Pubdate: Wed, 22 Sep 2004 Source: Manila Times (Philippines) Copyright: 2004, The Manila Times Contact: http://www.manilatimes.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/921 Author: Anthony Vargas, Correspondent Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mdma.htm (Ecstasy) ANTIDRUGS CAMPAIGN SUCCESSFUL PNP The police boasted on Tuesday that the country's campaign against the illicit drug trade is among the most successful in the region with 60 percent of drug suppliers arrested. "Our country has the biggest accomplishment in illegal drugs. We have put 43 transnational syndicates into jail, and this campaign will be intensified by the PNP," said Deputy Director General Edgardo Aglipay at the 23rd Association of South East Asian Nation (Asean) Drug Conference in Makati City. Aglipay added that the government is fine-tuning cooperation and coordination with neighboring countries to enhance the country's capabilities to fight the moneyed drug syndicates. A major program toward a coordinated antidrugs campaign is joint training for law enforcers. Deputy Director Ricardo de Leon, chief of the PNP Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force, said a huge percentage of drug problems in the country had been solved. "We had arrested many big drug suspects including [foreigners]. We could not reveal how many of them, but we already had their identities," de Leon said. He said the police's target is to empower the community and give private citizens a bigger role in the intensified campaign against the illegal drug trade, which is estimated to generate P250 billion annually. But the achievements against the illegal narcotics trade were not limited to the Philippines. Myanmar's Col. Hkam Aung also boasted that his country arrested 88 percent of the illegal drugs trade between 1996 and 2004. Thai representative, Rosamee Vista-veth, meanwhile, said that Thailand is focusing on the demand of stimulants, especially ecstasy, which is in demand in the Asean market. - --- MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager