Law/13. International law

 

Petrova D.R.

Taganrog Management and Economics Institute, Russia

International legal acts in system of fight against  transnational organized crime

 

Entering the new millennium, the information society, the mankind is facing one of the most inevitable processes – globalization. Globalization which is now happening in economy, policy, culture and other major social activities, could not avoid some negative manifestations of a civilization, namely, crime. Criminologists note that from the beginning of the 2000s, organized crime moved to a qualitatively new level in this connection, criminal actions became more socially dangerous, and groups are more extensive. Now the problem of the international crime is not on the margins of national interests, but is entering the priority list.

The tenth congress of the United Nations on counteraction of crime, became one of the main international acts that regulates the sphere of prevention of transnational organized crime. The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime took place on November 15, 2000, and for the first time at the international standard level fixed signs and the concept of transnational organized crime. Point 2 of article 3 of the specified Convention defines transnational organized crime as follows:

1.     It is committed in more than one State;

2.     It is committed in one State but a substantial part of its preparation, planning, direction or control takes place in another State;

3.     It is committed in one State but involves an organized criminal group  that engages in criminal activities in more than one State;

4.     It is committed in one State but has substantial effects in another State.

Also, the list of types of criminal activities which can have transnational character is fixed in this Convention. It is money laundering; terrorism; theft of works of art and subjects of culture; theft of intellectual property; illegal trade in arms; stealing of planes; sea piracy; capture of land transport; fraud with an insurance; computer crime; ecological crime; human trafficking; trade of human bodies; illegal drug traffic; false bankruptcy; penetration into legal business; corruption and bribery of public and party figures, elected persons.

The convention of the UN against a transnational organized crime besides acts which have transnational character also outlines a circle of subjects which are subject to responsibility for such crimes. The circle of subjects involved into transnational criminal activity includes both people and legal entities. Measures of criminal, civil or administrative liability can be applied to them.

Let's note also that procedural steps of member countries of the Convention occupy the vast majority of the contents of the statutory act. Measures of fight against separate types of crime, the interaction and the help of law enforcement agencies of various countries, and also the international organizations competent in the field, extradition of criminals and witness protection, - is rather in details described in the considered convention.

The norm contained in article 16 of the Convention which governs the relations between member countries concerning delivery of the persons who committed transnational crimes, is the most interesting. The contents of this article allow drawing a conclusion that Art. 16 only works for the persons who committed the transnational crimes as a part of organized group but also who committed the specified crimes out of such groups. However, in point 1 Art. 16 of the Convention it is directly specified that if such request for delivery takes place to be, it can be admitted reasonably and become a subject to satisfaction only in those cases, if an act is penal according to the domestic legislation as the requesting State Party, and the required State Party.

In case of a situation when a person who committed a crime disappears on the territory of the State Party of the considered Convention with which the requesting State Party has no extradition treaty, the requesting party has the right to refer to item 6 of Art. 16 of the Convention but provided that act admits a criminal and the requesting state, and the required state.

Though the act contains the procedures provided with existence and without existence of the contract, item 17 of Art. 16 underlines aspiration of all participating states to conclude bilateral and multilateral agreements, for the purpose of achievement of more detailed arrangement, concerning extradition of criminals.

Besides extradition of criminals, the Convention provides legal aid in investigation and disclosure of crimes which can admit transnational. So, item 3 of Art. 18 establishes the list of the purposes in which achievement provisions of international law are applied:

1.     Taking evidence or statements from persons;

2.     Effecting service of judicial documents;

3.     Executing searches and seizures, and freezing;

4.     Examining objects and sites;

5.     Providing information, evidentiary items and expert evaluations;

6.     Providing originals or certified copies of relevant documents and records, including government, bank, financial, corporate or business records;

7.     Identifying or tracing proceeds of crime, property, instrumentalities or other things for evidentiary purposes;

8.     Facilitating the voluntary appearance of persons in the requesting State Party;

9.     Any other type of assistance that is not contrary to the domestic law of the requested State Party.

However, providing legal aid is not an obligation of the State Parties. The international act outlines a circle of the bases for refusal in providing the help, obliging any refusal of this action to motivate. It should be noted article 20 of the Convention which provides possibility of use of such special methods of investigation of crimes as a controlled delivery, electronic surveillance or other forms of supervision, and also undercover operations, its competent authorities in its territory for the purpose of conducting effective fight against organized crime.

Thus, the Convention of the UN against a transnational organized crime is one of the central international regulations in fight against a transnational organized crime, fixing not only a circle of transnational criminal actions, persons and measures of interaction, but also governing the relations of the participating states concerning extradition of criminals and providing mutual legal assistance.

The Russian Federation ratified the considered act in 2004. For a decade of action of the Convention of the UN, the decent number of the international acts which are in details regulating the relations in the sphere of interaction of the countries related to transnational crime prevention, and also against the international crime, were accepted. However, there is a quite insufficient standard fixing the mechanisms of interaction. In practice not seldom these mechanisms function not properly or are absent at all. Therefore the bigger amount of attention has to be given to creation of optimum conditions for implementation of provisions of the international acts. In addition, stimulation of interaction of authorized bodies of member countries of the Convention of the UN, that will allow accelerating investigation and disclosure of crimes of transnational character, and also the crimes committed by organized group, is necessary.

 

Literature:

1.                     United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime// General Assembly resolution 55/25 of 15 November 2000, https://www.unodc.org/documents/middleeastandnorthafrica//organised-crime.