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Drugs go up in smoke on UN Day against Drug Abuse
Government officials, foreign diplomats and members of
international organisations gathered at That Luang
esplanade to watch confiscated drugs go up in flames in
a ceremony to mark International Day against Drug Abuse
and Trafficking yesterday.
The bonfire destroyed 626,343 methamphetamine tablets,
3.04kg of heroin, 980 g of opium and 822kg of cannabis.
Minister to the President's Office and Lao National
Committee for Drug Control and Supervision (LCDC)
Chairman Soubanh Srithirath said at the ceremony “The
drugs were gathered as evidence in 56 cases processed by
the Court of Vientiane involving 92 offenders. As for
the drugs seized in other provinces, the LCDC will
instruct provincial drug control committees to do the
same.”
Other government officials attending the event came from
the ministries of public security and foreign affairs.
Foreign diplomats and staff from the United Nations
Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) were also present.
Mr Soubanh said in 1998 the United Nations General
Assembly Special Session on drug control cooperation
called for the elimination or a significant reduction in
global illicit drug cultivation by 2008.
In February 2006, Laos officially declared to the world
it had eradicated the cultivation of opium poppies, two
years ahead of the target date.
“We have now for the third year in a row been able to
keep illicit opium poppy cultivation at insignificant
levels,” Mr Soubanh said.
Annual surveys of opium poppy cultivation revealed
cultivation dropped from 2,700 ha in 2006 to 1,500 ha in
2007. The production of opium fell from 20 tones in 2006
to 9.2 tones in 2007.
“The LCDC and UNODC 2008 opium survey confirms opium
poppy cultivation in Laos remains insignificant. This is
seen as a historical achievement, but it doesn't mean we
no longer have any drug problems to be solved,” he said.
Mr Soubanh said much more remained to be done,
especially in the face of the rising price of opium,
which has risen from US$80 per kilo five years ago to
about US$1,300 this year.
“This requires our extra vigilance to ensure highland
communities do not resume opium poppy cultivation.”
The LCDC was instrumental in the passing of the
country's first Narcotic Drugs Law, which came into
force in January 2008.
The law forms an important legal framework for greater
effectiveness in controlling drugs and related crime. It
also strengthens the role of the LCDC as a national
government organisation with clear mandates and rights.
Under this law, terms of imprisonment ranging from 10
years to life imprisonment and capital punishment can be
handed down to offenders.
“Our law enforcement officers have made significant
achievements in suppressing drug trafficking throughout
the country. Under this law they have processed 83
cases. In 2007 police arrested 154 offenders and seized
1,272,815 amphetamine-type stimulants, 4.8kg of
methamphetamine crystal, 23.77kg of heroin, 14.17kg of
opium and 2,202.8kg of cannabis,” Mr Soubanh said.
He said the quantities of drugs seized in 2007 were
slightly less than in previous years, except for
cannabis, which had risen significantly.
UN Resident Coordinator to Laos and Acting UNODC
Representative Ms Sonam Yangchen Rana explained the
history of International Day against Drug Abuse and
Trafficking.
She said 10 years ago, in response to the seriousness of
the world drug problem, United Nations member states
convened a special session of the General Assembly,
where they committed themselves to a vigorous plan of
action to reduce both the supply and demand for drugs.
Ms Rana said today drugs continued to destroy lives,
generate crime and threaten sustainable development.
“But we also have a better understanding of how to
confront drug abuse and trafficking,” she said.
Policymakers can draw on a growing body of evidence
about drug dependence and drug-use trends. International
cooperation and technical assistance are improving law
enforcement capabilities. Increased development
assistance is helping to reduce poverty and the sale of
illicit crops by giving farmers sustainable
alternatives.
“A stronger focus on prevention and treatment is putting
health at the centre of drug-control strategies and
helping to slow the spread of HIV/AIDS. And there is a
growing consensus, both within communities and among
states, that drug control is a shared responsibility in
which we all play a part,” Ms Rana said.
She said there was much to be done to reduce
vulnerability to drugs. States with weak criminal
justice systems and limited law enforcement capabilities
need assistance to reduce illicit drug trafficking,
which spreads crime, corruption and instability, and
which ultimately endangers the successful realisation of
the UN millennium development goals.
