An International Conference "Drug abuse: how it can be reduced?" recently took place in Wilton Part (United Kingdom).
The ancient knight's castle Wilton Park in 60km from London, in spite of all electronics and modern plastic inside, looks the same majestic and virgin as it was in XVI century.
Starting from 1946 this castle became a favorite place for international symposiums, conferences and colloquiums. The main rule of all these forums - "professionals without politics" - defines participants. Usually the "key" experts in specific problems, academic researches and practicing specialists, consultants and advisers are invited. For example, our forum preceded by meeting of political scientists, experts in Palestine-Israel relations... Generated in Wilton Park recommendations are in wide use by the involved governmental institutions in administrative, political and economical decision-making process.
Anti-drug forums became traditional here. In our case, 60 experts in drugs-related problems arrived from all continents and during two days discussed on "Round Table" the main trouble spots. The discussed issues involved the alternative measures, to be taken to combat the Afghan illicit drugs production; lessons learned from "heroin drought" in Australia (this country is recognized as positive example of well-balanced narco-policy, allowed to reduce the hard drugs supply); mutual penetration of legal and illegal drugs markets.
"Annual income of narco-mafia estimated in 7 billion US$. In the same time, the New York "Twins" explosion on September 11 costed international terrorists 600,000 US$ only..." - the session on interrelationship of narco-business and terrorism had been opened with this statement. For example, in Latin America, cocaine is a main "sponsor" for rebels from both right and left wings. Besides the traditional drug-producers Columbia, Bolivia and Peru, Ecuador and Venezuela, with natural oil resources running out, are actively searching for "alternative" earnings and become more and more involved in narcotic crops cultivation. The coca-sowing territories usually out of governmental power and administration, so the only effective way for eradication is to sprinkle with herbicides. In 2003 about 130,000 hectares had been sprinkled...
Narco-barons are not satisfied with supporting roles; they are seeking for political power. For example, the major Bolivian "Cocaine baron" had been elected to the country senate. According to the current prognoses, he has good chances to win President's elections in 2007... The newest history of South-Eastern and Central Asia is rich in similar examples - drugs cultivation usually concentrated in countries with week social control and absence of adequate legislative base.
In this connection, the experience of Jamaica - an island country, turned into the well-known cocaine transit point, is very typical. Besides of numerous "mules" or "alive containers", transporting cocaine in their own stomachs, narco-mafia arranged in jungles lots of special autonomic landing grounds to get light airplanes with illicit freights. Refueling of small ships bravely furrowing the ocean with cocaine on board became a very profitable business on the island. Police operations "densely colored" with blood - during few last years more than 5000 Kalashnikovs had been confiscated from armed narco- convoys. The country could not cope with the huge wave of drug-related crime and violence ...
Number of serious contra-measures had been taken. With considerable support of Netherlands and Great Britain - the main destination countries of transported cocaine, the special drug-control units had been formed from well-trained specialists of elite army and police units. Adequately equipped and armed, they started from reconnaissance, involving the real "scanning" of jungles for narco-bases, hidden storages and shelters, landing grounds. They also disclosed names of the owners, "God Fathers" of narco-business. In result of started in last October the "Kingfish" special operation 85 "sharks" of narco-traffic had been arrested, 44 ships confiscated.
But the most heated discussion in Wilton Park developed around Afghanistan. The discussion preceded by presentation of the Afghan Deputy Minister of Interior for Counter Narcotic Affairs, Mohammad Daud, officially responsible for the drug-control activity. General alouded "Karzay strategy", covering eight main points of Counter Narcotic Implementation Plan:
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Institution building;
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Informational campaign;
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Alternative livelihoods;
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Interdiction and law enforcement;
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Criminal justice;
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Eradication;
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Demand reduction and treatment of addicts;
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Regional cooperation;
And informed listeners about progress of this strategy implementation. So then, a special unit formed from 500 well-equipped and trained police officers, intended for monitoring, searching and eradication of illegal opium fields. The counter narcotics operations considerably activated in the last 5 months, after the country president proclaimed "Jihad against drugs". During this period 80 tons of opium from Talib's hidden storages had been burned out, 18,000 hectares of illicit crops eradicated. "In case, we did not take these contra-measures, in the year 2006 our country could produce about twenty thousand tons of drugs" - General Daud said...
