Canada and organized Crime
Columbia today:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/drugs/business/inside/colombian.html
“After the destruction of both the Cali and Medellin cartels, the cocaine business began to fragment. Younger lieutenants realized that the large organizations had been more vulnerable to attack by US and Colombian authorities. They formed smaller, more controllable groups and began compartmentalizing their responsibilities. One group simply smuggles the drugs from Colombia to Mexico. Another group controls the jungle labs. Yet another deals with transportation of coca base from the fields to the labs. There are well known links between the Colombian Marxists guerilla groups and the cocaine trade. Guerillas protect the fields and the labs in remote zones of Colombia in exchange for a large tax that the traffickers pay to the organization. In turn, the Colombian right wing paramilitary groups are also thought to control both fields, labs and some of the smuggling routes. This situation has been disastrous for Colombia - both sides in an on-going civil war are able to reap huge profits from the drug industry which are then turned into guns for further fighting.
The DEA and the Colombian National police believe there are more than 300 active drug smuggling organizations in Colombia today. Cocaine is shipped to every industrialized nation in the world and profits remain incredibly high.”
Afghanistan retakes heroin crown
http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2814861.stm
“Afghanistan retook its place as the world's leading producer of heroin last year, after US-led forces overthrew the Taleban which had banned cultivation of opium poppies.
The finding was made in a key drug report, distributed in Kabul on Sunday by the US State Department, which supports almost identical findings by the United Nations last week.
Low-grade heroin is refined in Afghanistan from opium, which is manufactured from the extract of poppies.
"The size of the opium harvest in 2002 makes Afghanistan the world's leading opium producer," the report said.
The International Narcotics Control Strategy Report said the area of land used to cultivate opium poppies reached 30,750 hectares, compared with 1,685 hectares in 2001.
Afghanistan overtook Burma - whose production fell for the sixth straight year, to 630 tonnes - as the leading opium producer.
The British government is the leading sponsor of the anti-drugs campaign in Afghanistan.
Contradictory claims
The report said fighting illegal drug trafficking was key to the US war on terrorism.
"The US campaign against global terrorism in 2002 highlighted the importance of our international drug control programs," it said.
Despite its own figures showing the Taleban had cut Afghanistan's heroin production by about 95%, the report claimed that heroin had "financed the former Taleban regime".
The UN International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) report, released on 26 February, said that Afghanistan produced 3,400 tonnes last year, up from 185 tonnes in 2001.
While the US report praised US-backed Afghan president Hamid Karzai for the measures he has introduced to cut heroin production, the UN report said his two executive orders had no practical impact.
Growing problem
The Pentagon and the State Department are reportedly split over how heroin production should be tackled in the country.
While the Pentagon insists that the military operations in Afghanistan should be limited to fighting terrorists, while the State Department thinks armed forces should tackle opium production.
The US report also praised Pakistan for "excellent" co-operation with US anti-drugs efforts.
Last week the head of Pakistan's Anti-Narcotics Force, Major General Zafar Abbas, said that heroin production in Afghanistan this year is expected to reach more than 4,000 tonnes.
Russian guards patrolling Afghanistan's 1,340-kilometre border with Tajikistan, the main transport route for Afghan drugs to European markets, have seized 1.5 tonnes of heroin already this year.
Last year, Russian and Tajik border guards seized 6.7 tonnes of drugs.”
Stephen Harper suggested recently in a press scrum that Canada shouldn’t wait for Columbia to “solve all its problems” before investing in Columbian industry and sending Candian dollars into Columbia.
Canada can be proud that our government is prepared to do business with violent drug riddled terrorist regimes.
Just makes me so proud to be a Canadian….
NOT
Columbia today:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/drugs/business/inside/colombian.html
“After the destruction of both the Cali and Medellin cartels, the cocaine business began to fragment. Younger lieutenants realized that the large organizations had been more vulnerable to attack by US and Colombian authorities. They formed smaller, more controllable groups and began compartmentalizing their responsibilities. One group simply smuggles the drugs from Colombia to Mexico. Another group controls the jungle labs. Yet another deals with transportation of coca base from the fields to the labs. There are well known links between the Colombian Marxists guerilla groups and the cocaine trade. Guerillas protect the fields and the labs in remote zones of Colombia in exchange for a large tax that the traffickers pay to the organization. In turn, the Colombian right wing paramilitary groups are also thought to control both fields, labs and some of the smuggling routes. This situation has been disastrous for Colombia - both sides in an on-going civil war are able to reap huge profits from the drug industry which are then turned into guns for further fighting.
The DEA and the Colombian National police believe there are more than 300 active drug smuggling organizations in Colombia today. Cocaine is shipped to every industrialized nation in the world and profits remain incredibly high.”
Afghanistan retakes heroin crown
http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2814861.stm
“Afghanistan retook its place as the world's leading producer of heroin last year, after US-led forces overthrew the Taleban which had banned cultivation of opium poppies.
The finding was made in a key drug report, distributed in Kabul on Sunday by the US State Department, which supports almost identical findings by the United Nations last week.
Low-grade heroin is refined in Afghanistan from opium, which is manufactured from the extract of poppies.
"The size of the opium harvest in 2002 makes Afghanistan the world's leading opium producer," the report said.
The International Narcotics Control Strategy Report said the area of land used to cultivate opium poppies reached 30,750 hectares, compared with 1,685 hectares in 2001.
Afghanistan overtook Burma - whose production fell for the sixth straight year, to 630 tonnes - as the leading opium producer.
The British government is the leading sponsor of the anti-drugs campaign in Afghanistan.
Contradictory claims
The report said fighting illegal drug trafficking was key to the US war on terrorism.
"The US campaign against global terrorism in 2002 highlighted the importance of our international drug control programs," it said.
Despite its own figures showing the Taleban had cut Afghanistan's heroin production by about 95%, the report claimed that heroin had "financed the former Taleban regime".
The UN International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) report, released on 26 February, said that Afghanistan produced 3,400 tonnes last year, up from 185 tonnes in 2001.
While the US report praised US-backed Afghan president Hamid Karzai for the measures he has introduced to cut heroin production, the UN report said his two executive orders had no practical impact.
Growing problem
The Pentagon and the State Department are reportedly split over how heroin production should be tackled in the country.
While the Pentagon insists that the military operations in Afghanistan should be limited to fighting terrorists, while the State Department thinks armed forces should tackle opium production.
The US report also praised Pakistan for "excellent" co-operation with US anti-drugs efforts.
Last week the head of Pakistan's Anti-Narcotics Force, Major General Zafar Abbas, said that heroin production in Afghanistan this year is expected to reach more than 4,000 tonnes.
Russian guards patrolling Afghanistan's 1,340-kilometre border with Tajikistan, the main transport route for Afghan drugs to European markets, have seized 1.5 tonnes of heroin already this year.
Last year, Russian and Tajik border guards seized 6.7 tonnes of drugs.”
Stephen Harper suggested recently in a press scrum that Canada shouldn’t wait for Columbia to “solve all its problems” before investing in Columbian industry and sending Candian dollars into Columbia.
Canada can be proud that our government is prepared to do business with violent drug riddled terrorist regimes.
Just makes me so proud to be a Canadian….
NOT
