They have price structures, balance sheets, profits and, less frequently, losses. They are multifaceted but, unlike their legitimate counterparts, are rarely interested in long term development of their firm or their community. However, their violent resolution of problems may leave behind numerous corpses and consequent destruction of families, while the drug trade they promote has devastating costs for societies throughout the world. Organised crime groups threaten the very principles of democracy. Governments become prey of private interests and cannot provide citizens with social services or ensure law and order.
Civil society is destroyed or usurped.
The consequences for transitional societies are particularly tragic because their hopes of achieving democracy are undermined by corruption and crime. One needs to only look at Albania to see the chaos and personal loss resulting from the criminalized pyramid schemes that deprived an entire country of their savings, with the long term prospects for foreign investment and economic growth destroyed simultaneously. The tragic costs and deleterious effects of organised crime on human rights are too numerous to enumerate here, with its negative impact much broader than most can appreciate. It is a catalyst for violence violence against individuals and violence among groups, which destroys the credibility of government as a source and a guardian of national stability. As the security situation deteriorates, the environment for investments becomes increasingly unattractive, and as the judicial system weakens, the resolution of civil disputes becomes increasingly difficult.