Opium still constitutes 40% of the gross revenue of Afghanistan; all 34 provinces, 15 % of the country population somehow involved into narco-business. According to the World Bank specialists, working on the opium-related problems in Kabul, drugs cultivation is a "flowing" process: as soon as governmental structures manage to take under the control the drugs-sowing territories in one part of the country, the opium fields immediately multiply and expand in other regions. Experts shared their awareness that, in case the miracle will happen and Afghanistan will manage to totally eradicate illicit crops on its territory, opium poppy will immediately start flowering in the neighboring countries. Benefiting from the rates difference (1 gram of heroin cost 3 US$ in Afghanistan; street-pushers in Western Europe will sell it for 300 $...), Mafia gains an excess profit. This highest profitability constitutes the main economic barrier for illicit crops eradication. To succeed in diversification programs, the legal sector of agriculture compared to the illegal must be in 3 folds more profitable! It is almost impossible in the underdeveloped country with destroyed infrastructure. Never the less, Afghanistan started an audacious experiment: the cereals import volume considerably decreased in order to motivate local farmers to harvest these cultures. American specialists are absolutely convinced: "It is very important that local farmers get a clear message: government will never accept opium sowing!".
The UK experts reasonably believe that, besides of the drugs-producing country, the considerable investments needed for neighboring countries. Especially important to invest into effective mechanism of intelligence and information sharing. "In spite of the fact that bordering with Afghanistan countries form a real "political cocktail", we managed on some extend to promote cross-border cooperation" - the UK experts said and illustrated their statement with examples of successful joint operations and control deliveries.
Number of different possible solutions of the problem of narco-producing had been presented, including its possible... legalization with UN Mandate for Afghanistan to cultivate opium for medical purposes, like it is done for India. It actually would mean a victory of narco-barons, forced the international community to give up.
But this was not an only reason for me to speak against this "solution". In the beginning of 90th seeking for financial basis of the recently gained independency, Kyrgyzstan turned to the possibility to renew the legal opium cultivation. The idea had been offered and actively supported by "red professors" - old-style academicians and eager officials. Regardless to the real situation and practicability of idea, they shouted to foam at the mouth that this is the only possible way to improve country economics. Opium had been presented as a panacea, solution of all problems, measure of economic well-being, guarantee for the future progress in business. "Our aborigines have immunity against opium", - argued narco-lobby. "We cultivated opium poppy in years and years, treated all diseases with opium and never had abusing problems". We should not pay attention to different moralists!
That time our government demonstrated wisdom and common sense and did not slip into the worthless populism and pseudo-patriotism. "In case, our strong negative opinion will not be considered and the decision to renew opium cultivation will come into force, national Ministry of Interior will relieve itself of responsibility for the country future" - stated on the press-conference Feliks Kulov, that time - Ministry of Interior of Kyrgyzstan. He also informed participants of the press conference about expert's opinion and results of this problem study.
...In 1991, within the plan of the business project "Galenicals in Kyrgyzstan" developing, a special working group for the comprehensive investigation of the problem had been formed. The working group studied all aspects of the problem - from economical expediency to the newest measures for leaking prevention. The investigation was extremely thorough: the group managed to find the elite poppy seeds, secretly transported from the country before the collapse of USSR ...
The conclusion was categorically negative - "potato cultivation is more profitable". There are the strict quotas for opium purchasing for medical purposes, and already that time considerable overproduction had been found. Thus Kyrgyzstan could sell domestic opium for dumping price only. This invariably would lead to the serious conflict with other opium-producing countries, obstruction from international community, western countries and UN, invested into republican economic development.
To provide with the required level of the technologic chain protection (poppy field - opium proceeding factory - pharmacy) and leaking prevention will demand considerable additional investments; so it would be much cheaper and profitable to cultivate potato. But no one super-technologic chain can totally protect from the harvest leaking. In case, we use old-fashioned "grand-father's" methods of opium cultivation and proceeding, our country could immediately draw a very close attention of international narco-mafia. In this case, Batken narco-aggression of year 2000, when our country territory had been attacked by narco-terrorists, would look harmless like scouting games...
Besides, there are lots of different synthetic analgesics in use, highly effective and not addictive. Legally producing opium India has serious problems to sell it on the licit markets. What about Afghan farmers with their mentality, they immediately will rise the opium production to 20,000 tons, as soon as they get information about legalization. The numerous examples of the opium fields extending in 10 folds and even more on the next year after international organizations sponsored the illicit crops eradication are well known. Farmers extended the opium-sowing territories because they frankly expected to get easy money!
Finally. Who will guarantee that, following the steps of Afghanistan, the neighboring poor countries in their turn will not start opium cultivation, hoping to force the international community to legalize this source of income for their countries also?
All these reasons the author of this article, member of that "Kulov's" expert group, presented in Wilton Park. The idea to legalize opium cultivation in Afghanistan was strongly disapproved.