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Diana T Fritz  12/06/2006 04:35:41 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Diana T Fritz

Cable 
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UNCLAS        ABU DHABI 04412

SIPDIS
CXABU:
    ACTION: ECON
    INFO:   POL DEA P/M AMB DCM

DISSEMINATION: ECON
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: ECON: OJOHN
DRAFTED: ECON: BDEMONTLUZIN
CLEARED: DEA: RHUDON, POL/ECON: KMORRIS

VZCZCADI836
RR RUEHC RUEHZM
DE RUEHAD #4412/01 3391003
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051003Z DEC 06
FM AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7802
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 004412 
 
SIPDIS 
 
JUSTICE FOR OIA, AMFLS, AND NDDS 
DEA FOR OILS AND OFFICE OF DIVERSION CONTROL 
STATE FOR INL, NEA/ARP, NEA/RA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SNAR KCRM AE
SUBJECT:  2006 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, 
United Arab Emirates: Drug and Chemical Control 
 
Ref:  State 157136 
 
¶1. (U) Summary: Although not a narcotics-producing country, the 
United Arab Emirates (UAE) is believed to be a transshipment point 
for traffickers moving illegal drugs from the major drug producing 
countries, including Afghanistan and Pakistan. Frequent reports of 
seizures of illegal drugs in the UAE over the past few years 
underscore this conclusion. Most seizures have been of hashish. 
There are several other factors that render the UAE a way station, 
including its proximity to major drug cultivation regions in 
Southwest Asia and a long (700 kilometer) coastline. High volumes of 
shipping render UAE ports vulnerable to exploitation by narcotics 
traffickers. In February 2005, the UAE signed an MOU with Iran on 
cooperation against the trafficking of narcotics and psychotropic 
drugs and their precursor chemicals. In September 2005, the U.S. DEA 
also established a country office in the UAE to enhance cooperation 
with UAE law enforcement authorities. The UAE is a party to the 1988 
UN Drug Convention. 
 
¶2. (U) Status of Country: A major regional financial center and hub 
for commercial shipping and trade, the UAE is a transshipment point 
for illegal narcotics from the drug-cultivating regions of southwest 
Asia, to Europe, to Africa, and less significantly, to the United 
States. Western Europe is the principal market for these drugs, and 
Africa is becoming an increasingly prominent secondary market. 
Factors that contribute to the role of the UAE as a transshipment 
point are the emergence of Dubai and Sharjah as regional centers in 
the transportation of passengers and cargo, a porous land border 
with Oman, and the fact that a number of ports in the UAE are de 
facto "free ports"-where transshipped cargo is not usually subjected 
to the same inspection as other goods that enter the country. 
 
¶3. (U) Country Actions Against Drugs in 2005 
Policy Initiatives: The UAE continued to advance its national drug 
strategy based on intensifying security at the country's air and sea 
ports and patrols along the coastline, reducing demand for illegal 
drugs through educational campaigns, enforcing harsh penalties for 
trafficking, and rehabilitating drug addicts. The UAE's Federal 
Supreme Court ruled in 2003 that authorities needed proof that drug 
use occurred in the UAE before they could prosecute users. A 
positive blood test is considered evidence of consumption, but not 
evidence of where the consumption took place. In September of 2005, 
the UN established a sub-office on Drugs and Crimes in the UAE. The 
UAE government funded the estimated $3 million cost of the office 
and contributed an additional $50,000 to the UN counternarcotics 
program. The sub-office is responsible for coordinating national 
counternarcotics strategies and integrating them into the UN's 
comprehensive global program. 
 
¶4. (U) Law Enforcement Efforts. In 2005, UAE counter narcotics 
forces reported 862 drug cases and arresting a total of 529 people. 
This marked a decrease from 2004, when officials arrested 1,419 
people in 901 cases. The largest number of arrestees were Emirati 
nationals (217) followed by Iranians and Pakistanis. In 2005, UAE 
officials seized 6 kilograms of opium, 185 kilograms of heroin, and 
242 kilograms of hashish. In the first four months of 2006, UAE 
officials seized 94 kilograms of hashish, 46 kilograms of heroin, 9 
kilograms of opium and 85, 040 narcotic tablets; Punishment for drug 
offences in the UAE is severe. A 1995 law stipulates capital 
punishment as the penalty for drug trafficking. No executions for 
drug trafficking, however, have ever taken place, and sentences 
usually are commuted to life imprisonment. UAE authorities continue 
to take seriously their responsibility to interdict drug smuggling 
and distribution. In May 2005, Dubai police announced that they had 
seized 200 kilograms of hashish from two "Asians" who were 
attempting to sell it. This has been the largest seizure of hashish 
in Dubai to date. UAE authorities continue to cooperate with other 
counties to stop trafficking. This cooperation has resulted in 
several arrests. In one case, Dubai police, cooperating with 
Jordanian authorities, blocked an attempt to smuggle 2.7 million 
doses of "Captagon," which was being smuggled in 2 buses traveling 
from Eastern Europe to Dubai.  In November 2006, the Dubai Criminal 
Court sentenced two Pakistanis and one African to life imprisonment 
for smuggling heroin into the UAE with the intent of trafficking. 
One of the Pakistani drug smugglers was caught at the Dubai 
International Airport with 40 capsules of heroin each weighing 9 
grams, which he had swallowed. 
 
