E-115A
June 1, 2001
OAS ANTI-DRUG COMMISSION UPDATES
EVALUATION MECHANISM
The Inter-American Drug Abuse Control
Commission (CICAD) ended its four-day 29th regular session in Washington today,
after considering and approving additional indicators to boost the Multilateral Evaluation
Mechanism (MEM), used to assess the progress by the hemisphere's nations in their
anti-narcotics efforts.
Lancelot Selman, the Chairman of
CICAD--an agency of the Organization of American States--wrapped up the session
underscoring how successfully the Commission had, over the last few years, tackled the
challenge of "new, uncharted and challenging waters." Mr. Selman, of Trinidad
and Tobago, said "CICAD has taken a quantum leap forward in its image, its reputation
and its significance as an organization."
Elaborating on the package of
indicators approved today, CICAD Executive Secretary David Beall, explained that it will
bolster the coverage of issues such as firearms associated with drug trafficking, new
developments in drug consumption or drug prevention treatment programs. "What we are
doing is to take the indicators which are common for all the countries and update them
based on our experience in the first round--update them based on new conditions and
generally make the package adequate for contemporary conditions."
With respect to Caribbean programs,
Beall said CICAD was looking for ways to work with entities which are not OAS members in
that region, so as to have the greatest possible coverage on drug trafficking issues and
concerns.
During the CICAD session, the OAS
member state representatives considered among the issues displacement, follow-up action
for MEM recommendations, country reports, indicators for the second round of evaluation
and how the MEM has influenced the work of the Commission.
Reports were also presented on the
Inter-American Observatory on Drugs as well as the status of implementation of the
Inter-American Convention against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in
Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and Other Related Materials, through the model
regulations of CICAD.
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