LEC focuses on cross-border crime in State of law enforcement 2021
St. MaartenJuni 2022Pers
PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — The Law Enforcement Council (hereafter: the Council) recently issued its annual State of Law enforcement directly to the Minister of Justice as well as to the Parliament of Sint Maarten. The focus of this State – that mainly looks back on the year 2021 – is on the rule of law, the developments with regards to the strengthening of law enforcement and the most recent inspection reports published by the Council related to cross-border crime. Besides this, the Council also took the opportunity to highlight positive developments within the Ministry of Justice and describe the inspections carried out by the Council in 2021.
Strengthening the rule of law
The recommendations of the Council based on its inspections are ultimately geared towards strengthening the rule of law in Sint Maarten. According to several reports and analyses, transnational crime, a new take on cross-border crime, forms one of the greatest threats for the region and cannot be seen separate from local crime and therefore neither can the approach. It is noted that many cases of cross-border crime related to drug smuggling and trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, arms smuggling and trafficking, and money laundering take place in the countries, including Sint Maarten. Cross-border crime amongst others, has therefore been addressed in the country package for Sint Maarten as well as by the judicial authorities in their approach. The aim of the reforms and measures listed in the package are to contribute to the strengthening of the rule of law, by focusing on strengthening border control, tackling financial-economic crime, improving the Crime Fund, and improving the detention system.
In 2021 this translated to concrete steps being taken by amongst others, the Ministry of Justice. These included a new protocol between the countries in the Kingdom to strengthen border control and whereby a plan of approach was drafted focusing on amongst others, materials, personnel, and training. Assistance was also requested from the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) to improve the detention situation, and as agreed, the government administration refrained from making budget cuts to the most vital sectors of the rule of law. Additionally, a plan of approach with regards to the management of the Crime Fund was also drafted. The Council was also requested to review and monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the Council regarding the Crime Fund in 2022. Besides these, preparations were made for the drafting of a Consensus Kingdom Law regarding data protection.
Cross-border crime
Since 2019 the Council has drafted several reports detailing the approach of the judicial authorities to combat the various forms of cross-border crime: human trafficking and smuggling, drug trafficking and smuggling, corruption, arms trafficking and smuggling, money laundering and terrorism financing, and cybercrime. To successfully combat these crimes prerequisites such as an integral approach, information, international cooperation, strengthening of the law enforcement chain and the cooperation with the Detective Cooperation Team (RST) were identified by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. The Council indicated, based on its reports, that these prerequisites were still not sufficiently present in 2021.
“Despite some organizational improvements by the various law enforcement authorities, the Council ascertained bottlenecks in each of its reports which hampered a successful approach. These had a common thread, a (persistent) lack of resources specifically in the area of capacity, expertise, materials, finances and information gathering”, the Council stated.
Highlights 2021
While the results of the inspections of the Council often reveal areas that require improvement, the Council also highlights in its State 2021 some positive developments within the Ministry of Justice that contribute to the quality and effectiveness of the justice chain. This, as progress by authorities is often hard-fought due to, for example, budgetary constraints and therefore deserves to be acknowledged. For example, headway was made by the workgroup tasked with drafting the plan of approach related to the protocol on strengthening border control and stakeholders were positive in their outlook with regards to its completion.
Strong efforts by the Minister of Justice also resulted in successful cooperation between the Netherlands and Sint Maarten related to the detention system. The Council has namely always called on both Sint Maarten and the Kingdom of the Netherlands to take responsibility for addressing the complex and urgent matter of the prison and even though in 2021 the assistance (of UNOPS) was slow in getting off the ground, the Council is positive that once all points have been finalized it will have great results for the detention system in the long term, resulting in a new prison amongst other things. Developments surrounding the prison also received a positive impulse with the recruitment of personnel and the execution of the plan of approach for the prison drafted in 2018. Additionally, the installation of a new prison director and a new management team at the house of detention signaled the commitment of the Minister of Justice to the realization of the goals set for the prison.
