The Legal Relationship between Terrorism and Transnational Crime

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben Saul
Keyword(s):  
Human Trafficking ◽  
Drug Trafficking ◽  
Organised Crime ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Legal Relationship ◽  
Migrant Smuggling ◽  
Terrorist Groups ◽  
Terrorist Acts ◽  
Illicit Trafficking ◽  
The Relationship

This article examines the legal relationship between terrorism and other transnational crimes. It considers how terrorist groups instrumentally commit other transnational crimes in order to support their terrorist activities, as well as when terrorist acts can qualify as other transnational crimes. The overlap and differentiation between terrorism and transnational organised crime is explored by reference to the un Transnational Organised Crime Convention 2000 (untoc) and its three protocols on human trafficking, migrant smuggling, and firearms trafficking. In particular, the article examines the distinction between politically motivated terrorism and the financial or material benefit that is central to the definition under the untoc. Beyond the untoc, the article then investigates the relationship between terrorism and a cluster of more disparate transnational crimes, including drug trafficking, illicit trafficking in cultural property, illicit exploitation of natural resources and environmental crimes, and kidnapping for ransom. The article identifies gaps in existing legal regimes.

scholarly journals Religion, Terrorism and Weapons of Mass Destruction: Expediters or Hindrances for Global Peace

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-32
Author(s):  
Ghada Awada
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Weapons Of Mass Destruction ◽  
Terrorist Attacks ◽  
Mass Destruction ◽  
Terrorist Groups ◽  
Global Peace ◽  
Terrorist Acts ◽  
Religious Nature ◽  
The Relationship

The purpose of the study was to examine the validity of the argument indicating that the religious nature of the terrorist groups accounts for the increase in the violence of terrorist acts today.  The study also intended to explore the relationship between terrorism and religion and to address whether or not there has been interrelatedness between religion and terrorism. Another purpose was to explore the scope of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and to examine how religion was exploited to disseminate terrorism and eradicate global peace and how the possession of WMD could influence global peace. The study employed a meta-analysis of literature which pointed out the significance of religion and the controversy as to whether or not religion triggered terrorist violence. Incidents such as 9/11, the 2005 London underground attack, Paris attack, and 2019 attack in New Zealand were analyzed to serve the purposes of the study.   The findings showed the main triggers and incentives behind the terrorist attacks waged in the name of religion. Overall, the findings of the study emphasized the influence of religion on terrorism, and vice versa. The study rendered conclusions that delved into infamous attacks and recognized terrorism as caused by religion or perceptions fogged by media and stereotypes.

International Cooperation to Counter Migrant Smuggling and Human Trafficking through Special Investigative Techniques

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 109-117
Author(s):  
Eugenio Zaniboni
Keyword(s):  
Human Trafficking ◽  
International Cooperation ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Organised Crime ◽  
International Commitments ◽  
Migrant Smuggling ◽  
International Coordination ◽  
Investigative Techniques

Abstract The adoption of international coordination measures to spread the use of ‘special investigative techniques’ to combat organised crime effectively is encouraged by Article 20 of the UNTOC. This article discusses, firstly, the main features of ‘undercover operations’ involving, or taking place in, more than one State. It then examines the Italian implementation legal framework, as amended by a new law passed in 2019, seeking to establish whether and to what extent Italy is complying with its international commitments in this field.

Experiences of the Hungarian criminal jurisdiction concerning the illicit trafficking of cultural properties

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriella Kármán
Keyword(s):  
Significant Risk ◽  
Organised Crime ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Criminal Records ◽  
Cultural Goods ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Illicit Trade ◽  
Cultural Properties ◽  
Illicit Trafficking

