By Lloyd Williams, Senior Associate Editor
Ramcharan (left) one of two Jamaicans on Bush's 'Kingpins' list.
PRESIDENT GEORGE Bush of the United States yesterday designated two Jamaican businessmen Norris 'Deedo' Nembhard, 52, and Leebert Ramcharan both of whom are facing requests for their extradition to the U.S.A., as 'Drug Kingpins', under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act.
Nembhard, of Runaway Bay, St. Ann, and Ramcharan, of Montego Bay, St. James, were picked up by narcotics agents in different operations several weeks ago, on provisional warrants seeking their extradition to the United States to face drug charges.
When Nembhard was arrested on April 21, residents of Salem, near Runaway Bay, St. Ann, where he runs a business, blocked the road for several hours, creating a huge traffic jam, and chanting for his release.
Ramcharan, 45, runs Caribbean Showplace, a restaurant and entertainment centre, and Caribbean Beach Park in Montego Bay. He was arrested on March 2.
Contacted last night, Frank Phipps, Q.C., who is representing Nembhard at the extradition hearing, said he had not seen the designation by the American president, but he found it highly prejudicial to proceedings taking place in Jamaica in which Mr. Nembhard was involved. Also, he found it strange, he said, when the police in September 2003 had committed themselves in writing to say that they were not aware of Mr. Nembhard being involved in any criminal activity.
TARGETS
The Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, which became law in December 1999, while Bill Clinton was the U.S. President, targets, on a worldwide basis, who they say are significant foreign narcotics traffickers, their organisations, and operatives. Its fundamental objective is to deny these foreign individuals and entities access to the U.S. financial system and all trade and transactions involving U.S. companies and individuals. The Kingpin Act does not target the countries in which these foreign individuals and entities are operating or the governments of such countries.
The names of Nembhard and Williams were two of 10 "drug traffickers and entities against whom the President decided to impose sanctions pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act" according to a news release from the White House.
U.S. presidents have announced 48 Kingpins since 1999, most of them being Mexicans and Colombians.
The others on the list are: Eduardo Ramon Arellano Felix, Francisco Javier Arellano Felix, the Arellano Felix Organisation, the Carillo Fuentes Organisation, all of Mexico, Fernando Melciades Zevallos Gonzales of Peru, Iqbal Mirchi of India, and Haji Bashir Noorzai of Afghanistan.
The others named are from Mexico, Peru, India and Afghanistan.
Designated individuals and immediate family members "who have knowingly benefited from the designated individuals' illicit activity will be denied visas to the United States."
On an earlier Kingpins' list is Samuel 'Ninety' Knowles, 44, the Bahamian national who was extradited from Jamaica to the Bahamas in 2000 on drug trafficking charges. Earlier this year he lost his appeal to the United Kingdom Privy Council against a request by the United States Government to extradite him from the Bahamas to face drug charges in the U.S.
The Kingpin Act authorises the U.S. President to take these actions when he determines that a foreign narcotics trafficker presents a threat to the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States.
MODELLED
The U.S. Congress modelled the Kingpin Act after the effective sanctions programme that the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control administers against the Colombian drug cartels pursuant to Executive Order 12978 issued in October 1995 under authority of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
By June 1 each year, the President must report to specified congressional committees those "foreign persons [he] determines are appropriate for sanctions" and stating his intent to impose sanctions upon those foreign persons.
The long-term effectiveness of the Kingpin Act is enhanced by the Department of the Treasury's authority (in consultation with appropriate government agencies and departments) to make derivative designations of foreign individuals and entities providing specified types of support or assistance to designated traffickers. This authority broadens the scope of application of the economic sanctions against designated kingpins to include their businesses and operatives.
