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The Beat<\/b><\/p>\n
The global drug problem<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n From 19 to 21 April, the UN General Assembly held its Special Session on World Drug Problem. \u00a0The session was held in working towards the goals set out in a 2009 UN Office on Drugs and Crime<\/span> policy document<\/span><\/a> to combat the global drug problem. The draft resolution containing the outcome document \u2018<\/span>Our joint commitment to effectively addressing and countering the world drug problem<\/span><\/a>\u2019 (PDF) sets out the recommendations adopted by parties to tackling the global drug problem.<\/span><\/p>\n The ability of the session to achieve real change has been criticised in recent analyses. <\/span>Insight Crime <\/span><\/i>has a<\/span> piece<\/span><\/a> arguing that UNGASS ended without any significant change to existing drug conventions despite the push for reform by Latin American nations. Similarly, Brookings offers an<\/span> assessment<\/span><\/a> of global drug policies, concluding that it\u2019s unlikely UNGASS will affect real change.<\/span><\/p>\n Vice <\/span><\/i>continues its in-depth contribution to improving understanding on<\/span> how drugs are trafficked around the world<\/span><\/a> in what it describes as \u2018today\u2019s golden age of drug trafficking\u2019. It uses official sources from the UNODC, US State Department and the White House to explain how heroin, cocaine and methamphetamines are moved around the world and how terrorist and guerrilla groups are involved in the trade.<\/span><\/p>\n Boosts to Commonwealth law enforcement spending<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n It\u2019s been a big week of pre-budget announcements from the Turnbull government. Last week saw separate increases in funding to investigate<\/span> cybercrime<\/span><\/a> (including<\/span> $16m over four years for the Australian Crime Commission<\/span><\/a>), a further<\/span> $15 million over three years<\/span><\/a> to tackle bribery in offshore jurisdictions and significant funding increases for<\/span> ASIC\u2019s investigation and prosecution capability<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n These are positive moves, but one-off funding boosts demonstrate the need to take a systemic view of how we organise, task and fund our law enforcement agencies. ASPI has previously suggested this as a topic of a<\/span> major Commonwealth review and white paper<\/span><\/a> on law enforcement. ASPI\u2019s Paula Chadderton and Simon Norton recently suggested that<\/span> real willpower<\/span><\/a> is needed if governments are to organise internally to fight economic crime.<\/span><\/p>\n CT Scan<\/b><\/p>\n Sydney Anzac terror plot foiled<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n A 16 year old Sydney boy<\/span> has been charged<\/span><\/a> over an Anzac Day terror plot. He has been accused of attempting to obtain a firearm in preparation to commit a terrorist act. Police announced the arrest shortly before the Martin Place Dawn Service on 25 April. The teenager was known to the AFP due to his involvement in a<\/span> foiled terrorist plot in Melbourne<\/span><\/a> last year and as a member of a covert government deradicalisation initiative in which mentors, psychologists, religious leaders and work placements are used to deter recruitment for Daesh. Read more<\/span> here<\/span><\/a>,<\/span> here<\/span><\/a> and<\/span> here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Kidnapping: the new terrorist strategy in the Philippines?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n The beheading of Canadian citizen<\/span> John Ridsdel<\/span><\/a> on 25 April in the Philippines has shone a light on Daesh affiliated group<\/span> Abu Sayyaf<\/span><\/a>\u2019s<\/span> tactic<\/span><\/a> of raising funds through ransom demands. Risdel was among 23 hostages currently held by the group who demanded US$6.41 million for his release. Originally a rebel group fighting for an independent Islamic nation in the south of The Philippines, Abu Sayyaf<\/span> has now pronounced<\/span><\/a> ties to Jemaah Islamiyah and Daesh.<\/span><\/p>\n Checkpoint<\/b><\/p>\n A lot of data on the US\u2013Mexico Border, but what does it all mean?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n US Border Patrol data<\/span><\/a> has shown that the number of people apprehended at US\u2013Mexico border was at its lowest in 50 years in FY2015. Meanwhile,<\/span> recently released information<\/span><\/a> by the<\/span> National Institute of Statistics and Geography<\/span><\/a> in Mexico indicates that the rate of Mexicans immigrating legally and illegally to the US and abroad has been steady for the last 5 years. While that may seound like good news for US border security services, a<\/span> recently updated report<\/span><\/a> by the US<\/span> Congressional Research Service<\/span><\/a> has said that an increase in resources\u2014such as surveillance and fencing\u2014hasn\u2019t consistently mitigated unauthorised flows across the<\/span> US\u2013Mexico border<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n The 10th Annual Border Security Expo<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n Earlier this month in San Antonio, Texas, the<\/span> 10th Annual Border Security Expo<\/span><\/a> showcased the latest and greatest in border security products. Check<\/span> out an article by <\/span>Vice<\/span><\/i><\/a>, who were at the expo to spotlight the new and exciting technology\u2014like<\/span> the Morpho Video Investigator<\/span><\/a>\u2014which automates video processing from massive amounts of footage\u2014and even has the ability to match faces to photographs online.<\/span><\/p>\n First Responder<\/b><\/p>\n New website for disaster resilience<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n The Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience (AIDR)<\/span> launched its new website<\/span><\/a> on 27 April. AIDR is a partnership between the Australasian Fire and Emergency Services Authorities Council, the Australian Red Cross, the Attorney-General\u2019s Department and the Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre. It aims to bring together a variety of expertise from government, the private sector, education providers and NGOS to collect and distribute emergency management knowledge and experiences across the country. The partnership will produce an Emergency Management Doctrine, volunteer leadership programs, schools education programs and a Networking and National Capability Program.<\/span><\/p>\n Building resilience for El Ni\u00f1o<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n A top UN relief official<\/span> has called<\/span><\/a> on the international community to act swiftly to address humanitarian needs and build community resilience in the face of extreme weather events triggered by El Ni\u00f1o weather patterns. Stephen O\u2019Brien, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordination,<\/span> has warned<\/span><\/a> that with 60 million people worldwide affected by droughts, floods and other weather events caused by El Ni\u00f1o, the UN and relevant NGOs need to step up their preparedness and response work. The UN is concerned about<\/span> El Ni\u00f1o-induced droughts picking up in late 2016 and early 2017<\/span><\/a>, and has emphasised the need to focus on health and food security\u2014particularly malnutrition in children under five\u2014and vector-borne diseases.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Beat The global drug problem From 19 to 21 April, the UN General Assembly held its Special Session on World Drug Problem. \u00a0The session was held in working towards the goals set out in …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":469,"featured_media":26252,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[434,1012,1037,301,1580],"class_list":["post-26245","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-anzac-day","tag-daesh","tag-mexico","tag-national-security-2","tag-resilience"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n