The State Department web site below is a permanent electronic archive of information released prior to January 20, 2001.  Please see www.state.gov for material released since President George W. Bush took office on that date.  This site is not updated so external links may no longer function.  Contact us with any questions about finding information. NOTE: External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views contained therein.

International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, 1998
Released by the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs,
U.S.Department of State 
Washington, DC, February 1999

ARUBA

I. Summary

Aruba is a major transit country for international narcotics trafficking
organizations, which transport cocaine from South America to Europe and
the United States.

Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles, and the Netherlands comprise the three
parts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. From 1954 to 1986, Aruba was
part of the Netherlands Antilles. Since 1986, Aruba has had a separate
status under which it has autonomy over its internal affairs, with the
right to exercise independent decision making in a number of relevant
counternarcotics areas. The Government of the Netherlands (GON) is
responsible for the defense and foreign affairs of all three parts of
the Kingdom, and it assists the Government of Aruba (GOA) in its efforts
to counter narcotics trafficking. Aruba is a participant in a Joint
Netherlands-Netherlands Antilles-Aruba Coast Guard.

Although the Kingdom of the Netherlands is a party to the 1988 UN Drug
Convention, the Convention currently covers only the Netherlands. In
October-November the Parliaments of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba
passed the final legislation needed (an international asset seizure law)
before that convention could be extended to these islands. In December,
Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles requested that the Kingdom extend the
1988 UN Drug Convention to its two Caribbean parts, and such extension
is expected during 1999.

In 1998, Aruba enacted important legislation consistent with the
Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) recommendations. It also
extradited to the U.S. three Aruban nationals, two believed to be major
money launderers and a third believed to be both a drug trafficker and
money launderer. These extraditions were the first under a 1997 law
permitting the extradition of Aruban nationals. Aruba has yet to
conclude any of its own money laundering investigations or prosecutions.

Aruban law enforcement agencies, including the Aruban Police and
Customs, have a good working relationship with USG law enforcement
agencies. They cooperate with the DEA on investigations and with the
U.S. Coast Guard on maritime law enforcement searches and interdictions.
A proposed U.S.-Kingdom of the Netherlands maritime counternarcotics
agreement is currently being negotiated.

The DEA reports that there were no significant improvements in law
enforcement and interdiction coordination in 1998. The lack of
interdiction coordination can be attributed, in part, to the complicated
relationship between Aruba and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The DEA
works primarily with the Aruban Police, an organization plagued by a
variety of problems, including lack of resources and expertise.

II. Status of Country

Aruba is a Caribbean island in the Lesser Antilles chain and is located
just twenty miles off the coast of Venezuela and eighty miles from
Colombia. Cocaine enters Aruba from nearby Colombia and Venezuela (and
to a lesser extent from Suriname) via ocean-going vessels, go-fast
boats, and small fishing boats. The cocaine is sent onward to the United
States and Europe by cruise ships, container cargo shipments, and daily
commercial airline flights. Heroin is also transshipped from Colombia to
the U.S. via Aruba primarily by couriers on commercial airline flights.

Drug traffickers are attracted to Aruba by its key position near the
Venezuelan and Colombian coasts, its efficient infrastructure, its
excellent air and sea links to South America, Europe, Puerto Rico, and
other Caribbean locations, and its reputation for relatively light
prison sentences and good prison conditions.

III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 1998

Policy Initiatives. In March, the Aruban Parliament authorized the
Central Bank to monitor financial transactions of local offshore banks,
bringing Aruba into compliance with the recommendations of the CFATF, of
which Aruba is a member. (There are only two offshore banks in Aruba,
both affiliated with the same U.S. parent bank.) Monitoring of offshore
banks did take place in the past but had no legal basis other than a
1952 Dutch law. Anti-money laundering activities were therefore mostly
limited to the local commercial banks.

In June, Aruba participated, as part of the delegation of the Kingdom of
the Netherlands, in the United Nations Special General Assembly on
Drugs. Also in June, the GOA financial intelligence unit (MOT) and
FinCEN organized an anti-money laundering seminar in Aruba. The
participants were representatives of the Aruban police, customs, central
bank and intelligence authorities, as well as the MOT of the Netherlands
Antilles. In November, Aruba participated in the CFATF Ministerial
meeting in the Cayman Islands. In January 1999, as part of CFATF's
Second Round of Mutual Evaluations, Aruba submitted its anti-money
laundering regime to evaluation by FATF and CFATF examiners.

