Thailand, Myanmar Destroy Over US$1 Billion in Seized Drugs

Thailand and Myanmar authorities incinerated more than $1 billion in illegal drugs seized on Monday to commemorate an annual international anti-drug trafficking day.

The drug fire occurred as UN experts warned of a rise in opium, heroin, and methamphetamine production in Myanmar, with exports threatening to extend markets in South and Southeast Asia.

According to the Bangkok Post, the Thai government destroyed $600 million in drugs confiscated from illegal traffickers, including tonnes of amphetamines, heroin, and cocaine.

According to the agency, the narcotics burnt on Monday included 27 tonnes of amphetamines, 5 tonnes of cathinone, 275kg of heroin, 43kg of cocaine, and 6kg of opium recovered in 192 distinct cases. Before being burned, the cargo was inspected by authorities from several agencies.

Thailand is a prominent drug trafficking transit point along Southeast Asia’s huge Mekong river valley. According to the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crimes, the region’s organised criminal economy, which includes the illicit trafficking in drugs and wildlife, was worth an estimated $130 billion in 2019.

 

According to the Thai FDA, the narcotics collection was burned in compliance with US Environmental Protection Agency requirements to guarantee no dangerous substances or byproducts were released into the environment.

To promote transparency and accountability in the storage and disposal of seized drugs, the agency aired live the burning of the drugs on its Facebook page.

Myanmar has a long history of drug manufacturing, which has been connected to political and economic uncertainty brought on by decades of military strife. Despite repeated efforts to promote alternative legal crops among poor farmers, the country is a significant producer and exporter of methamphetamine and the world’s second-largest opium and heroin producer after Afghanistan.

A pile of seized drugs and precursor chemicals worth $207 million was burnt in Yangon, the country’s largest metropolis. Opium, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana, kratom, ketamine, and crystal meth, often known as ice, were among the narcotics destroyed.

The burning took place on the same day as the United Nations’ International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

Authorities also destroyed drugs in Mandalay’s core city and Taunggyi, the capital of eastern Shan state, both of which are close to major drug production and distribution hubs.

Last year, Myanmar authorities destroyed more than $642 million in seized drugs.

Experts have cautioned that the violent political upheaval in Myanmar since the military takeover two years ago, which has now devolved into a civil war between the military administration and its pro-democracy opponents, has increased drug production.

According to a report released earlier this year by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, opium production in Myanmar has increased by a third in the last year as eradication efforts have waned and the country’s faltering economy has pushed more people into the drug trade.

According to the research, opium production was predicted to be 400 metric tonnes (440 tonnes) in 2020, growing marginally in 2021, and then soaring in 2022 to an anticipated 790 metric tonnes (870 tonnes).

The United Nations has also warned of a significant increase in methamphetamine production in recent years, which has driven down prices and reached markets via new smuggling channels.

According to the military administration, some ethnic armed groups that control huge swathes of rural terrain create illicit drugs to support their insurgencies and refuse to participate in the country’s peace process because they do not want to give up the benefits they obtain from the drug trade. Some rebel ethnic groups have historically utilised drug proceeds to support their fight for more autonomy from the central government.

Myanmar exports the majority of its opium and heroin, as well as methamphetamine, to Southeast Asian and Chinese countries.