Afghanistan s Opium War

Opium is choking Afghan society.

Opium production has increased.

The study found that both raw material production systems (opium and opium straw) had inherent potential for diversion and abuse.

NATO troops should be given the green light to help the Afghan army fight opium destroy the heroin labs, disband the opium bazaars, attack the opium convoys, and bring the big traders to justice.

Moreover, while certain efforts by the Government of Afghanistan have resulted in the reduction of opium cultivation in some regions traditionally famous for opium production, opium cultivation has increased in the regions bordering my country, especially in the Farah province.

That was two decades before the first Opium War.

After opium, fruits and nuts are the second most exported item from Afghanistan.

The new Government of Afghanistan has been responding forcefully to the opium threat and, in December 2004, a loya jirga on countering narcotics was convened and reaffirmed the opium poppy ban.

The British, Americans and French fought several naval battles with war junks in the 19th century, during the First Opium War, Second Opium War and in between.

Unfortunately, Afghanistan's share of opium production continues to remain high.

We also endorse the efforts made by the Government of Afghanistan and the international community to end poppy cultivation, to build relevant judicial and police capacity and to provide sustainable alternative livelihoods for those engaged in poppy cultivation.

To this end, he calls on the Government to ensure that, in the interim, the basic needs of former opium farmers are met and sufficient resources allocated to those whose livelihoods depended upon opium generated income.

Opium money is corrupting Afghan society from top to bottom.

In the Netherlands it is a List 1 drug of the Opium Law.

The Special Rapporteur welcomes the steady and remarkable reduction in opium poppy cultivation.

While the most recent UNODC survey showed a 21 per cent decline in opium cultivation there, in some areas it had increased owing to corruption.

But any solution in Afghanistan depends on eliminating its opium.

While hiding out in the caves of Yenan, Mao became a distributor of opium.

(f) A credible, targeted and verified eradication campaign

(f) A credible, targeted and verified eradication campaign

With record production of an estimated 4,200 tons of opium in Afghanistan, UNODC's 2004 opium cultivation survey registered a 64 per cent increase in the area under cultivation in that country.

Armed convoys transport raw opium around the country unhindered.

Opiates flow freely across borders into Iran, Pakistan, and other Central Asian countries.

Senior government officials take their cut of opium revenues or bribes in return for keeping quiet.

Improving security and the rule of law must include destroying the opium trade.

For the third consecutive year, the total area used for growing cocaine crops has been reduced.

Urges all the Governments of countries where opium poppy has not been cultivated for the licit production of opiate raw materials, in the spirit of collective responsibility, to refrain from engaging in the commercial cultivation of opium poppy, in order to avoid the proliferation of supply sites

Taking note of the increasing awareness of the Government of Myanmar of the need to comprehensively address the production of opium in Myanmar,

Success will also require more funds for reconstruction, development, and alternatives to opium poppy cultivation.

The outside world s chief interest is to curb heroin production and destroy terrorist training camps.

Licensing the opium crop would be a realistic and pragmatic cornerstone of that strategy s success.

Some speakers expressed concern about the increased level of opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan.

We call for continued international assistance to Afghanistan in its efforts to combat cultivation of opium and trafficking of drugs.

Reference was made to the annual surveys conducted by UNODC of opium poppy and coca bush cultivation.

Some speakers expressed concern about the increased level of opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan.

E.04.XI.15) and Ethical Challenges in Drug Epidemiology Issues, Principles and Guidelines (United Nations publication, Sales No.

In 2005, Afghanistan contributed roughly 87 per cent of the world total.

Australia remains concerned at the high levels and pervasiveness of opium production in Afghanistan.

Mr. Bâzel (Afghanistan) stressed that the positive developments in Afghanistan had been achieved thanks to Government efforts combined with the self restraint of cultivators of opium, resulting in the 21 per cent decline in cultivation already mentioned.

Verb

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, despite concerted efforts at eradication and crop substitution, Afghanistan produced 87 of the world s opium in 2005 roughly 4.1 tons generating 2.7 billion of illegal revenue, which amounts to roughly 52 of the country s GDP. The 2005 Afghanistan Opium Survey, released last November, estimates that the total value of this opium, once turned into heroin and distributed around the world, could reach more than 40 billion.

We are pleased to have been able to achieve a 21 per cent reduction in opium poppy cultivation in the current year.

The security situation in Afghanistan and the threat posed by opium production and drug trafficking continue to be of grave concern.

In East Asia and the Pacific, the main achievement was the steady reduction of opium poppy cultivation in the Golden Triangle, a historic achievement that, if sustained, will make a significant contribution to ending opium production in the area.