Other Presidential Documents but who are not the material perpetrators of the crime. However, extensive training of prosecutors and judges will be required before this new law can be fully implemented. One major Brazilian trafficker, arrested in 1997, was extradited to Brazil. The legislature approved the bilateral extradition treaty signed in 1998. However, the GOP failed to accomplish the majority of counter-drug goals for \177999 in a manner sufficient for full certification. Since \177995, legis- lation has been pending to provide police and prosecutors with modern legal tools, such as use of informants, controlled deliveries, and undercover investigations. The Gonzalez Macchi administration submitted another draft of the legislation to the Paraguayan Congress, but it is the third ad- ministration to do so without the legislation being passed. The GOP did not investigate, arrest or prosecute any major drug traffickers, nor did it take sufficient measures to prevent or punish public corruption in general, or specifically with respect to drug trafficking. The GOP did not implement the \177996 money laundering law by arresting or prosecuting violators. Fur- thermore, the GOP did not provide operational funding or adequate re- sources for the anti-money laundering secretariat, SEPRELAD, to enable it to function as an independent organization (although in December \177999 a budget was approved for 2000). The GOP also failed to show progress to- ward development of an effective anti-drug and organized crime investiga- tive and operational capability for the border regions. Denial of certification would, however, cut off civilian and military as- sistance programs designed to strengthen Paraguay's democratic institu- tions and promote modern civil-military relations. Strengthening democ- racy in Paraguay is a U.S. vital national interest, and failure in this effort would affect negatively all other U.S. interests, including cooperation with respect to illicit drugs, terrorism, intellectual-property piracy, and environ- mental preservation. The events of 1999--which included defiance by then-President Cubas of the Supreme Court, the assassination of Vice Presi- dent Argafia, the killing of student demonstrators, the impeachment and resignation of Cubas, drought, rural unrest, and the reported presence of fu- gitive former general and coup plotter Lino Oviedo--demonstrate the many challenges facing Paraguayan democracy. They also contributed to the GOP's unsatisfactory counter-drug performance. Denial of certification would undermine the U.S. ability to strengthen Paraguay's democratic in- stitutions and would put at risk all other U.S. vital national interests. The risks posed to the totality of U.S. interests (e.g., promotion of democ- racy and transnational crime cooperation) by a cutoff of bilateral assistance outweigh at this point the risks posed by the GOP's failure to cooperate fully with the USG, or to take fully adequate steps on its own, to achieve the goals and obiectives of the \177988 UN Drug Convention. In 2000, the GOP needs to translate its oft-stated political will into con- crete action against maior drug traffickers, money laundering, and official corruption. People's Republic of China The People's Republic of China (PRC) continued to take strong, effective steps to combat the use and trafficking of illicit drugs in \177999. Although preliminary figures indicate that seizures of heroin declined significantly from \177998's record level (possibly because of a decline in production in Burma), China's heroin seizures still accounted for the great maiority of 379
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