Close proximity to the major production zones, porous borderlands, mountainous frontiers and long coastlines offer advantageous conditions for trafficking narcotics. The illicit drug situation has become much more complex in Vietnam with the growth in amphetamine-type stimulants production and trade. Even so, empirical research and analysis of the organization and operation of transnational narcotics trafficking (TransNT) remains limited. The purpose of this thesis is to present the first detailed inquiry into the nature of TransNT across the border between Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) and Vietnam using an exploratory approach which draws upon qualitative and quantitative methods. In particular, the thesis presents findings from case studies of cross-border trafficking between Vietnam and Lao PDR in the period of 2003-2013 combined with interview and survey data from criminal investigation police and drug-related crimes officers (CIPDRC) from six border provinces who are directly and indirectly involved in investigating these cases.
The findings of this study indicate that drug markets in Vietnam are not controlled by monopolistic, hierarchical organizations or ‘cartels’. The structures of TransNT entities operating across the Lao-Vietnam border are small, based on family ties and fellow-countrymen relations, are fluid and loosely organized. They are very adaptable and sophisticated with diverse modus operandi and multiple divisions of labour. This presents particular challenges to law enforcement agencies (LAEs).
This thesis questions to capacity of Vietnam’s police to enforce the government’s zero-tolerance anti-narcotics policy. The study highlights practical problems and specific barriers in combating TransNT. LEAs in Vietnam and Lao PDR operate without effective mechanisms to cooperate and share information. It is also the case that traffickers often have more sophisticated equipment at their disposal to help them avoid arrest. Police forces work within national structures and yet are faced with the task of combatting transnational crime. This reality affects law enforcement capacity at a national as well as regional level, but Association of the Southeast Asian Nations member states have yet to establish effective structures for dealing with this non-traditional security challenge. Based on these findings, therefore, the thesis proposes recommendations to enhancing the effectiveness of LEAs to combat TransNT between Vietnam and Lao PDR.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1. Background and statement
1.2. Research purpose and question
1.3. Scope and definition
1.4. Synopsis of the thesis
Chapter 2: Literature review
2.1. Chapter overview and objective
2.2. Cross-border concerns and their impact on transnational narcotics trafficking
2.3. Applying social network analysis to drug trafficking studies
2.4. Criminal networks and their implications to drug trafficking
2.5. Modus operandi in drug trafficking script’s stages
2.6. Typologies of transnational narcotics trafficking
2.7. Summary of chapter
Chapter 3: Research Method
3.1. Chapter overview and objectives
3.2. Researching transnational narcotics trafficking
3.3. Mixed methods research (MMR)
3.4. Mixed method exploratory sequential design
3.5. Some constraints and solutions
3.6. Summary of chapter
Chapter 4: Key findings
4.1. Chapter overview and objectives
4.2. Descriptive case studies
4.3. Structural components in transnational narcotics trafficking entities
4.4. Crime script analysis
4.5. Summary of chapter
Chapter 5: Law enforcement officers assessments of transnational narcotics trafficking
5.1. Chapter overview and objectives
5.2. Survey implementation
5.3. Survey findings
5.4. Barriers and challenges to combat transnational narcotics trafficking
5.5. Summary of chapter
Chapter 6: Interpretation and discussion
6.1. Chapter overview and objectives
6.2. The nature of transnational narcotics trafficking: compare and contrast
6.3. Initial recommendations and prioritized issues for enhancing cooperation to combat transnational narcotics trafficking
6.4. Summary of chapter
Chapter 7: Conclusions
7.1. Chapter overview and objectives
7.2. Contributions of research
7.3. Research findings
7.4. Research limitations and future research
Objectives and Thematic Focus
This work aims to conduct a detailed inquiry into the nature of transnational narcotics trafficking (TransNT) across the border between Vietnam and the Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR). The research seeks to identify distinct organizational structures and modus operandi of trafficking entities while assessing the challenges faced by law enforcement agencies in combating these activities.
- Analysis of TransNT organizational structures and operational dynamics.
- Application of criminal network theory and crime script analysis to the Vietnam-Laos border context.
- Evaluation of law enforcement capacity and cross-border cooperation mechanisms.
- Examination of the role of social factors such as family ties and ethnic networks in trafficking operations.
- Development of recommendations to enhance regional anti-narcotics strategies.
