VZCZCXRO1665
PP RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHWD #0340/01 3081244
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 031244Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY WINDHOEK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0133
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY PRIORITY UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 WINDHOEK 000340 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS:    
SUBJECT: NAMIBIA: INCSR PART I, DRUGS AND CHEMICAL CONTROL 
 
REF: STATE 100970 
 
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 I. Summary 
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 1. (SBU) While occasionally used as a drug transit point, Namibia is 
not a major drug producer or exporter. Nevertheless, statistics 
compiled in 2008 showed a marked increase in illegal drug seizures 
compared to previous years, with approximately $570,000 worth of 
drugs (1383 kilograms of marijuana, plus extremely small quantities 
of Mandrax (methaqualone), cocaine, and Ecstasy) seized between 
April 2007 and March 2008. Drug abuse remains an issue of concern, 
especially among economically disadvantaged groups. Narcotics 
enforcement is the responsibility of the Namibian Police's Drug Law 
Enforcement Unit (DLEU), which lacks both manpower and resources to 
fully carry-out its mission. Namibia is not a party to the 1988 UN 
Drug Convention.  End Summary. 
 
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II. Status of Country 
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 2. (SBU) Namibia is not a significant producer of drugs or precursor 
chemicals. No drug production facilities were discovered in Namibia 
in 2008. 
 
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III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 2008 
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Policy Initiatives. 
 
 3. (SBU) Namibia has requested United Nations (UNODC) assistance in 
completing a National Drug Master Plan. While Namibia has not said 
precisely when it will become a party to the 1988 UN Drug 
Convention, many Convention requirements are already reflected in 
Namibian law, which criminalizes cultivation, production, 
distribution, sale, transport and financing of illicit narcotics. 
Namibia's Parliament passed the Prevention of Organized Crime Act 
(POCA), designed to combat organized crime and money laundering, in 
2004, and the Government intends to issue regulations and place POCA 
into effect in late 2008, or early 2009. In July 2007, Parliament 
passed the Financial Intelligence Act (FIA) and the Government 
intends to issue regulations and place FIA into effect also in late 
2008, or early 2009. The Combating of the Abuse of Drugs Bill was 
tabled in Parliament in 2006, but has yet to be passed. If passed, 
it would ban the consumption, trafficking, sale and possession of 
dangerous, undesirable and dependence-inducing substances. Namibia 
is also a signatory to the International Convention for the 
Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism. The Namibian 
Anti-Terrorism Activities Bill and Drugs Control Bill are still 
under consideration. Once fully implemented and harmonized, the new 
legislation will allow for asset forfeiture and other 
narcotics-related prosecution tools. 
 
Law Enforcement Efforts. 
 
 4. (SBU) Namibia fully participates in regional law enforcement 
cooperation efforts against narcotics trafficking, especially 
through the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the 
Southern African Regional Police Chiefs' Cooperative Organization 
(SARPCCO). The Minister of Safety and Security and working level 
officials meet regularly with counterparts from neighboring 
countries to discuss efforts to combat cross border contraband 
shipments (including narcotics trafficking). 
 
 5. (SBU) According to official statistics (published in April every 
year), police seized the following from April 2007 to March 2008: 
 
                2007*   2006** 
------------------------------------------- 
Cannabis        1383    422  kilograms 
Cocaine powder    32    0.9  kilograms 
Crack cocaine    528    257  dosage units 
Ecstasy          394   1192  tablets 
Methaqualone     381    634  tablets 
 
*  Statistics collected April 2007 to March 2008 
** Statistics collected April 2006 to March 2007 
 
 6. (SBU) In November 2007, Namibian Police seized 544 kilograms of 
cannabis, the largest single seizure in Namibian history. 
Drug related arrests increased from 526 people in 2006, to 863 in 
 2007. 
 
Namibian Police's Drug Law Enforcement Unit (DLEU), continues to 
lack the manpower, resources and equipment required to fully address 
the domestic drug trade and transshipment issues. For example, the 
DLEU only has sniffer dogs in Windhoek to carry out its enforcement 
activities, while other transit points lack coverage. 
 
