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OAS Urges Stronger Effort To Fight Illicit Drugs in the Americas

Drug evaluation report presented at meeting in Washington

A strengthened commitment from the governments of the Western Hemisphere is needed to fight illicit drugs and crime in the region, the Organization of American States (OAS) has reiterated.

In a May 11 statement, OAS Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza emphasized that cooperation among all nations in the region is vital to confront the dangers of illegal drugs in the hemisphere.

Insulza said the illegal drug trade is a "regional and global enterprise supported by multiple sources, and it is imperative to join resources and tackle it with a multifaceted, regional strategy."

The official spoke at OAS headquarters during a meeting of that organization's Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission, known by its Spanish acronym CICAD. During the meeting, the countries of the hemisphere approved national and hemispheric reports on what is called the Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM).

The MEM uses a number of indicators to evaluate the progress made by each country in the fight against illegal drugs. The MEM was created by the region's 34 heads of state participating in the 1998 Summit of the Americas in Santiago, Chile. (See related article.)

Insulza said the success of the MEM depends on broad political support from all countries in the hemisphere.

A report comparing drug use among adolescents who attend school in some South American countries was also presented during the meeting. Insulza said the report "provides us with an updated, valid and reliable diagnosis on the use of drugs and the associated risk factors and protections."

The reports approved during the CICAD meeting will be presented at the OAS General Assembly, being held June 4-6 in the Dominican Republic's capital of Santo Domingo. (See related article.)

U.S. State Department official Anne Patterson said March 30 that U.S. partnerships with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean - as well as the growing trend of regional alliances among many of those countries - have resulted in "significant progress" in fighting the illicit drug trade.

Patterson, assistant secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement affairs, said the Western Hemisphere's improved counternarcotics performance of recent years has been achieved "not just by individual countries, but by countries working together."

The State Department's 23rd annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, released March 1, "provides evidence of maturing policies, modernizing institutions, and stronger cross-border, subregional, and international cooperation," Patterson said in testimony before the House International Relations Committee's Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. (See related article.)

Source: U.S. Department of State

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