Opium production in Afghanistan at record levels

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

The UN says opium production in Afghanistan has soared to record levels, with an increase on last year of more than a third.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime report says the amount of opium produced there has doubled in the last two years.

It says Helmand province is now the biggest single drug-producing area in the world, surpassing whole countries such as Colombia.

Afghanistan now accounts for more than 93% of the world's opiates.

The opium production in Afghanistan has now broken all records.

Despite billions of dollars of aid and tens of thousands of international troops, the amount has doubled in the last two years.

The report says the 193,000 hectares of opium poppies grown in Afghanistan are now responsible for almost all the world's opiates.

'Insurgency link'

"The results are very bad, terrifyingly bad, because cultivation has increased by 17% to an historic level," said Antonio Maria Costa, executive director of the Office on Drugs and Crime.

"No other country beside China in the 19th Century every had such a large amount of land dedicated to illegal activities.

"The province of Helmand in the south has cultivated more opium than in the rest of Afghanistan. It has become the largest single entity in terms of both production and cultivation," he said.

Despite the overall increase, twice as many provinces are now drug-free in northern and central Afghanistan and the report says growing opium poppies is now closely linked to the insurgency and the instability in the south.

And what is to be done? The report recommends more determined efforts to bring that security.

It urges the government to get tough on corruption, which it says is driving the drugs trade and it lists poor governance, a weak judiciary and failing eradication programmes for these new frightening record levels.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6965115.stm

[Caladan 19]

The one good thing the Taliban did was eliminate poppy cultivation. Unfortunately, the farmers went back to making that very lucrative cash crop in the chaos after the U.S. invaded; it just brings in so much more cash for a poor farmer than growing legal crops would.

[almaty 19]

well, looks like i continue to have clients

[Lewis 0]

Anyone have any stats on the countries that are consuming the largest amounts of the opium?

Edited August 27, 2007 by Lewis

[almaty 19]

you mean opium? or products like herion ...morphine etc..from opium?

[Lewis 0]

I meant all products derived from opium.

[Jasman0717 9]

well, looks like i continue to have clients

[almaty 19]

well, looks like i continue to have clients

no, brother jim, not selling dope...trying to get them clean/sober..

[Ban Hammer 13,340]

well, looks like i continue to have clients

no, brother jim, not selling dope...trying to get them clean/sober..

it sure seemed another way.

[Nessa 23]

well, looks like i continue to have clients

no, brother jim, not selling dope...trying to get them clean/sober..

so you first make money by selling them drugs to get them addicted and then you make more money by trying to get them clean with therapy?

[almaty 19]

well, looks like i continue to have clients

no, brother jim, not selling dope...trying to get them clean/sober..

it sure seemed another way.

well, brother charles, sometimes when the case load is down..your need to give them a little bump to get started again