Tackling youth delinquency and relational violence as well as finalizing the function book were also on the agenda in 2021. Amongst others, a symposium was held on youth delinquency on behalf of the Ministry of Justice and for which the Council provided a presentation with its findings from its 2015 report regarding the topic. To create more awareness with regards to relational violence, workshops were held for the Sint Maarten Police Force by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. The Council was also pleased to witness inter-ministerial cooperation with regards to establishing a policy to combat domestic violence, child abuse and gender violence. Finally, the national decree containing general measures establishing a function book for law enforcement authorities, was approved, and signed by the Governor and the Minister of Justice on 20 December 2021.
Inspections 2021
The inspections initiated in 2021 by the Council included the following topics: combating money laundering and terrorism financing; cybersecurity within the various justice institutions; general review of the follow up of the recommendations issued by the Council in the period 2012-2018; monitoring of recommendations by the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in the detention facilities: evaluation of the Mutual Agreements regarding detention (requested by the Ministers of Justice (& Safety)); and illegal firearms (requested by the Minister of Justice).
Conclusion
The Council observed that cross-border crimes such as drug trafficking, firearms trafficking, and human trafficking are given high priority within law enforcement by both the investigative authorities and the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and that efforts are made to deal with them as quickly as possible. However, the lack of resources plays a large role in their ability to do this and other tasks successfully, as well as provide for continuity and guarantee structural changes. Nevertheless, cross-border crime requires the attention of the relevant authorities in a structural manner as this form of crime cannot be seen separately from local crime and is considered a serious threat to Sint Maarten. To realize this, the Council stated that continuous support on an administrative and political level is required as the various authorities cannot effect the necessary change on their own.
The Council concludes in its State 2021 that it has noted that the necessary cooperation required for dealing with complex crimes, specifically cross border crime, is being pursued more and more, not only by and between the various authorities, but also on an inter-ministerial level and within the Kingdom. The Council has always been a proponent of cooperation and has made numerous recommendations to this effect. The Council therefore continues to applaud all cooperation efforts as they will contribute to the strengthening of the rule of law and by extension benefit the safety and quality of life of the Sint Maarten population.
The ‘State of law enforcement 2021’, with infographic and all other publications of the Council can be found on the website www.raadrechtshandhaving.com or http://rrh-sxm.org.
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Strengthening the rule of law
The recommendations of the Council based on its inspections are ultimately geared towards strengthening the rule of law in Sint Maarten. According to several reports and analyses, transnational crime, a new take on cross-border crime, forms one of the greatest threats for the region and cannot be seen separate from local crime and therefore neither can the approach. It is noted that many cases of cross-border crime related to drug smuggling and trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, arms smuggling and trafficking, and money laundering take place in the countries, including Sint Maarten. Cross-border crime amongst others, has therefore been addressed in the country package for Sint Maarten as well as by the judicial authorities in their approach. The aim of the reforms and measures listed in the package are to contribute to the strengthening of the rule of law, by focusing on strengthening border control, tackling financial-economic crime, improving the Crime Fund, and improving the detention system.
In 2021 this translated to concrete steps being taken by amongst others, the Ministry of Justice. These included a new protocol between the countries in the Kingdom to strengthen border control and whereby a plan of approach was drafted focusing on amongst others, materials, personnel, and training. Assistance was also requested from the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) to improve the detention situation, and as agreed, the government administration refrained from making budget cuts to the most vital sectors of the rule of law. Additionally, a plan of approach with regards to the management of the Crime Fund was also drafted. The Council was also requested to review and monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the Council regarding the Crime Fund in 2022. Besides these, preparations were made for the drafting of a Consensus Kingdom Law regarding data protection.
Cross-border crime
Since 2019 the Council has drafted several reports detailing the approach of the judicial authorities to combat the various forms of cross-border crime: human trafficking and smuggling, drug trafficking and smuggling, corruption, arms trafficking and smuggling, money laundering and terrorism financing, and cybercrime. To successfully combat these crimes prerequisites such as an integral approach, information, international cooperation, strengthening of the law enforcement chain and the cooperation with the Detective Cooperation Team (RST) were identified by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. The Council indicated, based on its reports, that these prerequisites were still not sufficiently present in 2021.
