huge financial power of transnational
threat cartels enables them to form such nexus in countries having fragile
politico-socio-economic infrastructure.
This way, they form an alternative authority within the
state that works secretly or openly in favor of transnational threats. Thus,
transnational threats enjoy immunity from legal enforcement and consequences
with the patronization of this nexus and alternative authority. This corrupt
segment remains blind to the criminal network and activities of the
transnational Organized Crime Groups.
Therefore, it becomes difficult for governments in many
states to enforce strict measures again the growth and conduct of transnational
threats Even if governments launch campaigns to eradicate organized crime,
information, and pattern of government campaigns reach the organized criminal
gangs well ahead of time. They change and adopt alternative means. Even on
apprehension, they can influence the law and judiciary in their favor by their
nexus power. This nexus power of transnational threats can be so strong that
they can even change the administration and government set up if some
government is stubborn and adamant about eradicating them.
This nexus power of transnational threats is one of the
principal factors that enable them to live and survive in many targeted
countries and even against the government. Due to this strength and
collaboration of the corrupt nexus, many countries remain hostage to
transnational threat in taking successful countermeasures against them.
Global Threat vis-a-vis Local Effort
Having networks across countries, the transnational threat
is more of a regional and global threat in nature. It is very difficult for a
state alone to fight and curb the transnational threats. Like global terrorism,
the stakes of transnational threats are so huge and large that it’s not a
one-state affair to fight the transnational threat. Transnational threats are
mostly planned in one country, routed through different countries, and
conducted in another country. Their network prevails in several countries and
regions.
Notwithstanding the fact, most of the countries lack regional
and global initiatives and forums to fight the transnational threat.
Geo-political rivalry and interests most of the times, hinder the regional or
global effort. Many a time narrow national interests also prevent the fostering
of such collectivity. Examples are also there where the state itself sponsors
the transnational threat due to informal economic benefits.
However, there are few regional and global initiatives to
counter transnational threats, but those are mainly focused on developed parts of
the world. Countries with fragile socio-economic infrastructure often fail to
cope up with the standard and requirements of regional cooperation. For
example, many of the US efforts to organize regional cooperation to counter
transnational threats remained hostage to the inability of the Latin and
Central American states due to weak socio-economic and cultural infrastructure
there. ASEAN countries have their Collaborative Border Management system but
could hardly be very effective against prevailing organized crimes due to poor
domestic infrastructure and regional differences.
Thus, not only lack of regional and global initiatives,
fostering a strong regional collectivity and connectivity among nations due to
socio-economic and cultural differences and interests is also a substantial
challenge. This non-availability and difficulty of fostering effective
collectivity amongst nations is a critical challenge that states face in
countering transnational threats.
General Aziz Ahmed, BSP, BGBM, PBGM, BGBMS, psc, G, Ph.D,
Chief of Army Staff, Bangladesh Army.