 
WINDHOEK 00000340  002 OF 002 
 
 
Corruption. 
 
 7. (SBU) As a matter of government policy, the Government of Namibia 
does not encourage or facilitate illicit production or distribution 
of narcotic or psychotropic drugs or other controlled substances, or 
the laundering of proceeds from illegal drug transactions. 
Similarly, no senior government official is alleged to have 
participated in such activities. 
 
Agreements and Treaties. 
 
 8. (SBU) Namibia is not a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention; 
however, it is a party to the 1961 UN Single Convention as amended 
by the 1972 Protocol, and the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic 
Substances. Namibia also is a party to the UN Convention Against 
Transnational Organized Crime and its protocols against migrant 
smuggling and trafficking in persons, and to the UN Convention 
against Corruption. The United State and Namibia do not have a 
bi-lateral extradition or mutual legal assistance treaty. In 2006, 
however, Namibia designated the United States as a country to which 
Namibia could extradite persons, and there is a pending extradition 
case. In addition, there has been excellent cooperation regarding 
legal assistance between both countries. 
 
Drug Flow/Transit. 
 
 9. (SBU) Namibia's excellent port facilities and road network, 
combined with weak border enforcement, make it a likely 
transshipment point for drugs en route to the larger and more 
lucrative South African market. DLEU (Drug Law Enforcement Unit) 
personnel believe much of the transshipment takes place via shipping 
containers either offloaded at the port of Walvis Bay or entering 
overland from Angola and transported via truck to Botswana, Zambia 
and South Africa. Inadequate staffing and training, inadequate 
screening equipment, and varying levels of motivation among 
working-level customs and immigration officers at Namibia's land 
border posts all prevent adequate container inspection and 
interception of contraband. Inconsistently applied immigration 
controls also make Namibia an attractive transit point for Africans 
en route to or from Latin America for illicit purposes. The current 
maritime security posture does not allow the Namibian police, naval, 
and port authorities to monitor maritime activities outside the 5 km 
outer anchorage area of Namibia's major ports in Walvis Bay and 
Luderitz. It has been reported that drug traffickers have been able 
to exploit this weakness by using small crafts to meet larger 
vessels outside these controlled areas. The Namibian Navy assists 
the police and customs officials with better patrolling of Namibia's 
Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and expected to have a mission 
capable fleet by mid-2008, but due to resource constraints had to 
postpone this activity until 2009. 
 
Domestic Programs/Demand Reduction. 
 
 10. (SBU) Drug treatment programs are available from private 
clinics, and to a lesser extent from public facilities. The vast 
majority of treatment cases in Namibia are for alcohol abuse, with 
the remainder divided evenly between cannabis and Mandrax 
(methaqualone). There is also increasing evidence of the problem of 
cocaine use in Namibia. 
 
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IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs 
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Policy Initiatives. 
 
 11. (SBU) The USG continues to support Namibian participation in law 
enforcement training programs at the International Law Enforcement 
Academy (ILEA) in Gaborone, Botswana. Most of these training 
programs include counternarcotics modules. Representatives of 
several Namibian law enforcement agencies (Customs and Border 
Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Prison Service, the 
Namibian Police, and the Anti-Corruption Commission) and prosecutors 
have participated in ILEA training. The police have repeatedly 
stated their willingness to cooperate with the USG on any future 
narcotics-related investigations. The U.S. Department of the 
Treasury is assisting Namibia with the establishment and development 
of the Financial Intelligence Center to fully implement the 
Financial Intelligence Act. 
 
The Road Ahead. 
 
 12. (SBU) The USG will continue to coordinate with relevant law 
enforcement bodies to allow them to take advantage of training 
opportunities at ILEA Botswana and elsewhere, and will assist the 
Government of Namibia in any narcotics investigation with a U.S. 
nexus.