¶5. (U) Corruption: The government of the UAE as a matter of policy 
does not encourage or facilitate illicit production or distribution 
of narcotic or psychotropic drugs or other controlled substances or 
the laundering of proceeds from drug transactions. Senior officials 
are not known to engage in or facilitate illicit production of these 
drugs or the laundering of proceeds from drug transactions. There is 
no evidence that corruption-including narcotics related 
corruption-of public officials is a systemic problem. 
 
¶6. (U) Agreements and Treaties: The UAE is party to the 1988 UN Drug 
Convention, the 1961 UN Single Convention as amended by the 1972 
Protocol and the 1988 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances. The 
UAE has signed, but has not yet ratified, the UN Convention against 
Transnational Organized Crime.  The UAE recently ratified the UN 
Convention against Corruption. 
 
¶7. (U) Cultivation/Production: There is no evidence of any major 
drug cultivation and/or production in the UAE. Published records 
show that there were two cases of "planting" drugs in the Emirate of 
Ras Al-Khaima in 2004, with a total of three people arrested. 
 
¶8. (U) Drug Flow/Transit. High volumes of shipping render the UAE 
vulnerable to exploitation by narcotics traffickers. The UAE-Dubai, 
in particular-is a major regional transportation and shipping hub. 
Narcotics smuggling from South and Southwest Asia continues to 
Europe and Africa and to a significantly lesser degree to the United 
States via the UAE. Hashish, heroin, and opium shipments originate 
in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran and are smuggled in cargo 
containers, via small vessels and powerboats, and/or sent overland 
via Oman. According to published figures, Iranians and Pakistanis 
made up the largest number of non-UAE nationals arrested in drug 
cases in 2005. Recognizing the need for increased monitoring at its 
commercial ports, airports, and borders, the UAE is making an effort 
to tighten inspections of cargo containers as well as passengers 
transiting the UAE. In December 2004, the Emirate of Dubai signed 
the Container Security Initiative (CSI) with the U.S. CSI inspectors 
arrived in Dubai in 2005 and are now inspecting containers destined 
for the U.S. Customs officials randomly search containers and 
follow-up leads on suspicious cargo. 
 
¶9. (U) Domestic Programs (Demand Reduction). A 2003 report noted 
that the majority of UAE drug users take their first doses abroad, 
primarily because of peer pressure. Statistics reveal that 75 
percent of drug users in the UAE prefer hashish, 13 percent use 
heroin, while six percent use morphine. The report illustrates a 
clear relationship between drug abuse and level of education-75 
percent of arrested drug users in 2002 were high school graduates, 
but only two percent were university graduates. While the data is a 
few years old, trends reported are still reflective of current 
societal patterns. The focus of the UAE's domestic program is to 
reduce demand through public awareness campaigns directed at young 
people. The UAE has also established rehabilitation centers. 
 
¶10. (U) In June 2005, the UAE issued a postage stamp to highlight 
the hazards of drugs as part of its awareness campaign. It also held 
a high-profile "Drug Awareness Week" with exhibits prominently set 
up in all of the local shopping malls. UAE officials believe that 
adherence to Muslim religious morals and severe prison sentences 
imposed on individuals convicted of drug offenses effectively deter 
narcotics abuse. An affluent country, the UAE has established an 
extensive treatment and rehabilitation program for its citizens. 
There is a rehab center in Abu Dhabi, two in Dubai, and one each in 
Ajman and Sharjah for those identified as addicts. In accordance 
with federal law, UAE nationals who are addicted can present 
themselves to the police or a rehabilitation center and be exempted 
from criminal prosecution. Those nationals who do not turn 
themselves in to local authorities are referred to the legal system 
for prosecution. 
 
¶11. (U) Third-country nationals or "guest workers" who make up 
approximately 80 percent of the population generally receive prison 
sentences upon conviction of narcotics offenses and are deported 
upon completing their sentences. Most UAE nationals arrested on drug 
charges are placed in one of the UAE's drug treatment programs. They 
undergo a two-year drug rehabilitation program, which includes 
family counseling/therapy. 
 
¶12. (U) U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs 
and Bilateral Cooperation: The DEA Administrator visited the UAE in 
July 2005 to enhance counter-narcotics cooperation with the UAE. 
During her visit, she proposed, and the UAE accepted, establishing a 
DEA presence in the UAE to work closely with UAE authorities. The 
first DEA office was established in September 2005 in Dubai. 
 
¶13. (U) The Road Ahead: The USG will continue to encourage the UAE 
to focus enforcement efforts on dismantling major trafficking 
organizations and prosecuting their leaders and to enact export 
control and border security legislation. 
SISON