Pubdate: Wed, 26 Feb 2003
Source: Bangkok Post (Thailand)
Copyright: The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. 2003
Contact:  http://www.bangkokpost.co.th/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/39
Author: James Emery
Note: James Emery is an anthropologist and journalist who has covered the
Asian drug trade for over 15 years. He has travelled extensively, including
trips to Thailand, Burma and China, to obtain information and interviews for
this article.
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/area/Thailand

WAR ON DRUGS IS NOT ALL ABOUT KILLING

The Current Anti-Drug Campaign Has Drawn Headlines Right Around The
World - for All the Wrong Reasons - but This Should Not Be Allowed To
Detract From All the Good Work That Has Preceded It.

'We used to grow opium," said Asoupa, a Lisu farmer in northwest
Thailand, "but now we only grow cabbages and corn and other crops.
It's better. If we grow opium, we get in trouble and lose
everything."

Asoupa represents the country's once-primary opium growers, the
hilltribes of northwest Thailand - the Lisu, Lahu, Akha, Mein and
Hmong. Living in remote jungle villages, they practise slash-and-burn
agriculture.

The Thai government, in cooperation with the United States' Drug
Enforcement Agency and the United Nations International Drug Control
Programme, combined aggressive eradication and interdiction with
flexible, alternative crop programmes to encourage poverty-ridden
hilltribes to abandon opium in favour of legal "cash" crops
including cabbages, beans, coffee and peaches.

The current opium crop, harvested in December and January, marks the
fourth successive year opium cultivation in Thailand was estimated to
be less than 1,000 hectares. By comparison, opium production in Burma
has ranged from 80,000 to 170,000 hectares over the last 10 years, an
annual yield of up to 2,500 tonnes. Much of this opium is refined into
number four grade heroin, about 90% pure.

Task Force 399

To stifle the flow of drugs out of Burma, the Thai government
organised Task Force 399. Made up of several hundred military
personnel and border guards, and supported by an extensive
intelligence network, Task Force 399 snares drug smugglers as they
enter Thailand. In an effort to circumvent the task force, some
smugglers are travelling from Burma to Laos before attempting to enter
Thailand.

Aggressive operations by the Border Patrol Police, the 3rd Army and
Task Force 399 finally caused many drug smugglers to avoid Thailand
altogether and seek alternative routes out of Burma.

"A lot of heroin is being shipped through China," said William
Snipes, regional director with the Drug Enforcement Administration in
Bangkok. "Part of it is feeding a growing addict population in China,
but much of it is shipped on to Western markets."

The UN Drug Control Programme estimates that 60% of Burma's opiate
production is now shipped through China.

To monitor drug traffickers, the United States and Thai governments
established three separate intelligence gathering modules. Each
collects information on drug activity and trafficking for its
geographic region. Information is combined and analysed to respond to
immediate opportunities, feed on-going investigations and predict
future activity.

While Thai authorities have been successful in eradicating the
indigenous opium crop and intercepting heroin shipments coming from
Burma, they have been plagued by a growing problem with
amphetamine-type stimulants, primarily methamphetamines.

Methamphetamine pills, called ya ba in Thailand, have been around for
decades. Approximately 800 million methamphetamine pills were smuggled
into Thailand during the last year. Virtually all of the production
takes place in Burma and is smuggled across the border into Thailand,
with some shipments being routed through Laos. The Wa and Shan tribes
are the primary players in the methamphetamine trade, just as they
have been in the opium and heroin trade.

Ten Years Later

Initially used by truck drivers and workers to stay awake and increase
stamina, usage among young Thais began increasing around 1988 as they
copied the habits of dancers, a few locals and tourists in Patpong and
other entertainment areas. Ten years later, methamphetamine abuse was
rampant, driven by increased supplies and falling prices.
Methamphetamine indictments in Thailand increased from 1,025 in 1988
to a staggering 125,335 by 1998. There were 187,479 cases during 2001.

Eventually, methamphetamines made their way into schools, cutting
across social and economic boundaries, and the Thai government
declared them the number one security and social threat. The rise of
methamphetamines also caused a surge in the number of poly-drug users,
individuals abusing more than one drug.

