[The normally asleep UN states that Africa has the highest crime rate in the world. Ever since the ANC took over, South Africa is resembling Columbia more and more. In Columbia, one had Marxist terrorists closely intertwined with the drug trade. The Marxist terrorists were taking a cut in the drug trade and helping to facilitate it. I have often wondered if the ANC is somehow involved in South Africa.

Dr Labuschagne sent me an email recently saying that Communist China uses Africa for money laundering purposes. If anyone comes across information relating to any of these topics I would be most interested.

I have said for a long time that the strangely strong Rand smells like a rat, and I wondered if it was related to drugs/organised crime or some other kind of terrorist or Marxist activities which we don”t know about. Jan]

The Western Cape is increasingly being used as a conduit for certain illicit drugs destined for markets around the world, according to a new United Nations report.

Africa, and in particular South Africa and Cape Town, have become a half-way house and dumping ground for illicit traffickers of mountains of drugs like tik, heroin, cocaine, millions of firearms used in violent crime, as well as human beings.

The report lifts the lid on an international crime web which is spinning nearly out of control and threatens development on the continent and President Thabo Mbeki”s African Renaissance.

It also highlights the tik epidemic sweeping across Cape Town and reveals shocking figures backing its argument that “the region is increasingly being used as a conduit for illicit drugs destined for international markets”.

“The rate at which a drug problem can develop is well illustrated by the emergence of crystal methamphetamine (tik) use among youth in South Africa over the last two years. In the last half of 2002, none of the under 20s admitted to treatment in Cape Town mentioned methamphetamine as their primary or secondary drug of abuse. By the second half of 2004, 41 percent did so,” the report said.

It also states that 89 percent of African countries are affected by “human trafficking flows, either as source, destination or receiving countries”.

In terms of illegal weapons in use in South Africa, the report states that estimates range from 400 000 to eight million illegal guns.

“As is the case in many other parts of the continent, the most commonly used small arms in South Africa are not military weapons but handguns, and much of the criminal market is supplied through robbery and burglary of licensed guns. Between 1995 and mid-2003, almost 200 000 guns were reported lost or stolen in South Africa.”

The report said seizures of drugs – expressed in the report as units – amounted to 4,1 billion units in Africa in 2003 or 13,3 percent of the world”s total seizures that year of 31-billion units.

It says cannabis or dagga “remains Africa”s primary problem drug”, responsible for more admissions to treatment than any other substance.

South Africa was responsible for 19 percent of seizures of the drug between 2000 and 2003.

However, it was now clear that large amounts of cocaine and heroin were being “transshipped across Africa to destination markets in the developed world”.

“The use of heroin is particularly frightening in the context of HIV.”

“In South Africa, most of the heroin is smoked, but about half of heroin users in treatment at the end of 2003 in Gauteng and Cape Town said they experimented with injection… “

“And once they have started injecting, users are unlikely to switch back: in Cape Town 87 percent of those who had tried injecting in 2003 considered it their primary means of consumption.”

In terms of violent crime, the report stated that Africa suffers from the highest rates in the world.

According to police statistics examined to produce the report, the highest murder rates are to be found in southern Africa.

“The highest rates in recent years have been reported from Swaziland – though apparently using a different definition (including attempted murder cases instead of intentional homicides only).”

“The rate in Swaziland amounted to 89 per 100 000 inhabitants in 2000 and thus topped the world”s ranking homicides, even exceeding the rates reported from Colombia (63 per 100 000) and South Africa (50 per 100 000 people).”

In terms of the so-called “brain drain”, it said a survey done of medical graduates in South Africa indicated that a third of all graduating doctors left the country.

The report outlines how crime hinders Africa”s development by destroying human capital, driving away business and undermining the State.

The report added that the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) runs a service called “Riskwire” that evaluates the safety of a number of countries for foreign business.

“Of these, South Africa receives the most favourable risk evaluation (in Africa), ranking 29th of 59, ahead of north African countries.”

This article was originally published on page 1 of Cape Argus on July 06, 2005

Source: Independent Online (IOL)
URL: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click…br>