Purpose The special purpose of this research was to identify the current features of illicit trade of cultural properties in Hungary and the procedures dealing with it. These offences pose a significant risk of damage to cultural property and have a strong link with organised crime. This relationship underlines the need for a criminal law approach worldwide in the field of the protection of cultural goods. Design/methodology/approach To explore the current situation in Hungary, an empirical research was conducted in 2018 with questionnaires designed to obtain data from the criminal records. To examine the phenomenon of “illicit trafficking”, the following types of crimes against cultural goods were selected: theft, dealing in stolen goods, robbery, budget fraud and criminal offences with protected cultural goods. Findings As a summary, it has to be stated that even though the number of the criminal procedure of these crimes in Hungary is low, it cannot be concluded that illicit trafficking of cultural goods in Hungary occurs only rarely. A specific characteristic of the phenomenon is high latency. To examine this phenomenon, the author has drawn up a list of indicators. Practical implications The aim of this project is to provide background information and materials for training programs. It is necessary to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the problem. The role of the experts is outstanding in these cases; the clear definition of their tasks and competence is very important. Information to all “actors of this scene” (from the collector to the art dealers) can contribute to the prevention too. Originality/value This study presents the characteristics of the criminal procedures and the difficulties of both the detection and the evidentiary process to provide educational material for training. The author would like to raise awareness about the problem and draw attention to the need for unified legal practice.

scholarly journals Analysis of Drug Trafficking and Insurgency Correlation: Case Study of Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Region

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Mohammad Naji Shah Mohammadi ◽  
Salawati Mat Basir ◽  
Elmira Sobatian
Keyword(s):  
Drug Trafficking ◽  
Illicit Drugs ◽  
Its Region ◽  
The World ◽  
Terrorist Groups ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Organized Crime Groups ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Illicit Drug Trafficking

<p>ECO member states are among a big producer of opium and heroin in the world and all trafficking routes used for trafficking illicit drugs to the world pass through ECO countries. On the other hand many insurgent groups are actively involved in illicit drug trafficking. ECO’s Main objective is economic development in its region and directly unproductive profit seeking activities such as drug trafficking and insurgency is tight barrier to reach this goal. The aim of this research is to investigate the correlation between drug trafficking and insurgency in ECO region and identify the reasons for this connection to cope with this problem. There are various theories, which attempt to explain the relationship between drug trafficking and insurgency. Generally speaking, it appears that it is not sensible to lump organized crime groups, who conduct drug trafficking, and terrorist groups together in ECO area. Although there are some links between them, they have essential motivational and operational discrepancies.</p><p> </p><p> </p>

scholarly journals Terrorist campaigns and the growth of the Muslim population: a reply

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Clara Egger ◽  
Raul Magni-Berton
Keyword(s):  
Political Violence ◽  
Religious Conversion ◽  
Empirical Support ◽  
Terrorist Attacks ◽  
Muslim Population ◽  
Terror Attacks ◽  
Terrorist Groups ◽  
The One ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract A recently published paper in this journal (Choi, 2021) establishes a statistical link between, on the one hand, Islamist terrorist campaigns – including terrorist attacks and online propaganda – and, on the other the growth of the Muslim population. The author explains this result by stating that successful campaigns lead some individuals to convert to Islam. In this commentary, we intend to reply to this article by focusing on the impact of terrorist attacks on religious conversion. We first show that Choi's results suffer from theoretical flaws – a failure to comprehensively unpack the link between violence and conversion – and methodological shortcomings – a focus on all terrorist groups over a period where Islamist attacks were rare. This leads us to replicate Choi's analysis by distinguishing Islamist and non-Islamist terror attacks on a more adequate timeframe. By doing so, we no longer find empirical support for the relationship between terror attacks and the growth of the Muslim population. However, our analyses suggest that such a hypothesis may hold but only in contexts where the level and intensity of political violence are high.

scholarly journals The Smuggling of Art, and the Art of Smuggling: Uncovering the Illicit Trade in Cultural Property and Antiques

2009 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 82-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raymond Fisman ◽  
Shang-Jin Wei
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Western Country ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Illicit Trade ◽  
Reporting Incentives ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Rich Countries ◽  
Illicit Trafficking

We empirically analyze the illicit trade in cultural property and antiques, taking advantage of different reporting incentives between source and destination countries. We generate a measure of illicit trafficking in these goods by comparing imports recorded in United States' customs data and the (purportedly identical) trade recorded by customs authorities in exporting countries. This reporting gap is highly correlated with corruption levels of exporting countries. This correlation is stronger for artifact-rich countries. As a placebo test, we do not observe any such pattern for US imports of toys. We report similar results for four other Western country markets. (JEL F14, K42, Z11, Z13)

Combatting organised crime and terrorism in Central Asia

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma van Santen
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Organised Crime ◽  
The State ◽  
State Crime ◽  
International Policy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Central Asian ◽  
Terrorist Groups

