Gyp 111
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Financial Express :: Financial Newspaper of Bangladesh
BANGKOK, Dec 12 (AFP): Myanmar is at the heart of a growing narcotics crisis in Asia that threatens public security, the UN said Wednesday, urging regional help for the impoverished nation in stemming drug production.
The long-isolated southeast Asian nation, the world's second-largest opium producer, also remains a "top source" of methamphetamine pills in the region, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime said in a report.
"During the past five years, the availability and use of methamphetamine has increased significantly," said Gary Lewis, UNODC regional representative.
Nearly 123 million methamphetamine pills were seized in the region last year-a nine per cent decrease on 2010, but a more than 500 per cent jump from 2007.
"This and the increasing involvement of transnational organized criminal groups in the illicit trade of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) pose a growing threat to both security and public health in the region," Lewis said.
Around 5.9 million methamphetamine pills were seized in Myanmar in 2011, almost double the figure for the previous year, the report said, adding that the numbers "do not reflect the full extent of manufacture" because the drug is quickly trafficked from border regions into neighbouring countries.
Lewis told a press conference in Bangkok that "all countries in the region need to work together", because many of the chemicals needed to produce the drug are thought to be smuggled into Myanmar.
"Both on methamphetamines and poppy cultivation we need to focus our attention on Myanmar," he said, urging the region to focus on alternative development and law enforcement.
BANGKOK, Dec 12 (AFP): Myanmar is at the heart of a growing narcotics crisis in Asia that threatens public security, the UN said Wednesday, urging regional help for the impoverished nation in stemming drug production.
The long-isolated southeast Asian nation, the world's second-largest opium producer, also remains a "top source" of methamphetamine pills in the region, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime said in a report.
"During the past five years, the availability and use of methamphetamine has increased significantly," said Gary Lewis, UNODC regional representative.
Nearly 123 million methamphetamine pills were seized in the region last year-a nine per cent decrease on 2010, but a more than 500 per cent jump from 2007.
"This and the increasing involvement of transnational organized criminal groups in the illicit trade of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) pose a growing threat to both security and public health in the region," Lewis said.
Around 5.9 million methamphetamine pills were seized in Myanmar in 2011, almost double the figure for the previous year, the report said, adding that the numbers "do not reflect the full extent of manufacture" because the drug is quickly trafficked from border regions into neighbouring countries.
Lewis told a press conference in Bangkok that "all countries in the region need to work together", because many of the chemicals needed to produce the drug are thought to be smuggled into Myanmar.
"Both on methamphetamines and poppy cultivation we need to focus our attention on Myanmar," he said, urging the region to focus on alternative development and law enforcement.
