Australias Border Control Issue - Essay Example

Introduction to Border Control 8069 Australia’s Border Control Issue Submission date and time Name (Insert) Student Number (e.g., 992211) Tutorial Number and Time (e.g., Tutorial 3, Wednesday 1630, Contact telephone number (e.g., 6239 9999) Lecturer’s name: I certify that the attached assignment is my own work. Material drawn from other sources has been acknowledged according to unit-specific requirements for referencing. Signature of student:_________________________ Date:__________________ Introduction Importation of illegal narcotics is one of the leading crimes in Australia (“Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence” 2002, p.3). According to Paoli (2004), illegal drug importation issues are not only rampant in Australia but all over the world. Most Australians are aware of the existence of drug traffickers, but might not have a clue as to how widespread this border issue has become. As reported by Solon in her 2013 article on the arrest of an Australian drug trafficker, importation of illegal narcotics in the country is on the rise and this has generated various border control challenges. As Solon reports, it is the first time that an Australian drug dealer is being convicted of a crime related to Silk Road. The drug dealer is alleged of having purchased drugs such as MDMA, amphetamine, marijuana and cocaine using the black marketplace. The aim of this paper is therefore to analyze the article by Solon, find out the legal considerations from both a domestic and international perspective, assess the strengths/weaknesses of the strategies used to address the border control breach and offer an alternative approach that can successfully address the issue. The Related Legal Considerations/Instruments from both a Domestic and an International Perspective As reported in the article, due to the advancing technology, it has become extremely for drug dealers to import and export illegal drugs. The market place known as Silk Road has few if any limitations on what individuals can purchase, but it is mainly used for selling narcotics. “People can buy from this marketplace by just linking with the anonymising Tor network using Bitcoins” (Solon 2013, p.2). The article reports that Paul Leslie Howard through the use of Silk Road, bought and imported illicit narcotics into the country on more than 10 occasions. According to Australian Crime Commission (2008a, p.4), importation of illegal drugs has become rampant and it has become extremely difficult for the Australian Customs and Border protection service officers to effectively control this border issue. Moore (2005b, p.15) reports that in Australia, importation of illicit drugs has impacted negatively on the nation’s economy due to the resources wasted in controlling and managing the border issue. Drug dealers are using complex technological strategies in importing and exporting illegal narcotics and this explains the reason as to why it has become so challenging for the Australian Customs and Border protection agencies to effectively resolve this border issue. According to Moore (2005b, p.17), the Australian government has put in place various legal instruments of addressing importation of illegal drugs into the country. Currently, there is a policy which has been implemented to address the border issue of drug trafficking. The policy ensures that Australian Customs and Border service agencies are fully equipped with the right knowledge and other resources useful and adequate in countering importation and exportation of illegal narcotics. From an international perspective, other nations such as he United Nations are fully involved in addressing border control issue such as importation of illegal drugs which is on the rise. According to Brown (2004, p.325), the advancing technology has brought about globalised online economy characterized with e-commerce which has resulted in an increase of the illegal drugs and other items being imported and exported all over the world. For instance, The United States has hugely invested in equipping its Customs and Border protection agencies to ensure that they are up to date in terms of technology and other resources in order to overcome the challenges posed by the border issues such as drug trafficking. The Strengths and Weaknesses of the Strategies Utilized To Address Importation of Illegal Narcotics in Australia Strengths As reported in the article, the Australian Customs and Border Protection are also making use of the advanced technology to investigate the Silk Road marketplace in order to keep one-step ahead of the illicit drug dealers. Using various technologies, the Australian Customs, and Border protection was able to access information on Howard’s illegal dealings and track him down. The information which was retrieved from his profile despite having registered using fake names was adequate in convicting him of the accusations. This strategy of cracking down drug dealers is effective since it allows custom and border protection officers to be one step ahead of their suspects in the Silk Road marketplace. The use of technology and global network in addressing importation of illegal narcotics is also cost-effective since little resources are used. According to Mazerolle, Soole and Rombouts (2006, p412), not only the Australian Custom and Border protection which has realized the effectiveness of using technological strategies in combating importation of illegal narcotics. The DEA in the United Strategies is also employing technological strategies to investigate marketplaces such a Silk Road and Farmer’s market. According to Black, Roxburgh and Degenhardt, et al. (2008, p.5), the Australian Customs and Border Protection also focuses on using interdiction as a strategy to combat importation of illegal narcotics. Interdiction means the interception of illegal narcotics before they get into the hands of local drug dealers and customers. Through his technique, customs and Border protection officers are able to correctly identify the individuals involved in importation of illegal narcotics, who are the underlying problem and facilitators of this disturbing and widespread border control issue. Interdiction is highly effective as it curtails the supply of illegal narcotics, making their prices go high and hence decreasing demand Costa (2008, p.8). Once the demand for i8llict drugs decreases, importation of illicit narcotics also goes down. Weaknesses Interdiction has various weaknesses as a strategy to combat importation of illegal narcotics (Kuziemko & Levitt 2004, p.2044). Several researchers have pointed out that interdiction has failed to effectively eliminate the drug industry. In order to