20 January 2006

Transnational Crime and Corruption in Georgia

The Caucasus Office of Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC) organized the conference on the following topic: "Transnational Crime and Corruption in Georgia". The conference was held on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 in Sympatia Hotel in Tbilisi. TraCCC Grantees presented their research results on corruption in vital sectors of the Georgian economy, in the political sphere, and in different fields of social life in Georgia, and made recommendations on how to combat it. Representatives of the Government of Georgia, foreign government organizations, NGOs, and mass media participated in the conference.
More information and papers on OC in Georgia (TraCCC Caucasus Office).

Georgia’s Resilient Mafia

Experts are not hopeful that a new law can root out Georgia’s pervasive organised criminals.

The Georgian government has passed a new law to tackle organised crime, revealing the extent to which it permeates the whole of society. The bill "on organised crime and racketeering" was adopted on Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili's personal initiative. He then signed the law on December 29 in a ceremony broadcast live on television.

"The previous authorities were linked to ‘thieves in law’ [a Soviet-era term for an organised crime boss], but we will put an end to these flourishing thieves," said Saakashvili. The president said that the new law will ensure criminal kingpins are rooted out and their property confiscated by the state. The president also announced plans to build a new prison in the capital Tbilisi to hold 3,000 inmates.

The new authorities that came to power in Georgia following the November 2003 “Rose Revolution” declared that tackling organised crime was one of their top priorities. The interior ministry was overhauled and in 2005, it was merged with the security ministry, resulting in many staff being dismissed.

Police operations to arrest suspected criminals are regularly shown on television. According to official figures, more than 160 people accused of abduction, hostage-taking, smuggling, extortion and using or selling drugs were arrested in 2004 and the first nine months of 2005. However, some experts say that the official statistics disguise the continuing gravity of the crime situation.

Irakli Artilakva of the Young Lawyers Association of Georgia said, “Basically the situation has not changed. Crimes are still being committed as before. But so as to improve the statistics and show everyone that they are active in fighting organised crime, the authorities are imprisoning people who might have been eligible for a different kind of sentence.

“The prisons are full. There are 78 inmates in a cell meant for 15 people, so they take it in turns to sleep. We did not have that situation even in Communist times. Very often people are imprisoned for fear that they might abscond.” In light of this overcrowding, Artiklava argue that the new law is not well thought out, and was adopted too hastily. "The crimes for which so-called 'thieves in law' can be convicted were punishable previously as well,” he said. “The inclusion of such criminal concepts in the law is not justifiable at all."

Levan Bezhashvili, one of the authors of the new bill and chairman of the Georgian parliament’s legal issues Committee, told IWPR that the law drew on the experience of the United States, Poland, and, in particular, Italy. As in Italy, the major innovation is that the heads of organised crime groups can be given long jail sentences and their property confiscated.

In Georgia, "representatives of the criminal world" can now be imprisoned from three to eight years and "thieves in law" from five to ten years. The law threatens not only "thieves in law" and members of their groups but also their supporters. Some lawyers have criticised the way the law uses slang words such as "thief in law", "shadow world" and "criminal score-settling".

"'Thief in law' is criminal slang. There is no such concept in law. It means that parliament has legalised thieves’ usage," said Professor Otar Gamkrelidze, who as one of those who drafted Georgia’s Criminal Code is unhappy that he was not consulted about the new law.

Bezhashvili dismissed this line of criticism, saying the law had been approved by the audit chamber, the presidential state protection service and 13 parliamentary committees. He added, “The Georgian Young Lawyers' Association has said that their recommendations have not been taken into account, but I can state with full responsibility that the authors of the draft law never received these critical comments."

A 2004 study entitled “Thieves in law in Georgia" by well-known lawyers Givi Lobzhanidze and Giorgi Zhgenti outlined the extent of the power of the crime lords, estimating that around 30 per cent of revenues in Georgia's banking system, 40 per cent of income from hotels and restaurants, 60 per cent of the gambling business, 15 per cent of the energy sector, and 40 per cent in the construction industry are in the hands of mafia groups.

It also concluded that organised criminals wield strong political influence, controlling crime groups in Russia and various European cities as well as at home. Last June, Spanish police simultaneously arrested 22 alleged members of the Georgian mafia.

Organised crime is so pervasive that many ordinary people fear the law will hurt them too.

"A couple of 'thieves in law' live in my area," said Tbilisi resident Andro Alpaidze, 60. "One of them spends most of his time in Europe, but if something is stolen from anyone of his neighbours or someone offends them, he’s always ready to help - unlike the police.

“The new law says that not only these criminals but their 'supporters' too can be punished. That means that they should arrest me too."

According to political analyst Gia Nodia, the role of public protectors played by mafia bosses is an institution left over from the Soviet past. “‘Thieves in law' were encouraged in Communist times, as the authorities used them to control both the criminal world and the public. Their influence among the public has been unlimited up to now," he said. "The population is intimidated by the criminal world. Most likely, the main aim of the law when it was adopted was to enable citizens not to be afraid to give evidence against criminal leaders."

