Fw: Successful Afghan war = cheaper drugs
Jim Baldauf
jfbaldauf@prodigy.net
Fri, 25 Jan 2002 18:20:36 -0600
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Ghettoites:
I take the liberty of forwarding this story from our own Roger
Baker, originally posted to a less patriotic list: The Greens!
(Used to be The Reds.)
Jim Bob
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Roger Baker=20
Cc: austinagainstwar@yahoogroups.com ; texgreen@envirolink.org=20
Sent: Friday, January 25, 2002 12:35 PM
Subject: Successful Afghan war =3D cheaper drugs
The return of cheap Afghani hash now that the straitlaced Taliban is =
gone=20
could even be a good thing, depending on who you ask, but in any case=20
resident Bush will deserve a lot of the credit. -- Roger
*******************************
=20
from =
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia_china/story.jsp?story=3D116264=20
Main drug control agency in Kabul is evicted
By Patrick Cockburn in Kabul
25 January 2002
Despite promises to crack down on the drugs trade, the new Afghan =
government has evicted the main drug control agency from its =
headquarters in Kabul and taken its vehicles.
"They literally threw us into the street," said Mir Najibullah Shams, =
the Secretary-General of the State High Commission for Drug Control. "I =
don't have a phone to call up commanders in the provinces. They didn't =
even leave us with a bicycle."
The contempt with which the new Afghan administration has treated its =
main drugs agency bodes ill for any attempt to curtail opium and heroin =
production in Afghanistan. This is despite promises by the new =
administration at the summit on aid to Afghanistan in Tokyo this week =
that it would try to reduce the flow of narcotics out of the country in =
return for $4.5bn (=A33.2bn) from donors.
Afghanistan is the world's largest exporter of heroin and provides about =
80 per cent of Western Europe's supply and an even higher proportion of =
heroin used in Russia and Central Asia. Between a third and a half of =
the Afghan population is believed by experts to be involved in growing, =
producing or trafficking in narcotics.
Mr Shams, who has taken refuge in a room in the Afghan Foreign Ministry, =
showed a number of maps illustrating the huge increase in the =
mid-nineties in the number of provinces growing opium poppies. Mullah =
Omar, the Taliban leader, had successfully banned the planting of =
poppies in 1999, but the collapse of central government control in much =
of Afghanistan in the last two months may mean that farmers will once =
again produce opium.
The former headquarters of the High Commission for Drug Control is a =
substantial three-storey building which has been taken over by a =
newspaper called Payam-I-Mujaihid which supports the government. Mr =
Shams admits that its 300 employees were never able to do very much =
about narcotics because "until you solve the problems of the Afghan =
farmers they will produce drugs. What do you expect them to do when they =
are dressed in rags and their children have nothing to eat?"=20
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<DIV>Ghettoites:</DIV>
<DIV>I take the liberty of forwarding this story from our own =
Roger</DIV>
<DIV>Baker, originally posted to a less patriotic list: The =
Greens!</DIV>
<DIV>(Used to be The Reds.)</DIV>
<DIV>Jim Bob</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message -----=20
<DIV style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A=20
href=3D"mailto:rcbaker@eden.infohwy.com" =
title=3Drcbaker@eden.infohwy.com>Roger=20
Baker</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Cc:</B> <A href=3D"mailto:austinagainstwar@yahoogroups.com"=20
title=3Daustinagainstwar@yahoogroups.com>austinagainstwar@yahoogroups.com=
</A> ; <A=20
href=3D"mailto:texgreen@envirolink.org"=20
title=3Dtexgreen@envirolink.org>texgreen@envirolink.org</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Friday, January 25, 2002 12:35 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Successful Afghan war =3D cheaper drugs</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>The return of cheap Afghani hash now that the straitlaced Taliban =
is gone=20
<BR>could even be a good thing, depending on who you ask, but in any =
case=20
<BR>resident Bush will deserve a lot of the credit. -- =
Roger<BR><BR> =20
=20
*******************************<BR> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>from <A=20
href=3D"http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia_china/story.jsp?story=3D=
116264">http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia_china/story.jsp?story=3D=
116264</A>=20
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>
<H1>Main drug control agency in Kabul is evicted</H1>
<H3>By Patrick Cockburn in Kabul</H3>
<H4>25 January 2002</H4>
<P>Despite promises to crack down on the drugs trade, the new Afghan =
government=20
has evicted the main drug control agency from its headquarters in Kabul =
and=20
taken its vehicles.</P>
<P>"They literally threw us into the street," said Mir Najibullah Shams, =
the=20
Secretary-General of the State High Commission for Drug Control. "I =
don't have a=20
phone to call up commanders in the provinces. They didn't even leave us =
with a=20
bicycle."</P>
<P>The contempt with which the new Afghan administration has treated its =
main=20
drugs agency bodes ill for any attempt to curtail opium and heroin =
production in=20
Afghanistan. This is despite promises by the new administration at the =
summit on=20
aid to Afghanistan in Tokyo this week that it would try to reduce the =
flow of=20
narcotics out of the country in return for $4.5bn (=A33.2bn) from =
donors.</P>
<P>Afghanistan is the world's largest exporter of heroin and provides =
about 80=20
per cent of Western Europe's supply and an even higher proportion of =
heroin used=20
in Russia and Central Asia. Between a third and a half of the Afghan =
population=20
is believed by experts to be involved in growing, producing or =
trafficking in=20
narcotics.</P>
<P>Mr Shams, who has taken refuge in a room in the Afghan Foreign =
Ministry,=20
showed a number of maps illustrating the huge increase in the =
mid-nineties in=20
the number of provinces growing opium poppies. Mullah Omar, the Taliban =
leader,=20
had successfully banned the planting of poppies in 1999, but the =
collapse of=20
central government control in much of Afghanistan in the last two months =
may=20
mean that farmers will once again produce opium.</P>
<P>The former headquarters of the High Commission for Drug Control is a=20
substantial three-storey building which has been taken over by a =
newspaper=20
called <I>Payam-I-Mujaihid </I>which supports the government. Mr Shams =
admits=20
that its 300 employees were never able to do very much about narcotics =
because=20
"until you solve the problems of the Afghan farmers they will produce =
drugs.=20
What do you expect them to do when they are dressed in rags and their =
children=20
have nothing to eat?" </P></FONT></DIV><BR></BODY></HTML>
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