Speeches and Articles by Former Consul General James R. Keith

REMARKS BY U.S. CONSUL GENERAL JAMES R. KEITH AT CEREMONY TO MARK BILATERAL COOPERATION IN COMBATING DRUG TRAFFICKING

Central Government Offices
Hong Kong, July 17, 2003

(As prepared for delivery)

Consul General James Keith delivers remarks while Secretary for Security Regina Ip looks on.

Good afternoon. I would like to thank Secretary Ip for hosting today's ceremony, and all the other honored guests for joining in this event.

As today's ceremony illustrates, the United States enjoys close cooperation with Hong Kong on law enforcement issues. The check that I have the pleasure of presenting to Secretary Ip is just one manifestation of that cooperation. Today's ceremony represents nine years of joint investigation by U.S. and Hong Kong law enforcement authorities to break a major marijuana money laundering ring. Hong Kong Customs greatly contributed to the overall effort by carefully investigating bank accounts, seizing assets, and sharing information with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. I'm happy to see representatives of both groups here today, as well as other representatives of law enforcement agencies, underlining our solidarity.

This presentation is the latest in a series of joint law enforcement efforts, including the extradition two weeks ago of Chui Ping Cheng, aka "Sister Ping," an accused human smuggler and financier who had fought a three-year extradition battle to elude U.S. prosecution. This cooperation works both ways as former Hong Kong solicitor and fraud suspect Helen Chung Yee-fong was extradited to Hong Kong from the U.S. on July 11 following a two-year extradition battle. Also this month, Hong Kong Customs officers seized an estimated HK$8.65 million in counterfeit leather goods as the result of a joint operation with U.S. Customs.

The U.S. also appreciates the close cooperation we have with Hong Kong law enforcement authorities on counter-terrorism issues. Hong Kong has an important role to play given its status as a major financial and transportation hub. As President of the Financial Action Task Force and under the leadership of Commissioner for Narcotics Clarie Lo, Hong Kong helped lead the effort to identify and break up terrorist financial networks. It has directed financial institutions to search their records for terrorist funds. Last year, LegCo passed important anti-terror legislation and signed onto the Container Security Initiative, a U.S. effort to prevent terrorists from exploiting global maritime trade to transport weapons of mass destruction.

In presenting this check on behalf of the United States Government, let me express my gratitude to all the law enforcement officials present for their tireless efforts, particularly in fighting drug trafficking. Together with the check for U.S. $900,000 presented to Secretary Ip by Gen. Barry McCaffrey, then-Director of the Office of Narcotics Drug Control Policy, the U.S. will have presented Hong Kong with nearly U.S.$4 million in seized assets, reflecting Hong Kong's contribution on this case.

Thank you, Secretary Ip, for hosting this event. We look forward to our continuing excellent cooperation.

Fact Sheet -- Claude Duboc Case

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Check Presentation