The OSCE in the Era of a Threat to the European Security ‒ Challenges and Prospects

The article analyses the fundamental research “Multilateralism in Transition: Challenges and Opportunities for the OSCE”, prepared by a team of Swiss experts under the leadership of the renowned Swiss diplomat Thomas Greminger (the Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the OSCE, the UN and the International Organizations in Vienna). The fact that T. Greminger served as Secretary General of the OSCE from 2017 to 2020 gives added value to the research. This created a unique opportunity to combine in the research his vast experience, personal impressions from the observance of the “internal kitchen” of the Organization and his analyses of the main directions of the work of the OSCE. The research focuses on the central problems of the OSCE’s activities- preservation of the European security, prevention and regulation of conflicts, new challenges to the European security, strategic partnership of the OSCE with major international organizations, introduction of modern technologies to the operational activities of the Organization, reformation and modernization of the OSCE’ s management system and operational functions. Special attention is payed to the revitalization of the OSCE Structured Dialogue ‒ the main platform for discussions of the most important politico-military problems and confidence-building measures, exchange of information on current perceptions of threat, military capacity, de-escalation measures, best practices for the prevention and improved management of military incidents. The book contains a positive assessment of the concept of cooperative actions aimed at a collective response to the new challenges to the European security: climate change and environment destruction, impact of technology on the societies, illegal migration, pandemics, cross- border organised crime, cyber threats, nuclear security. The authors of the book consider that the collective security initiative could stimulate trust, convergence of interests of participating states and finally would improve European security through cooperation. They also bring to attention the problems of the longstanding reform of the OSCE through presentation of the ten-point reform agenda, including management reform of the OSCE Secretariat, reform of the budget cycle, information security and automating work processes. leveraging partnerships with international and regional organizations.

Organised Crime as a Political Influence Tool of the Russian Federation

The article attempts to describe the use of organised crime to achieve the political goals of the Russian Federation. This phenomenon escapes unambiguous scientific classifications and has an eminently interdisciplinary character. This is because organised crime is usually analysed in the classical criminological literature as a pathology the state fights. However, it turns out that organised crime structures can be an element of the foreign policy carried out by covert and illegal means. Therefore, the criminological perspective should be supplemented with a viewpoint of political and security sciences. The direct inspiration for this paper came from the analyses carried out by Galeotti, an expert in security and international relations. It refers to the practical manifestations of the activities of Russian special services: SVR, GRU and FSB, in which Russian-speaking criminal networks are used. The author believes it can be analysed in terms of the concept known in the Anglo-Saxon scientific circle as a so-called state crime.

Racialized Surveillance in New Zealand: From the Tūhoe Raids to the Extralegal Photographing of Indigenous Youth

It has been nearly 15 years since the 2007 anti-terrorism police raids targeting the Ngāi Tūhoe (Tuhoe) iwi (tribe) who reside in the center of New Zealand's North Island. The violent treatment inflicted upon Tūhoe by New Zealand Police and the Security Intelligence Service (SIS) raised questions around the policing and punishing of Indigenous expressions of dissent. In light of recent events, revisiting how policymakers addressed the Raids offers much-needed critical analysis of the policing and surveillance of Māori in the contemporary context. This qualitative study seeks to understand how policymakers framed the 2007 Raids in discussions of crime control policy after the fact. A content analysis of Hansard's (parliamentary) debates of the 2009 Organised Crime Bill reveals that the Raids emerged primarily in discussions to expand police powers and implement harsher penalties for gang-related activity. Green, Māori, and the Labor parties framed the Raids as an act of state violence, a failed operation, a waste of taxpayers’ dollars, and a repeat of similar, historical acts of state violence against the Tūhoe people. Taking the Raids as a point of departure, the second part of the paper argues that two key events reveal a continuing project focused on the extensive policing and surveillance of Indigenous bodies in Aotearoa New Zealand: (1) the Armed Response Team (ART) trials of 2020, and (2) the ongoing extralegal photographing of Māori youth by law enforcement. These events are discussed as chronic acts of violence that lead to different life outcomes for survivors.

An overview of the sentencing regime for gang members under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121/1998 and the potential for restrorative justice

Sec. 10 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121 of 1998 creates a sentencing regime for those found in contravention of the substantive gang-related offences under sec. 9. This contribution provides a brief overview of the sentencing options available when found guilty of one of these substantive offences, against the backdrop of the general principles of sentencing in South Africa. The potential role of restorative justice in gang-related cases is also considered.

EU cooperation could help Croatia reduce corruption

Significance The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has unblocked the long-stalled Zalac case. This shows the impact of the new institution on the fight against organised crime and corruption at the highest levels in the EU and Croatia. However, other high-profile cases are unresolved. Impacts Trust in the judiciary, traditionally very low, will not grow soon, but could improve in the long run with help from the EPPO. Populist parties are trying to use palpable public anger against elites, focusing on a referendum to end COVID-19 restrictions. With trust in institutions low, vaccine scepticism will remain high and Croatia will remain an EU laggard for its vaccination rate. The excessive length of judicial proceedings is a recurrent problem vexing investors.

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

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.

Translated Transcripts From Covert Recordings Used for Evidence in Court: Issues of Reliability

Nation states increasingly apply electronic surveillance techniques to combat serious and organised crime after broadening and deepening their national security agendas. Covertly obtained recordings from telephone interception and listening devices of conversations related to suspected criminal activity in Languages Other Than English (LOTE) frequently contain jargon and/or code words. Community translators and interpreters are routinely called upon to transcribe intercepted conversations into English for evidentiary purposes. This paper examines the language capabilities of community translators and interpreters undertaking this work for law enforcement agencies in the Australian state of Victoria. Using data collected during the observation of public court trials, this paper presents a detailed analysis of Vietnamese-to-English translated transcripts submitted as evidence by the Prosecution in drug-related criminal cases. The data analysis reveals that translated transcripts presented for use as evidence in drug-related trials contain frequent and significant errors. However, these discrepancies are difficult to detect in the complex environment of a court trial without the expert skills of an independent discourse analyst fluent in both languages involved. As a result, trials tend to proceed without the reliability of the translated transcript being adequately tested.