Investigations worldwide: Honorary consuls as a security risk

Honorary consuls perform diplomatic duties and therefore enjoy legal privileges. An international investigation now reveals that criminals also use the office – and that it is hardly subject to political control.

There was a lot at stake for international arms dealer Faouzi Jaber that day. He had traveled to Ghana specifically to meet his Colombian contact, Diego, in a discreet luxury hotel. Diego reportedly wanted to buy rockets and grenades to use in the drug war in Colombia.

In order to facilitate the deal, Jaber made an astonishing suggestion to his client, who was, however, an undercover agent: In order to be able to transport the weapons safely across the Atlantic, it would make sense for his buyer to become a diplomat, to be precise said, Honorary Consul. He, Jaber, could be very helpful: “This is your chance for immunity,” he said to Diego – that is, for impunity.

Diplomatic freedoms exploited

The conversation between the arms dealer and the alleged cartel member from South America was recorded by the US anti-narcotics agency DEA. The extensive protocols of the almost two-year-long investigations into Lebanese arms dealers, who are attributed to the terrorist militia Hezbollah, are in place NDR, WDR and “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. They give a deep insight into the world of illegal trade in weapons of war. And they illustrate a serious problem that has so far received little political attention: criminals repeatedly use the office of an honorary consul in order to be able to pursue criminal business more easily by exploiting diplomatic freedoms.

Arms dealer Faouzi Jaber denies being a member of Hezbollah when asked. Nevertheless, he also emphasizes the great importance of the office of honorary consul in the world of organized crime: “I know how honorary consuls work, I know how they are created. Honorary consuls move drugs and money. I know many honorary consuls who focus on engage in all sorts of stupid things.” Jaber was sentenced to 15 years in US prison in 2017 after being busted.

Worldwide research

Research by the International Network for Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), by Pro Publica and numerous other media outlets around the world shows how big the problem is. The research reveals that more than 500 current and former Honorary Consuls worldwide have been implicated in crime, scandals and government investigations. 57 of them were criminally convicted during their term of office. Hundreds of court documents, public sources and investigation documents were evaluated for the research. In Germany, reporters from NDR, WDR and SZ as well as from “Spiegel” on the project, the results of which are now being published worldwide under the hashtag #ShadowDiplomats.

Research shows convicted drug dealers, murderers, sex offenders and fraudsters have served as honorary consuls, as have aides from some of the world’s most corrupt regimes, including North Korea, Syria, South Sudan and Hezbollah. According to the research, many of the 500 honorary consuls were suspected of using their diplomatic privileges to their own advantage during their tenure, for example to assert political, economic or criminal interests.

The research also reveals how honorary consuls repeatedly referred to their diplomatic status to avoid searches and arrests, even to avoid tax bills and traffic tickets. In other cases, they used their diplomatic bags to smuggle valuables.

The case of a former Italian honorary consul in Egypt is particularly drastic. Two years ago, a court in Cairo sentenced him in absentia to 15 years in prison for allegedly taking almost 22,000 ancient Egyptian objects out of the country in a diplomatic container, including death masks and even an entire sarcophagus.

amateur diplomats

Honorary consuls are appointed where regular diplomatic representation would be too expensive. Unlike career diplomats, honorary consuls are often citizens of the country in which they work. They are used by another country to promote its interests locally. They also serve as a contact point for travelers if there is no embassy.

The amateur diplomats do not receive any remuneration for their voluntary work, but they are rewarded with diplomatic privileges. As a rule, they are protected by immunity, at least in the context of their diplomatic activities. Your luggage and correspondence may not be searched in some countries. They can also get special passports and license plates that make it easier for them to cross borders.

For Germany alone, 324 honorary consuls are currently deployed, according to a request from the Federal Foreign Office. As a rule, there is no standardized procedure for the selection of honorary consuls, business people who are considered to be well connected locally are often selected for the job. The problem: The sending states are responsible for the control, but in many cases it is criticized as being too lax, especially since training is not always mandatory. The Federal Foreign Office points out that honorary diplomats fulfill extremely important functions, for example when evacuating compatriots or losing travel documents.

Targeted Abuse

However, the research also shows that the office is often deliberately abused. For the security expert Sebastian Fiedler, who sits in the Bundestag for the SPD, the research results do not come as a surprise. “Of course, honorary consuls are an attractive entity that organized crime also takes advantage of, because they are of course based on the legal opportunities offered by the economy.”

The research turned up 25 German honorary consuls who were involved in criminal investigations. Among them is Peter Mossack. His brother Jürgen Mossack was head of the scandalous Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, which was at the center of the Panama Papers research. Peter Mossack acted as Panama’s honorary consul in Germany and apparently owned a shell company himself. In Germany, he was investigated on suspicion of tax evasion, but the proceedings were apparently dropped against a payment of money. He did not comment on a request.

Shell companies and offshore places

The research reveals several questionable connections between German diplomats and offshore companies. For example, a German honorary consul invested in real estate companies via letterbox companies in Venezuela, while another invested in a hotel in Ecuador. An honorary consul currently working in Germany for a third country apparently tried in the past to set up a shell company to sell satellite technology to Iran. Ultimately, however, this deal was apparently too hot even for the Panamanian law firm Mossack-Fonseca. When asked, the Honorary Consul’s lawyer stated that her client had not set up the relevant company and did not own any companies or trusts.

Hardly any recalls

It is rare for honorary consuls to be recalled for misconduct. According to the Federal Foreign Office, only three honorary consuls appointed by Germany have been recalled since 2012. The “Shadow Diplomats” research triggered such a recall even before publication: Tania Kramm da Costa worked as an honorary consul for Germany and Austria in the Brazilian city of Cuiabá. Da Costa is suspected of having falsely certified documents in the past, allegedly helping her father acquire land worth about $70 million.

A Brazilian court found “serious discrepancies” in the process and accused her of a “blatant conflict between public and private interests” and “possible ethical misconduct”. At the request of NDR, WDR, SZ and the “Spiegel”, the Austrian Foreign Ministry explained that due to the circumstances that have now become known, “the cooperation (…) has of course ended immediately”. The Federal Foreign Office also stopped working with da Costa in mid-October, shortly after the press inquiry. Da Costa wrote in writing that she resisted “these lies”.

Better Checks

Against the background of the research, Rasmus Andresen, who does politics for the Greens in the European Parliament, calls for the system of honorary consuls to be reassessed again. Even if honorary consuls are important, “common objectives and criteria must be set up to avoid conflicts of interest” at the level of the European Union and at the level of the United Nations.

In addition, prospective honorary consuls should be better checked. In fact, this seems urgently necessary. A Russian agency is now advertising on the Internet that people can be made honorary consuls in impoverished countries in exchange for appropriate payment. This not only saves “annoying customs controls”, but also leads to “unlimited entry and exit privileges”.