US: Rethinking the Fight Against Crime

The battle against organized crime is one of the greatest challenges confronting Latin America today. It is a transnational phenomenon, so the cooperation of all the nations on the continent is essential. Moreover, the participation of the United States, the principal consumer and supplier for the mafias south of the Rio Grande, is key.

The neighbor to the north is also the world’s greatest economic and military power. It is logical to think that its capability for action is greater than ours. Although Washington has shown a certain disposition towards and interest in providing resources, technology and assistance in this fight, the commitment of Barack Obama’s administration is not commensurate with the size of the problem and the responsibility held by the North American colossus.

Despite Obama’s assurance that under his administration more than $30 billion has been spent to reduce the demand for illegal drugs in his country, the reality is that the United States is still the continent’s leading consumer of these substances, and dealing with the problem solely from the perspective of law enforcement and consumption is not enough to get the job done.

Attacking money laundering, for example, should also occupy a central position in the strategy. Up until now, no strong and effective mechanism has been put into place to minimize this activity to the greatest possible extent. Let’s not forget that according to the U.N., 70 percent of the $72 billion dollars generated annually by cocaine trafficking remains in the consumer countries — that is to say, European countries and the U.S.

Something similar has occurred with arms trafficking, an essential piece of the puzzle. From Washington we saw some weak attempts to regulate this activity. But the arms control initiatives crashed up against the fierce opposition of the arms lobby and the most implacable conservatives.

Drug trafficking, responsible in large part for crime in Latin America, operates as a fundamentally economic activity and should also be largely — but not solely — dealt with as such. The financial crisis has turned the drug industry into a source of employment, and it is time that all of the nations of the region wipe it out by implementing measures that break this mechanism of supply and demand.

Job creation and trade agreements designed to strengthen the formal economies of the region are a good start. In an economic landscape as difficult as ours, the region must come together and cooperate. Each country holds a piece of the solution in the fight against crime.