Myanmar’s Growing Opium Industry

Myanmar’s Growing Opium Industry

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Opium production has increased in Myanmar for the first time since 2014. A new report by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) shows a marginal increase which breaks the country’s recent downward trend in production. 

The increase was between September 2020 and January 2021, meaning it occurred before the February 2021 military coup, which has likely caused another increase. The rising levels of cultivation occurred then, due to the economic decay which lay in the background of the military coup.

This is by no means a new phenomenon. When the licit economy decays, many have no choice but to move to an often stable illicit market. Opium cultivation can offer jobs to those left unemployed by the licit industry, as the demand for drugs will remain constant. Opium is a crop that offers a stable income, it is drought resistant for example. A similar phenomenon can be observed in Afghanistan in the past two decades. When crises arise, people turn to opium cultivation. Hofman the UNODC Manager for Myanmar states in the report “Poverty is the key reason for farmers to consider poppy cultivation in Myanmar.” 

What is left out of the new report is numbers on methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs production. While opium production has fallen in Myanmar in the 21st century, another illicit industry has bloomed. Across the region of South East Asia, there has been a massive increase in the production of meth and other synthetic substances. Crystal meth, known as ice, and meth pills, known as ya-ba, are popular within Myanmar and neighboring countries and are also trafficked to international markets. The shift is occurring due to the ease of producing these illicit drugs. As opposed to cultivating opium, the drugs are made in labs, often hidden in the Myanmar jungle. 

Many have predicted a drastic increase in opium cultivation and synthetic drug production after the military coup in February. The coup has crippled the economy, meaning people are often forced to turn to the illicit trade for work. Furthermore, the drug enforcement forces are less effective in post-coup Myanmar, meaning drug traffickers are able to work under the radar, hidden amidst the chaos. This is due to police being distracted by other issues, like resistance to the military junta, and a lack of funding for drug enforcement activities. 

While there are no official numbers on the levels of production since the coup, the sheer amount of seizures occurring on a day-to-day basis suggests there has been a significant increase in meth production specifically, in Myanmar. 

Narcosis
Narcosishttp://theatlasnews.co
Stories about drugs.
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