In The News

U.S. Raids Foil Plots to Send Arms to Al Qaeda and Others

Eric Lichtblau November 7, 2002
The DEA and the FBI now, more than ever, share a common enemy: terrorism. Federal agents recently thwarted two deals that included the exchange of drugs for weapons believed to be destined for Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations. In the first deal, two Pakistanis and an American were in the process of exchanging heroin and hashish for four Stinger antiaircraft missiles that were allegedly...

‘Blood Diamonds’ Polished Off

November 5, 2002
After coffee, it’s now turn for diamonds. A worldwide campaign by NGOs brought about a new brand -- Fair-Trade Certified Coffee -- that ensures the coffee beans were bought from growers at fair trade condition. Now a global campaign against the so-called “blood diamond”, the stones mined and smuggled out by armed groups in Africa to finance civil wars or illegal operations, has brought some...

F.B.I. to Open Liaison Office in Beijing, Ashcroft Says

Elisabeth Rosenthal October 24, 2002
The US will set up an F.B.I. liaison office in Beijing to help the Chinese in their fight against terrorism as well as smuggling and money laundering – two criminal activities often found to provide material support for terrorists. In a country where the police are weak, due process is sparse, and the legal system is relatively undeveloped, how this help will manifest itself is still uncertain....

Pakistanis Arrested with 550 Pirated Video Discs

August 29, 2002
Pakistani smugglers were caught with 550 pirated video discs in Malaysia. The video discs – copies of films from Bollywood, India’s answer to Hollywood – were capable of producing 100,000 copies in turn. As video piracy spreads, this recent capture is an example of the global crime network. – YaleGlobal

World Banker Assails Indonesia’s Corruption

Jane Perlez August 28, 2002
Of the “Asian tiger” nations, Indonesia has been the slowest to recover from the financial crisis of the 1990’s. Mark Baird, the World Bank’s chief representative in Indonesia, argues that this is in large part because of pervasive corruption present in the Indonesian government, which deters foreign firms from investing in the nation. While expressing his belief that it will take years before...

US Coordinates Drug Sweep in the Balkans and Central Asia

David Binder August 25, 2002
In an era in which technology has made physical distance seem irrelevant, drug enforcement officials must find newer methods to compete with the increasingly flexible and multinational drug trade network. In the summer of 2002, the Drug Enforcement Administration, working with 25,000 officials in 15 nations, managed to prove the effectiveness of multinational operations in combating the trade in...

Amnesty Urges Malaysia to Stop Whipping Illegals

Reuters August 12, 2002
Until recently, caning was an infrequent practice in Malaysia, authorized as a supplementary punishment for many crimes but used only 13 times in 2001. The practice has been revived now as a punishment for illegal immigrants, most of whom come from Indonesia. Amnesty International has requested that the practice be stopped, calling it cruel and unlikely to deter immigrants or asylum-seekers....