Law Enforcement Efforts. According to GOA data, Aruban law enforcement
authorities seized some 794 kilograms of cocaine and 6 kilograms of
heroin in 1998. This represents increases of 95 percent and 100 percent,
respectively. Most of the drug seizures on Aruba are the result of
seizures by Aruban Customs at the airport -- simple interceptions of low
echelon couriers, particularly those bound for Holland. Although
statistics are unavailable for 1998, during the prior year some 44 drug
couriers were arrested, 35 going to the Netherlands, 4 to Spain, 1 to
Portugal, and one to South Africa. Due to the increased number of drug
arrests of outgoing passengers to Europe during the past few years, a
task-force consisting of Customs officers of both the Netherlands and
Aruba and Dutch military police was established and began operating at
the Aruba Airport in 1998. Joint USG-GOA effort contributed to an
increase in the number of arrests and convictions of drug couriers in
1998.

With the exception of a few cases conducted by the "RST Unit"
(which has as its core police officers loaned from the Netherlands to
work specific cases), there are no pro-active investigations undertaken
by any Aruban law enforcement agency. This is largely because of the
constraints of Dutch law and because those agencies lack the necessary
skills, budget, and training.

The Aruban Police have an Organized Crime Section that works
cooperatively with the DEA and with the CRI, the Dutch equivalent of the
FBI. In 1998 the Organized Crime Section staff was increased by six.

In 1998 the Joint Kingdom Coast Guard continued to operate in Aruban
waters. Its mission is fourfold: narcotics interdiction, search and
rescue, prevention of illegal fishing in Kingdom waters, and defense.
Two small (20-foot) "inshore" boats are currently based in
Aruba, and a new 35-40 meter cutter is scheduled to be based there
beginning in March, 1999. A Kingdom Coast Guard spokesman acknowledged
in April that a shortage of personnel hampers its anti-drug operations
around Aruba. In August the Joint Coast Guard made a seizure of 80
kilograms of cocaine in Aruban waters.

In one 1998 seizure, Aruban Customs found 50 kilograms of cocaine hidden
on the deck of a Colombian ship which had been making regular trips from
Colombia to Venezuela and Aruba. Following this seizure the head of the
Aruban customs officer's union commented that although Aruba is being
flooded with drugs and every week drug couriers are arrested at the
airport, because Customs is understaffed it cannot exercise effective
control of drugs brought in by sea. According to the union official,
foreign boats remain offshore until their drugs can be off-loaded into
Aruban vessels which arrive very quickly. The places along the beach
where drugs are brought ashore are public knowledge, he asserted. He
complained that the Kingdom Coast Guard response to tips to Customs by
the public are slow because local Coast Guard officials must first
obtain clearance from their headquarters on Curacao.

In February, an Aruban court acquitted, on grounds of insufficient
evidence, a Colombian national of attempting to transport 186 kilograms
of cocaine from Aruba to Sint Maarten in wooden beams. The shipment was
the largest ever confiscated in Aruba.

In 1998 a visiting drug detector dog team from Amsterdam's Schipol
Airport trained members of the Aruban Customs Service at the airport of
Aruba. One Aruban Customs officer also visited Schipol for anti-drug
training.

Agreements and Treaties. Although the Kingdom of the Netherlands is a
party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention, the Convention could not be
extended to the overseas parts of the Kingdom until those autonomous
parts of the kingdom passed all the necessary implementing legislation.
In October and November, the parliaments of the Netherlands Antilles and
Aruba, respectively, passed the final piece of legislation needed before
the 1988 UN Drug Convention could be extended to them. In December,
Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles presented their formal request for
extension to the Foreign Ministry of the Netherlands. That extension is
expected by March, 1999.

Aruba honors requests made under the mutual legal assistance treaty, and
considerable law enforcement cooperation takes place at less formal
levels as well. The bilateral USG-GON extradition treaty applies in
Aruba. A U.S.-Kingdom of the Netherlands maritime counternarcotics
agreement pertaining to the Caribbean is under negotiation.

