Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Afghan opium production hits record

Afghanistan's opium production surged to record levels this year, despite international efforts over the past decade to wean the country off the narcotics trade, according to a report by the UN's drug control agency.

The harvest this May resulted in 5,500 metric tons of opium, 49% higher than last year and more than the combined output of the rest of the world. Even Afghan provinces with some past successes in combating poppy cultivation saw those trends reversed, according to this year's annual UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report.

The withdrawal of foreign troops next year is likely to make matters worse, said Jean-Luc Lemahieu, the UNODC regional representative in Kabul. He warned that as international assistance falls off, the Afghan government will become increasingly reliant on illicit sources of income.

Uncertainty is also driving up poppy production, as farmers worried about the country's future turn to the tried and tested.

The big increase in production began in 2010 when farmers rushed to plant to take advantage of soaring prices, a result of a crop disease the previous year, the US military surge in the south and the announcement of the US and Nato's transition out of Afghanistan, Mr Lemahieu said.

He added that those who benefit from the drug trade include farmers, insurgents and many within the government. Often, he said, they work together.

Khan Bacha, who cultivates a small plot of land in eastern Nangarhar province, a Taliban stronghold, said this week that the insurgents charge farmers a "religious tax" of one kilo of opium for every 10 kilos produced - though the price is "negotiable".

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