“Despite some organizational improvements by the various law enforcement authorities, the Council ascertained bottlenecks in each of its reports which hampered a successful approach. These had a common thread, a (persistent) lack of resources specifically in the area of capacity, expertise, materials, finances and information gathering”, the Council stated.
Highlights 2021
While the results of the inspections of the Council often reveal areas that require improvement, the Council also highlights in its State 2021 some positive developments within the Ministry of Justice that contribute to the quality and effectiveness of the justice chain. This, as progress by authorities is often hard-fought due to, for example, budgetary constraints and therefore deserves to be acknowledged. For example, headway was made by the workgroup tasked with drafting the plan of approach related to the protocol on strengthening border control and stakeholders were positive in their outlook with regards to its completion.
Strong efforts by the Minister of Justice also resulted in successful cooperation between the Netherlands and Sint Maarten related to the detention system. The Council has namely always called on both Sint Maarten and the Kingdom of the Netherlands to take responsibility for addressing the complex and urgent matter of the prison and even though in 2021 the assistance (of UNOPS) was slow in getting off the ground, the Council is positive that once all points have been finalized it will have great results for the detention system in the long term, resulting in a new prison amongst other things. Developments surrounding the prison also received a positive impulse with the recruitment of personnel and the execution of the plan of approach for the prison drafted in 2018. Additionally, the installation of a new prison director and a new management team at the house of detention signaled the commitment of the Minister of Justice to the realization of the goals set for the prison.
Tackling youth delinquency and relational violence as well as finalizing the function book were also on the agenda in 2021. Amongst others, a symposium was held on youth delinquency on behalf of the Ministry of Justice and for which the Council provided a presentation with its findings from its 2015 report regarding the topic. To create more awareness with regards to relational violence, workshops were held for the Sint Maarten Police Force by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. The Council was also pleased to witness inter-ministerial cooperation with regards to establishing a policy to combat domestic violence, child abuse and gender violence. Finally, the national decree containing general measures establishing a function book for law enforcement authorities, was approved, and signed by the Governor and the Minister of Justice on 20 December 2021.
Inspections 2021
The inspections initiated in 2021 by the Council included the following topics: combating money laundering and terrorism financing; cybersecurity within the various justice institutions; general review of the follow up of the recommendations issued by the Council in the period 2012-2018; monitoring of recommendations by the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in the detention facilities: evaluation of the Mutual Agreements regarding detention (requested by the Ministers of Justice (& Safety)); and illegal firearms (requested by the Minister of Justice).
Conclusion
The Council observed that cross-border crimes such as drug trafficking, firearms trafficking, and human trafficking are given high priority within law enforcement by both the investigative authorities and the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and that efforts are made to deal with them as quickly as possible. However, the lack of resources plays a large role in their ability to do this and other tasks successfully, as well as provide for continuity and guarantee structural changes. Nevertheless, cross-border crime requires the attention of the relevant authorities in a structural manner as this form of crime cannot be seen separately from local crime and is considered a serious threat to Sint Maarten. To realize this, the Council stated that continuous support on an administrative and political level is required as the various authorities cannot effect the necessary change on their own.
The Council concludes in its State 2021 that it has noted that the necessary cooperation required for dealing with complex crimes, specifically cross border crime, is being pursued more and more, not only by and between the various authorities, but also on an inter-ministerial level and within the Kingdom. The Council has always been a proponent of cooperation and has made numerous recommendations to this effect. The Council therefore continues to applaud all cooperation efforts as they will contribute to the strengthening of the rule of law and by extension benefit the safety and quality of life of the Sint Maarten population.
The ‘State of law enforcement 2021’, with infographic and all other publications of the Council can be found on the website www.raadrechtshandhaving.com or http://rrh-sxm.org.
Meer pers →