Extradition. In 1998, Aruba extradited three Aruban nationals,
considered to be significant traffickers and money launderers, to the
U.S. These were the first ever to be extradited under a 1997 law that
permits the extradition of Aruban nationals, subject to their serving in
Aruba any sentences imposed abroad. Two of those extradited were Eric
and Alex Mansur, members of a rich and powerful Aruban business family
under investigation by authorities for involvement in laundering drug
proceeds. The two are accused of belonging to a large network that
laundered some $40 million for Colombian drug traffickers operating in
the U.S. They are currently in Puerto Rico awaiting trial. The GOA also
extradited Aruban businessman Randolph Habibe, who is believed to have
been the chief of "La Costa Cartel" on the North Coast of
Colombia and thought to have worked with cartel cohorts to assist in
introducing more than 80 tons of cocaine and 250,000 pounds of marijuana
into the U.S., and laundering some $800 million. The extradition of
these politically powerful Aruban citizens demonstrated a serious Aruban
commitment to combating drug trafficking and money laundering. The
decision of the Governor of Aruba to extradite to the U.S. another
accused money launderer, elderly Aruban businessman David Cybulkiewicz,
was overturned by an Aruban judge due to the alleged ill health (high
blood pressure) of the fugitive.

Demand Reduction. Aruba is not plagued by the visible signs of drug
abuse. Residents and tourists (nearly 400,000 American tourists visit
Aruba each year) walk the streets without significant fear of street
crime. Although the police, like all Aruban government agencies, feel
the pinch of severe budget cuts, they nevertheless remain optimistic
about launching a community policing program that will reduce crime in
general. Nevertheless, according to a report by a private foundation,
the use of both drugs and alcohol is "alarmingly high" in
Aruba, with some 11,000 out of a population of 83,000 being classified
as regular drug users. Aruba's drug czar has requested USG assistance in
gathering educational materials for an anti-drug abuse campaign. Aruba
has ongoing demand reduction programs. During 1998, Cornerstone
Treatment Facilities Network of New York assisted Aruban rehabilitation
centers to treat drug and alcohol abusers, training Aruban personnel at
its centers in New York and Connecticut.

Money Laundering. With its free trade zone and offshore industry, Aruba
is vulnerable to being used by criminal organizations for cash smuggling
and wire transfers and by money launderers, particularly through Aruba's
eleven casinos and its financial institutions. Although the GOA remains
vigilant in its anti-money laundering efforts, GOA officials emphasize
that Aruba is too small to provide the manpower and funds needed to
combat effectively a large international problem such as money
laundering.

Asset Seizure/Forfeiture. The GOA passed an international asset seizure
law in November 1998. It did not go into effect as expected in January,
1999, because of a defect discovered in the Aruban Penal Code. The
necessary correction to the Code was drafted in February 1999 and will
be presented to Parliament for passage in March 1999. When the new asset
seizure law becomes effective, it will enable Aruba to use a conviction
in a U.S. court as the basis for seizing assets in Aruba. The
legislation permits assets to be confiscated early in the judicial
process, thereby preventing traffickers and launderers from using the
pretrial period to move their assets into safe havens, out of reach of
confiscating legal authorities. However, an agreement to permit asset
sharing, which went into effect in the Netherlands and the U.S. in 1994,
was not adopted as a part of this legislation.

Precursor Chemicals. Aruba has no specific legislation controlling
precursor chemicals. The lack of laws and personnel prevent Aruban
authorities from monitoring chemicals transiting the Aruba Free Zone.
However, Aruban pharmaceutical authorities voluntarily provide informal
cooperation in reporting precursor chemical shipments. In June, Aruba
participated in an OAS/CICAD meeting in Washington on the control of
chemical precursors and chemical substances.

IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs

Policy Initiatives. USG agencies cooperate with their Aruban
counterparts and with the Joint Kingdom Coast Guard on counternarcotics.
As a matter of policy the Department of State has no INL
counternarcotics assistance programs in Aruba. This is because such
assistance should be primarily the obligation of Aruba's Kingdom
partner, the Netherlands. While the Netherlands has provided basic
police training programs in Aruba, it appears that those programs do not
so far include specific counternarcotics training. GOA law enforcement
officials do participate in Caribbean regional training and seminars
funded by the USG, but the USG does not provide their travel expenses.

The Road Ahead. USG law enforcement agencies will continue to
collaborate closely with their Aruban counterparts. Important next steps
for the GOA include improving its control over its territorial waters
and beaches, continuing its positive actions on extradition, extending
and implementing its anti-money laundering regime, and successfully
prosecuting money laundering cases. The U.S. will continue to encourage
the governments of the three parts of the Kingdom need to move ahead on
concluding the maritime counternarcotics interdiction agreement proposed
in 1997.

The U.S. Customs Service is considering establishing a pre-clearance
facility at the airport in Aruba in the near future. While this facility
may facilitate tourism and thereby contribute to the financial ability
of the GOA to combat drug trafficking, it should not be perceived as a
quick fix for Aruba's drug smuggling problems. Those problems must be
addressed by the GOA through strengthened laws and law enforcement.

[end of document]