In recent times, Georgia has had a number of politicians with strong links to organised crime. For example, Jaba Ioseliani, an influential criminal kingpin who in Soviet times spent 25 years in prison, led the Mkhedrioni paramilitary organisation in the early Nineties and played a leading political role before he was sidelined. He died in 2003 aged 77.

Otar Kvantrishvili, a well-known "thief in law" crime boss based in Russia was described as a "public figure" in Georgia thanks to his philanthropic activities. He was shot dead in Moscow in 1994.

Zaza Alavidze, who has a relative in Tbilisi’s Ortachala prison, thinks crime bosses are better than the police. "Investigators beat my cousin because he refused to denounce a 'thief in law'," he said. "Why should he speak badly of him, if he’s done nothing bad to him?

“'Thieves in law' have been a lot fairer than policemen up to now. When the police search you, they can plant drugs or a weapon in you pocket and that’s the end of you. Nothing can help you if you don’t have a protector or if you don’t pay to get released."

This commonly-held opinion – that that mafia structures are somehow beneficial - is very dangerous, commented David Darchiashvili, head of Open Society Georgia, the Tbilisi branch of the Soros foundation.

“The strengthening of the mafia is directly proportionate to the weakening of the state, since in contrast to a weak government the mafia offers a model of social protection,” said Darchiashvili. “So it goes without saying that a state machine that considers itself to be normal has decided to root out this system. The state should control the prisons, and not the other way round. And if we want to have a state at all, we should help it in this fight.”

(CRS No. 323, 19-Jan-06)

17 January 2006

Oxford University Discussion Group on Organised Crime and Corruption

The Oxford University Organised Crime and Corruption Discussion Group meets every Wednesday at St Antony's College. It is a multidisciplinary group designed to bring together researchers working on similar issues at the university, but also welcomes experts from outside the university. Each presenter provides a list of recommended readings a week in advance, and the meetings work as informal seminars. The group is open to members of the university departments as well as to graduate students

Programme for Hilary Term 2006
Wednesdays at 1.30pm, Deakin Room, St Antony’s College


18th January
State-Organised Illegality
‘Honourable Crooks: Tommies Behind Enemy Lines in the Cold War’
Col. Roy Giles (Former Army officer and civil servant, latterly a Senior
Associate & Cody Fellow, St Antony's College)

25th January
T.b.c.

1st February
Title tbc (Topic: The Criminalisation of International Money Transfers)
Edwina Thompson (DPhil Candidate in International Relations, St Cross)

8th February
‘Agency Relations Within the Mafia’
Dr Federico Varese (University Lecturer in Criminology)

15th February
‘The Economic Impact of Organised Crime in the South of Italy’
Silvia Palano (DPhil Candidate, Economics Department)

22nd February
‘Why Criminals Should Organise’
Andrew Mell (MPhil, Economics Department)

1st March
‘The Black Economy in Occupied France’
Dr Paul Sanders (Tutor, Continuing Education Department)

8th March
Corrupt Economies in Africa
‘Petty Corruption: An Experimental Investigation’
Danila Serra (PRS, Economics Department)

For more information, contact Sappho Xenakis: s_xenakis@hotmail.com

16 January 2006

Visting Fellows - Centre for Criminology University of Oxford

The Centre for Criminology invites applications for visiting fellowships from active research scholars who wish to participate in the intellectual life of the Centre.  Applications are welcome from scholars in any field of  criminology, although preference may be given to applicants whose research is related to the research programmes of the Centre.
Visiting Fellows are given a workspace and related facilities in the Centre,  but there is no financial support associated with this position.  Visiting  Fellows are required to present at least one seminar on their research. Application is by letter, curriculum vitae, and statement of proposed research, sent to:

Ms Jo Armitage, Administrator, Centre for Criminology,
University of Oxford, Manor Road Building,
Manor Road, Oxford, OX1 3UQ
jo.armitage@crim.ox.ac.uk

Informal enquiries are also welcome and can be made to the Director, Professor Ian Loader ian.loader@crim.ox.ac.uk.
The deadline for applications is Friday 10 March 2006 for the period October 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007

Applicants must specify whether they propose to visit during one or more of Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity terms.  Applicants should be aware that some Oxford colleges advertise fellowships which could be held in conjunction with the Centre's visiting fellowship and offer additional benefits. Details can typically be found on college websites.

12 January 2006

January issue of the Newsletter

We just have finished the January issue of the Newsletter. The topic is Organised crime in South East Europe and we are happy to present original articles, an overview of ongoing PhD research on this topic and an extensive reading list. Of course we present as usual also a book review, calls for papers and conference announcements.

Starting this year the newsletter has a complete new format and is published as a PDF-file. The newsletter is directly available for download through this link. On request we can of course send it directly to your mailbox, just mail to the editor.

The topic of the May issue will be 'Organised Crime and Terrorism' and we welcome any contribution.

For now enjoy reading this issue and let us know what you think!