reduce importation of illegal narcotics significantly, it would require the Australian customs and border protection to carry out thorough and serious interdiction operations. As Kuziemko and Levitt (2004) explain, it is difficult for authorities to estimate the amount of illegal narcotics that are imported into the country. A larger and thorough effort in interdicting drug traffickers will require more human and material resources making it more costly. According to Mazerolle, Soole and Rombouts (2006, p.414), interdiction has side effects in a manner that when efforts of interdiction are increased in one region, production shifts to another region making it interdiction an ineffective strategy. Research has also established that interdiction as a strategy to combat importation of illegal narcotics fuels violence within the industry. The policy makers argue that interdiction decreases supply of narcotic drugs, which in turn reduces consumption (Brown 2004, p.327). However, the policy makers fail to recognize that the importation of illegal narcotics is comparatively inelastic, meaning that the demand of narcotics will change significantly despite the prices going high. It is true that interdiction will reduce importation of illegal narcotics but not by significant amount. Another defect with Interdiction as a strategy to combat importation of illegal narcotics is that it increases profits within the drug industry hence attracting more drug traffickers and hence making it more challenging for the authorities. Alternative Approaches to Successfully Address Importation of Illegal Narcotics in Australia Other alternative strategies, which can effectively address the border issue of importation of illegal narcotics in Australia include: Improvement of social security in order reduce the importation of illegal narcotics, promotion of social and economic justice and promotion of the rule of law. With improved social security, the customs and border securities will be adequately trained, equipped, and supported by not only the Australian government but other non-governmental organization in order to effectively address this persistent border issue (Kuziemko & Levitt 2004, p.2044). As it is reported in the article, despite the numerous police investigations on importation of illegal narcotics, few drug dealers are convicted of their crimes by the law enforcement institutions. This is because there is no social justice because of corrupted law enforcement system. According to Mazerolle, Soole and Rombouts (2006. P.415), many of the senior custom and border protection officers are partially involved in importation of illegal narcotics transactions and this explains the reason as to why few drug dealers are convicted of drug trafficking. Therefore, promotion of social justice by fighting corruption among customs and boarder protection officials will help in making them effective in managing importation of illegal narcotics among other border control issues. On top of interdiction strategies, the Australian Custom and Boarder protection should also implement aggressive eradication strategies in order to curb importation of illegal narcotics. Eradication strategies should involve international funding and support, whereby the Australian government should support the supplier countries authorities in locating the drug farmers and destroying the crops. Unlike interdiction strategies which focus on cracking down the traffickers, eradication is more effective since it focuses on cracking down the supplier, who is the rot cause of the border problem. The Australian government should also formulate and implement policies and other strategies that are fit in addressing the border problem such as organizing public campaigns to enlighten the public on the dangers of drug tracking and use. Such incentives will help in decreasing the demand for illegal narcotics and consequently curtail their importation into the country. Conclusion From the article analyzed, it is clear that importation of illegal narcotics is one of the most serious and persistent border issues not only in Australia but all over the world. Due to the advancing technology, it has become easy for the drug traffickers to use e-commerce and other marketplaces such as Silk Road to import illegal narcotics in Australia. From a domestic perspective, this border issue is creating great challenges for the Australian Border and Customs Protection. The Australian authorities and law enforcement agencies are employing various strategies such as investigations using online techniques in order to stay one step ahead of the criminals. However, due to corruption and poor social security, the strategies employed have proved ineffective in addressing this serious issue. It is therefore necessary that the Australian government adopts new strategies such as improving social security; promoting justice through fighting corruption and eradicating the illegal narcotics suppliers in order to successfully address this border issue. Reference Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence 2002, Illicit Drug Data Report 2000-01, Canberra, Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence. Commonwealth of Australia. Australian Crime Commission 2008a, Illicit Drug Data Report 2006-07, Canberra, Australian Crime Commission: Commonwealth of Australia. Black, E, Roxburgh, A, Degenhardt, Bruno, R. L, Campbell, G & de Graaff, B 2008, Australian Drug Trends 2007 Findings from the Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS), National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre. Brown, D. K 2004, ‘Cost-Benefit Analysis in Criminal Law’, California Law Review, vol. 92, no. 2, pp. 323-372. Costa, A. M 2008, Making drug control ‘fit for purpose’: Building on the UNGASS decade: Statement of the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Kuziemko, I, & Levitt, S. D 2004, ‘An empirical analysis of imprisoning drug offenders’, Journal of Public Economics, vol. 88, pp. 2043-2066. Mazerolle, L, Soole, D, & Rombouts, S 2006, ‘Street-level drug law enforcement: A meta-analytic review’, Journal of Experimental Criminology, vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 409-435. Moore, T 2005b, What is Australia’s ‘drug budget’? The policy mix of illicit drug-related government spending in Australia, Fitzroy, Australia, Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre. Paoli, L 2004, ‘The illegal drugs market’, Journal of Modern Italian Studies, vol. 9, pp. 186-207. Solon, O 2013, Police crack down on Silk Road following first drug dealer conviction, Available at: http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2013-02/01/silk-road-crackdown[Accessed on 8th May 2013] Read More