Purpose This paper aims to examine the shift away from the traditional distinction between organised crime and terrorist groups towards their conceptual convergence under the crime-terror nexus narrative in the context of international security and development policy in post-Soviet Central Asia. It assesses the empirical basis for the crime-terror and state-crime nexus in three Central Asian countries – Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan – and argues that the exclusion of the state from the analytical framework undermines the relevance of the crime-terror paradigm for policy-making. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws on a literature review of academic research, recent case studies highlighting new empirical evidence in Central Asia and international policy publications. Findings There is a weak empirical connection between organised crime and Islamic extremists, such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and Hizbut Tahrir, in Central Asia. The state-crime paradigm, including concepts of criminal capture, criminal sovereignty and criminal penetration, hold more explanatory power for international policy in Central Asia. The crime-terror paradigm has resulted in a narrow and ineffective security-oriented law enforcement approach to counter-narcotics and counter-terrorism but does not address the underlying weak state governance structures and political grievances that motivate organised crime and terrorist groups respectively. Originality/value International policy and scholarship is currently focussed on the areas of convergence between organised crime and terrorist groups. This paper highlights the continued relevance of the traditional conceptual separation of terrorist and organised crime groups based on their different motives, methods and relationship with the state, for security and democratic governance initiatives in the under-researched Central Asian region.

Thinking in terms of law and mortality

1998 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Greenawalt
Keyword(s):  
Country Of Origin ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Avoidance Strategies ◽  
Standards Of Conduct ◽  
Moral Rules ◽  
Moral Behaviors ◽  
National Governments ◽  
The Relationship

The author lays a blueprint for distinctions between legal and moral rules and socially accepted behavior, situations in which these distinctions set different standards of conduct, and the relationship among them. Several of the more common paradigms of cultural property disputes are then fit into the patterns of legal and moral rules and obligations, thus establishing a framework for the discussion of how to evaluate ethical or moral behaviors in varying circumstances. The author also considers the relevance of deontological and consequentialist arguments for the return of cultural property, as well as avoidance strategies by which a country of origin can make a claim for restitution while ignoring the long-term questions of the legitimacy, power, and responsibilities of national governments. The author concludes by emphasizing the difficulties in basing arguments concerning cultural property on moral evaluations and conclusions.

scholarly journals Using Global Migration Law to Prevent Human Trafficking

AJIL Unbound ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 111 ◽  
pp. 147-152
Author(s):  
Janie A. Chuang
Keyword(s):  
Human Trafficking ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Sex Trafficking ◽  
Organised Crime ◽  
Trafficking In Persons ◽  
Labor Trafficking ◽  
Global Migration ◽  
Women And Children ◽  
International Laws ◽  
Migration Law

Our understanding of human trafficking has changed significantly since 2000, when the international community adopted the first modern antitrafficking treaty—the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (Trafficking Protocol). Policy attention has expanded beyond a near-exclusive focus on sex trafficking to bring long-overdue attention to nonsexual labor trafficking. That attention has helped surface how the lack of international laws and institutions pertaining to labor migration can enable—if not encourage—the exploitation of migrant workers. Many migrant workers throughout the world labor under conditions that do not qualify as trafficking yet suffer significant rights violations for which access to protection and redress is limited. Failing to attend to these “lesser” abuses creates and sustains vulnerability to trafficking.

What’s in a Name?

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Marika McAdam
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Human Trafficking ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
Human Rights Protection ◽  
Rights Protection ◽  
Migrant Smuggling

This article explores the challenges involved in differentiating between human trafficking and migrant smuggling, and their implications for human rights protection. Exploitation is dismissed as a hallmark of trafficking, with reference to situations of trafficking that occur without exploitation, and migrant smuggling that involves exploitation. The consent of smuggled migrants is similarly rejected as a signifier of smuggling, given the irrelevance of consent in human trafficking. Discussion of stigmatisation of migrants willing to migrant irregularly, and the simplification of their plight, leads to consideration of rights-based distinctions between the two phenomena. Assumptions made about the types of abuses that occur in trafficking and smuggling scenarios are explained as detracting from human rights protections of rights-holders. Ultimately, it is asserted that the labels of ‘trafficked’ and ‘smuggled’ should not be determined on the basis of human rights abuses, but should be confronted irrespective of which label has been allocated.

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