A sign of the growing drug problem and expanded efforts by Thai
authorities is the number of Thais in jail. "The prison population in
Thailand has doubled in the last five years," said Douglas Rasmussen
of the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement at the US
embassy in Bangkok. "Over 60% are for drug issues."

Broadening the Scope

To combat the growing use of methamphetamines, Thai authorities,
assisted by US government staff, significantly changed their approach
to the drug trade. The government broadened its scope from eradication
and interdiction to demand reduction through education, prevention and
rehabilitation programmes.

"The Thais are using a multifaceted approach to combat the drug
trade," Mr Rasmussen said. "They realise you can't just go after the
supply side, you have to go after the demand side too."

A number of agencies have been established to provide training
programmes in drug counselling and drug prevention for school teachers
and community outreach workers throughout Thailand.

A joint effort by the DEA and Thai officials set up a successful DARE
(Drug Abuse Resistance Education) programme based on the US model.
"Approximately 130 Thai police officers conduct drug awareness
classes in middle and high schools," said William Snipes, DEA
regional director in Bangkok. "The Thais are very concerned about
methamphetamines going down into the younger ages."

The government also has established community drug centres throughout
the country, including one in Klong Toey, the Bangkok slum.

The government objective this year is to have drug centres in at least
60% of the communities in Thailand. "We must educate the younger
generation," a Thai police officer said. "And this will carry on
because they will educate their children." Thai actors and musicians
have become involved in the campaign.

The Ministry of Public Health dramatically increased the number of
drug treatment centres, and today there are over 500, ranging from
public and private hospitals to drug rehabilitation clinics. Since
methamphetamine treatment is different from heroin, and requires more
family support, drug centres have modified and expanded their
programmes to address specific needs.

Since 1999, the majority of people seeking treatment in Thailand have
been addicted to methamphetamines. As recently as 1995, heroin (90%)
and opium (5%) addicts accounted for 95% of the treatment population.

Studying the Problem

To help fight drugs on a regional level, the International Law
Enforcement Academy of Bangkok opened in 1999 under the direction of
the US State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs. The curriculum covers everything from narcotics
trafficking and money laundering to computer crime and illegal migration.

Courses are taught by the Royal Thai Police Office and the Office of
the Narcotics Control Board in conjunction with representatives of
several United States government agencies. Experts are brought in from
around the world including the Netherlands, Australia and Japan.

Police and government officials from Thailand, Cambodia, China, Laos,
Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines
attend the academy. "One of our objectives," said Luis
Diaz-Rodriquez of the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs, "is to build cooperation between branches of law
enforcement, both within and between these countries. We hope to have
alumni that will assist each other in investigations and exchange
information between themselves and their US counterparts."

In addition to the International Law Enforcement Academy, the UN Drug
Control Programme in Bangkok has developed a regional cooperation
programme with Thailand, Cambodia, China, Laos, Burma and Vietnam.
"The regional programme complements a number of different country
level projects," said Vincent McClean, formerly of the UN Drug
Control Programme's Bangkok office. "It also encourages cooperation
between members by bringing them together for joint training and
discussion." Mr McClean is currently the director of the UN Office
for Drug Control and Crime Prevention in New York.

Interagency Cooperation

The proliferation of new drugs like methamphetamines and ecstasy,
combined with the devastating impact of heroin, cocaine and other
substances, can best be controlled through interagency cooperation at
the regional and global level.

At one time, many transit countries - that is, countries through which
drugs were transported on their way to more lucrative markets - did
not consider the drug trade to be a serious problem. That changed when
the "bleed" effect, drugs dealt along transit routes, caused them to
have a growing population of addicts, and the secondary problems of
crime, HIV and corruption among police officers and public officials.

Developing interagency operations like those run by the United
Nations, DEA, and Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs facilitates regional cooperation. These programmes
provide education and incentive to discourage people from using drugs,
help for those already addicted, and a flexible, cooperative web of
law enforcement and regulatory agencies that apprehend drug dealers
and eliminate smuggling operations. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake