Oversupply of drugs in Mekong, East Asia puts younger users at risk, U.N. says

By Amy Sawitta Lefevre

 

FILE PHOTO: Thai narcotics officials put bags of methamphetamine pills into a bin during the 48th Destruction of Confiscated Narcotics ceremony in Ayutthaya province, Thailand, June 25, 2018. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Production and trafficking of illicit drugs have reached unprecedented levels in Southeast Asia's Mekong region and East Asia, the United Nations said on Tuesday, warning that oversupply increases the risks for younger users.

 

Even as authorities seize larger amounts of illicit drugs, oversupply pushes down prices, bringing some, such as methamphetamine, within reach, an official of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said.

 

"The supply keeps growing as organised crime is ramping up supply and flooding the region with product," Jeremy Douglas, the body's regional representative, told Reuters ahead of a meeting in the Thai capital to assess the trends.

 

In Thailand, for instance, the price of a methamphetamine tablet ranged between $1.5 and $4.5 in 2017, down from a range of $4 to $7 in 2014, UN data this year showed.

 

In the wealthy nearby city-state of Singapore, prices fell to below $6 in 2017, from $20 in 2014.

 

"The surge in 'yaba' tablet supply has pushed street prices down across the region, making them affordable by younger users who are being introduced to the drug," Douglas added, using a Thai term for the tablet form of methamphetamine.

 

Police seized more than 14 million meth pills worth $45 million in one of Thailand's biggest drug busts in August.

 

Neighbouring Malaysia made its largest seizure of crystal meth in May, intercepting nearly 1.2 tonnes of the drug disguised as tea in a shipment from Myanmar.

 

Much of Southeast Asia's meth production comes from lawless parts of Myanmar, in particular Shan State, the UNODC said in 2017.

 

(Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-10-02

Gutter drugs!

Myanmar army way too busy persecuting Rohinga Muslims and setting traps for reporters...

 

Thailand way too busy cow-towing to cheap charlie Chinese tourists...

 

Time for CIA to blow some shit up I say.

Edited October 2, 20187 yr by ParadiseLost

12 minutes ago, webfact said:

oversupply increases the risks for younger users

 

I disagree with this. If the kids parents don't have the ability to teach their children about using drugs, the price doesn't matter.

you have to go directly to China to stop the production of precursors, good luck with that.

1 hour ago, from the home of CC said:

you have to go directly to China to stop the production of precursors, good luck with that.

I believe it’s Burma and North Korea

41 minutes ago, Nice Boyd said:

I believe it’s Burma and North Korea

Myanmar is a major manufacturer but to get to that stage you need the precursor chemicals which are mostly supplied by China, thus the problem starts there.

The War on Drugs. What a waste of time & money.

Off topic, but i was just reading on the BBC website today, about the British govt thinking of going after the middle class end user of cocaine because it helped in the chain of events starting with moped theft and youth crime in the cities....

 That, ladies & gentlemen, is how far off the scale these retards & numpties in govt who control politics and countries think.

Rather than legalize and tax, they are going after Sharon the estate agent and Nigel the solicitor who like a snort at the weekend...

 Complete madness.

3 hours ago, ParadiseLost said:

Time for CIA to blow some shit up I say.

I think they're still making good drug $ in South America, no need to come back here.

Education.  Education.  Education.  

20 hours ago, ParadiseLost said:

Myanmar army way too busy persecuting Rohinga Muslims and setting traps for reporters...

 

Thailand way too busy cow-towing to cheap charlie Chinese tourists...

 

Time for CIA to blow some shit up I say.

And they could start at the White House,  full of s**t there.

17 hours ago, thaiguzzi said:

The War on Drugs. What a waste of time & money.

Off topic, but i was just reading on the BBC website today, about the British govt thinking of going after the middle class end user of cocaine because it helped in the chain of events starting with moped theft and youth crime in the cities....

 That, ladies & gentlemen, is how far off the scale these retards & numpties in govt who control politics and countries think.

Rather than legalize and tax, they are going after Sharon the estate agent and Nigel the solicitor who like a snort at the weekend...

 Complete madness.

 

Absolutely agree.

 

But, the Police can then claim that as they are making more drug arrests, which keeps the stats up & the government pleased that the 'war on drugs' is being won.

 

As you rightly say: Madness!

4 hours ago, faraday said:

 

Absolutely agree.

 

But, the Police can then claim that as they are making more drug arrests, which keeps the stats up & the government pleased that the 'war on drugs' is being won.

 

As you rightly say: Madness!

As if coppers in the UK have'nt got anything better to do.

Along with the firemen and ambulance crews and emergency services, vastly under funded and vastly under manned.

 Every time i go back to England there's another cop shop closed. Booby's on beats - whats that? It is ridiculous.