Pubdate: Wed, 08 Jun 2005
Source: Daily Tribune, The (Philippines)
Copyright: 2005 The Tribune Publishing Co., Inc.
Contact:  http://www.tribune.net.ph/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2973
Author: Gina Peralta-Elorde
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/areas/Philippines

AVENIDO CONDEMNS US REPORT RP EXPORTER OF MARIJUANA

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Director General
Anselmo Avenido Jr. yesterday strongly condemned recent newspaper
reports quoting two agencies of the United States government as saying
the Philippines is an exporter of marijuana and hashish and a transit
point for heroin and methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.

In their reports, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Fact
Book 2005 and the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs (BINLEA) International Narcotics Strategy Report
2005 claimed the Philippines is an exporter of marijuana and hashish
to various parts of the world.

Avenido, however, disclosed the reports have not been confirmed and
validated by the PDEA's foreign counterparts.

"The fact is that the last confirmed report of a big-volume shipment
of marijuana to another country from the Philippines to Japan was in
2001. Since then, there were no reports from PDEA's counterpart
agencies of big-volume shipment of marijuana to our neighboring
countries or to Europe or USA," Avenido stressed.

The PDEA chief also noted even the United Nations Office on Drugs and
Crime (UNODC), which publishes an annual World Drug Reports that list
all significant seizures of illegal drugs, did not mention any
big-volume seizures of marijuana from the Philippines.

"If there were marijuana seizures, they were in small volume about one
to five kilograms and intended mostly for Filipinos living and working
abroad," Avenido said.

Based on the US BINLEA reports, at least 1,400-fold increase in the
volume of dried marijuana leaves was confiscated by Philippine law
enforcement in 2004 compared to the 2003 seizures.

The reports claimed the value of marijuana plants destroyed increased
from $10.7 million in 2003 to $155 million in 2004.

Avenido claimed another factor that contributed to the decline in the
smuggling of marijuana from the country is several transnational drug
groups specializing in smuggling marijuana to Japan have abandoned
their trade due to the campaign that targeted them as priority.

"Besides, marijuana is now grown in other countries and Philippine
marijuana is of lesses quality compared to the marijuana grown in
other countries," Avenido said.

On reports the Philippines is a major producer of methamphetamine
hydrochloride or shabu, Avenido said there were already clandestine
shabu laboratories in the country long before the establishment of
PDEA.

"The crackdown by Chinese authorities in the late 1990s to early 2000
caused many of the illegal drug manufacturing organizations to move to
other countries in the region, including the Philippines, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Myanmar and even as far as Fiji," Avenido said.

Because of the massive campaign against the illegal drugs,
international drug syndicates operating in the country, have decided
to move to other countries.

Avenido recounted there were no reports from PDEA counterparts
agencies on big-volume seizures of shabu in other countries coming
from the Philippines because the country continues to seize big
volumes of illegal drugs coming in through the Philippine ports.

He also disclosed there were no records of seizure of heroin in the
country since the establishment of the PDEA in July 2002.

"The last incident involving trafficking of heroin to other countries
using the Philippines as transit point was in 1996-1998 period when an
African briefly used the country as transit point for Southeast Asian
heroin going to Europe," Avenido said. 
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