The editors

02 January 2006

Book: The Organised Crime Economy. Managing crime markets in Europe

Petrus C. van Duyne, Maarten van Dijck, Klaus von Lampe and James L. Newell(Eds.)
Hardcover 290 pages (10/2005)
Publisher: Wolf Legal Publishers
Language: English
ISBN:9058501442
Price: € 20

Synopsis (provided by the publisher)

While the expansion of the European Union furthers commerce and the mobility of capital, goods and people, crime-entrepreneurs of all sorts accompany licit businessmen, benefiting equally from this broadening horizon. The European business community and policy makers have to reckon with these flexible and mobile interlopers. However, this is not an alien group: some of them are even part of the legitimate industry fraudulently providing appreciated licit services and goods cheaply. Others operate in the underground economy of prohibited substances. But all of them share a number of entrepreneurial and managerial characteristics, which makes the interaction between the legal and illegal markets so intriguing.

In this fifth volume of the Cross-border Crime Colloquium Group, experts from the ‘Old’ and ‘New’ Europe bring together their expertise of criminal markets, (organised) crime-entrepreneurs and the vulnerability of trade and industry. They address phenomena concerning the organisation of crime markets, ranging from ‘traditional’ drug trafficking, women trading, the organised ‘black’ labour market to licit commodities of consumer products like alcohol and cigarettes. They also address the ‘upperworld’, criminal finances, money laundering and related policy, which are scrutinised from the question: are the problems properly recognised, realistically measured and countered?
[read more](pdf)

19 December 2005

Crime and Justice Summer Research Institute: Broadening Perspectives and Participation

Scholars pursuing tenure and career success in research intensive institutions, academics transitioning from teaching to research institutions, and faculty carrying out research in teaching contexts will be interested in this Summer Research Institute. Organized by Lauren J. Krivo and Ruth D. Peterson and funded by the National Science Foundation and Ohio State University, the Institute is designed to promote successful research projects and careers among scholars from under-represented groups working in areas of crime and criminal justice. The 2006 inaugural institute will be held July 10-27, 2006.

Participants will be provided with necessary resources for completing research that is already on-going and will work with senior faculty mentors in their areas of study. There will be opportunities for networking with other junior and senior scholars. Research and professional development workshops will address topics related to publishing, research methods, and professionalization. The institute will culminate in a research symposium where participants present their completed research before an audience of nationally recognized scholars.

Participants will be housed in a trendy neighborhood of Columbus with easy access to campus and downtown. Expenses for travel to Ohio, living, and local transportation will be provided. Applications must be postmarked by February 10, 2006. For more information and to download an application, please see the web site.

18 December 2005

Call for Papers: Global Crime

Global Crime is a peer-reviewed journal published by Routledge that presents high-calibre scholarship on serious and organized crime. Its coverage is not just on organized crime in the strict sense, but on a wide range of criminal activities, from corruption, illegal market transactions, state crime and terrorism. This focus is deliberately broad and multi-disciplinary, its first aim being to make the best scholarship available to specialists and non-specialists alike. It endorses no particular orthodoxy and draws on authors from a variety of disciplines, including history, sociology, economics, political science, anthropology and area studies. Visit the web page of the journal.

During 2006,Federico Varese and Carlo Morselli will be co-editing a special issue on the application of Social Network Analysis to the study of criminal groups. This issue seeks to advance applications of social network analysis in the study of crime, security, and related areas of research. We invite contributors to send both empirical and theoretical papers.

The deadline for submitting abstracts is February 1, 2006. We expect to receive the papers by May 1, 2006. The special issue will be published in 2007. Authors will receive 50 off-prints and a free copy of the issue.

Submit abstracts to Federico Varese at Federico.varese@law.ox.ac.uk
by February 1, 2006.

Submit papers to Federico Varese at Federico.varese@law.ox.ac.uk
by May 1, 2006.

12 December 2005

Dutch Crime Pattern Analysis on Synthetic Drugs Crime 2002-2004

In November 2005 the Dutch National Crime Squad published its Crime Pattern Analysis on Synthetic Drugs Crime 2002-2004. The analysis deals with the development of the features and size of this crime (e.g. the confiscations, the production sites, the precursors, the dumpings of waste, the prices), and with the groups that are involved in this crime (and especially focuses on their modus operandi). If you might be interested in receiving a digital copy of the English version (approx. 190 pages), please contact the researcher directly. Also some hard copies are available.

02 December 2005

Call for Papers: ANZSOC 19th Annual Conference

Issues such as those related to environmental harm, terrorism, asylum seekers, use of torture, and cyber-crime are forcing criminologists to reassess key concepts and analytical priorities. In the context of rapid change and globalising social processes, there has been a growth in the human rights perspective as a critical perspective by which to evaluate policing and security practices, access to law and the protections of due process, the operation of courts and restorative justice measures, and the conditions under which people are detained or sentenced to work in the community. This conference provides an opportunity to explore further what a human rights approach to doing criminology might entail.

For more information please click here.