WOLA has focused its organized crime program on addressing the impact of organized criminal groups on the state and on encouraging US policymakers to address the problem.
Among other activities, this process has included countless meetings with experts in the field, government officials, and civil society organizations, the publication in October 2007 of The Captive State: Organized Crime and Human Rights in Latin America, a panel on the subject at the regional conference of FLACSO in Ecuador, and an off-the-record meeting of former law enforcement officials, prosecutors, academics, money laundering experts, and civil society representatives to pool knowledge and brainstorm about innovative approaches to tackling this complex issue.