Excerpt from the Book
1.1. Background and statement
In today’s borderless world, transnational security threats and challenges are connected, and must be addressed at the global and regional as well as national level, and require governments everywhere to ‘see, think, and act globally’ (Flanagan 2001, 7, Flanagan, Kugler, and Frost 2001, 7). The illicit drug trade, primarily the trade in heroin, cocaine, and illicit amphetamines and methamphetamines, has grown substantially as an issue of major social concern in many countries, and will continue to undermine the rule of law at all levels (Fedetov 2016, INCB 2016). TransNT and organized crime entities therefore, present a persistent and significant threat to human security, which is defined here to include human health, welfare, social life, and individual freedom (UNGA 2016, Battersby and Siracusa 2009). As a result, TransNT has received the most attention from criminologists (Jenner 2014, 65, Dorn, Levi, and King 2005, 1), political scientists working in the field of international security studies (von Lampe 2012, 180), and LEAs in recent times (Andreas 2009).
Police cooperation was not, until relatively recently, a core priority for the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), even though national security concerns defined its agenda at its inception in 1967. The Southeast Asian region is witnessing rapid economic and political changes, ensuing from the end of cold war confrontations and the incorporation into ASEAN of Vietnam, Lao PDR, Cambodia and Myanmar in the 1990s, and the adoption of market/export oriented economic policies. Globalization, across social, cultural, political, and economic spheres, to an extent creates a ‘borderless world’ with impacts on individual, local, national, regional, and international scales (Ceglowski 1998, Ohmae 1995, Steger, Battersby, and Siracusa 2014).
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1: Introduction: Provides the foundation for the research by discussing the global threat of TransNT and outlining the research purpose, scope, and thesis structure.
Chapter 2: Literature review: Analyzes scholarly literature on transnational crime, border studies, and existing models of criminal network analysis applied to drug trafficking.
Chapter 3: Research Method: Details the exploratory mixed methods research design, including data collection and analytical processes used in the study.
Chapter 4: Key findings: Presents the qualitative results derived from case studies, focusing on structural components and crime script analysis of TransNT entities.
Chapter 5: Law enforcement officers assessments of transnational narcotics trafficking: Details the quantitative analysis of survey data from law enforcement personnel regarding TransNT operational characteristics.
Chapter 6: Interpretation and discussion: Synthesizes qualitative and quantitative findings to compare the Vietnamese TransNT context with global models and proposes recommendations for enhancing cooperation.
Chapter 7: Conclusions: Restates the study’s core contributions, limitations, and future research directions for understanding and addressing TransNT.
Keywords
Transnational narcotics trafficking, TransNT, Vietnam, Lao PDR, law enforcement agencies, organized crime, criminal networks, social network analysis, crime script analysis, border security, modus operandi, drug trafficking, regional cooperation, drug seizures.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental focus of this research?
The research primarily investigates the nature and characteristics of transnational narcotics trafficking (TransNT) across the shared border between Vietnam and the Lao PDR.
What are the primary thematic areas explored?
The study focuses on the organizational structure of trafficking groups, their operational modus operandi, the impact of cross-border factors, and the institutional challenges faced by law enforcement agencies.
What is the central research question?
The study asks: "What are the distinctive characteristics of transnational narcotics trafficking operating across Vietnam’s border with Lao PDR? What specific challenges to Vietnam do they pose and how effectively can they be addressed?"
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author uses a mixed methods exploratory sequential design, combining qualitative case study analysis of court documents with quantitative surveys of law enforcement officers.
What does the main body of the work cover?
It covers the theoretical literature on criminal networks, detailed case studies of cross-border trafficking, findings from survey data on law enforcement perspectives, and a discussion of barriers to regional cooperation.
Which keywords characterize this work?
The study is best described by keywords such as TransNT, Vietnam, Lao PDR, organized crime, criminal networks, and border security.
How do family ties influence TransNT entities in this region?
The research finds that family and fellow-countryman ties are crucial for building trust, recruiting members, and ensuring operational security within Vietnamese trafficking groups.
Why are these groups considered "flexible"?
They are characterized as flexible because they adapt their logistics, routes, and communication methods in response to law enforcement monitoring and changing market conditions, often lacking rigid hierarchical structures.
- Citar trabajo
- Dr. Hai Thanh Luong (Autor), 2017, Transnational Narcotics Trafficking across Vietnam Borderland and Lao People's Democratic Republic, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/366349
