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OrganizedCrimeInAsia.pptxOrganized Crime In Asia: Synthetic Drugs
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Overview
Organized Crime in Asia: An Introduction
Country Analysis
Nature of Synthetic Drugs Trade In Myanmar
Impact of Synthetic Drug Trade on Myanmar’s Government
Policies That May Be Helpful In Mitigating Synthetic Drugs Trade In Myanmar
A Holy Bible Analysis Of The Nature Of Synthetic Drug Trade
Conclusion
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Organized Crime in Asia: An Introduction
Organized and transnational crime is booming in Asia.
Transnational crime is expanding aggressively in South East Asia (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2019, July 18).
UNODC identifies synthetic drugs business as an organized crime in ascendance.
Per UNODC, Myanmar is the base for organized criminals involved in synthetic drugs business.
Asia is a melting pot of different cultures and a common thread that cuts across the cultures is that the region is deeply religious and the society is laidback.
Still, crime is booming especially in Southeast Asia. According to a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime titled “Transnational Organized Crime in Southeast Asia: Evolution, Growth and Impact”, many criminal networks are establishing Southeast Asia as their primary region for illicit activities.
UNDOC in the report identified synthetic drugs as the most profitable illicit business among criminal networks operating in the region. The mostly sold of the synthetic drugs is methamphetamine.
The UNDOC report valued the methamphetamine market at $61.4 billion USD on an annual basis as of July 2019. As per the report, the meth market has now surpassed heroin market as the most lucrative for the region’s criminal networks. The heroin market is now valued at $10.3 billion USD according to the UNDOC report.
According to the report, Myanmar has emerged as the base of operations for the criminal networks that engineer and sell the meth. And this is happening for two reasons: the first one is that Myanmar has cheap labor due to high rates of poverty. Secondly, Myanmar is grappling with the problem of incessant fighting that has created an opportunity for human traffickers to thrive by trafficking immigrants.
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Country analysis: Introduction to Myanmar
Measures 261,228 square miles and surrounded by six countries.
Touches Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea to the South.
Has a long history of war and violence.
Has an unusual ecological diversity that attracts millions of tourists every year (CIA).
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
Myanmar is a mid-size country measuring 261,228 square miles and located in Southeast Asia and surrounded by China to the North, Bhutan, India and Bangladesh to the West, and Thailand and Laos to the East.
To the south, Myanmar – which was formerly known as the Union of Burma – has a long coastline that touches the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea.
According to the World Factbook by the CIA, the country has had a long history with violence and war since 1057 when King Anawrahta founded a unified Myanmar state. In more recent years, the country has withstood colonial violence from Britain and Japanese occupation.
After gaining independence in 1948, the country fell under a repressive military junta almost immediately. The junta relinquished a hold on power in 2011 though reluctantly and that led to partly free elections in 2012.
Other than the endemic civil unrest, Myanmar is a magical country in terms of flora and fauna. The country is home to unique species of mammals, reptiles, and birds. More than 7,000 plant species are known to exist in the country.
The rich fauna and flora is a massive attraction to tourists who flock the country every year in millions.
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Country Analysis: People and society of Myanmar
Population is estimated to be about 56.6 million as of July 2020 (CIA).
About 26% of the population is aged 14 years and younger
Burman are the largest ethnic group (68%); others are Rakhine (4%), Indian (2%), Chinese (3%), etc.
A Myanmar national is referred to as a Burmese, and Burmese is the official language.
Buddhism is the largest faith followed by Christianity, Islam, Animism, and Hindu.
Myanmar has a considerably large population that measures about 56.6 million, as per CIA estimations in July 2020. about 26% of this population consists of young children aged 14 years and below. However, majority of the population consists of people aged between 25 years and 54 years at 42%.
The government of Myanmar recognizes 135 indigenous groups as part of the ethnicities of the country but only four ethnic groups have significant numbers.
The Burman ethnic group is the largest at 68% and this explains why they controlled the nation’s resources even naming the country Burma. Other significant ethnicities in the country are the Rakhine at 4%, Chinese at 4%, and Indians at 2%.
Because of their domination of the country’s important organs of power, the Burman ensured that their influence is felt through assigning the Myanmar nationality the Burmese adjective. Also, the official language recognized by the state is Burmese.
In terms of religion, Buddhists are the majority at 87.9% of the population, according to CIA estimations. Christians make up 6.2% of the country while Muslims come in third at 4.3%. The rest practice faiths such as Animism and Hindu, as well as a small percentage that is non-religious.
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Country analysis: Basic Government structure
The President is the head of the executive.
The State Counsellor assists the President to manage the affairs of the State with the help of two VPs.
The military wields great power in the government under the National Defense and Security Council (Aung & Arnold, 2018).
According to Aung and Arnold (2018), Myanmar has been under the rule of a military junta for almost five decades and in that period, the structure of government was unclear.
However, the junta crafted a new constitution in 2008 that established a multi-party democracy. But it was not until 2012 that the first elections in over 50 years took place. Even then, it took another four years before the first civilian President took the reigns since the 1962 military coup (Aung & Arnold, 2018).
Since 2016, the National League for Democracy (NLD) has been the governing party under President Htin Kyaw. President Kyaw rules with the help of Aung San Suu Kyi, who is also the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The executive has two Vice Presidents who assist with running of the government.
Even after relinquishing power to a civilian government, the military’s shadow still looms large over the current government. The military has a massive representation in the National Defense and Security Council that is responsible for critical decisions that affect the security of the country both inside and outside.
The Judiciary and the Legislature are also part of the government but their roles are hugely diminished. In Myanmar, executive policy making is almost the sole source of leadership (Aung & Arnold, 2018).
Nonetheless, the legislature makes laws and the judiciary interprets them.
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Nature of Synthetic drugs trade in Myanmar (1/2)
Myanmar’s narcotics economy is worth $4 billion USD (Routray, 2018).
Methamphetamines and fentanyl are the most commonly produced synthetic drugs in the country
Myanmar is the safe haven from where the drugs are transported to neighboring Thailand and far off places like Australia.
Authorities just seized a large haul of synthetic drugs in Myanmar in May 2020 (BBC, 2020, May 19).
In Transnational Organized Crime in Southeast Asia: Evolution, Growth and Impact, UNDOC identifies Myanmar as the safe haven in which production of synthetic drugs takes place.
The central government has failed to control the trade because of the nature of the structure of Myanmar’s society.
Ethnic areas in states such as Kachin and Shan have presented a huge challenge for the government due to endemic corruption (Routray, 2018). There are many “men of influence” in the area who benefit from the trade and they can go to any lengths to retain the status quo.
Some of the ethnic groups use armed force to ensure that their trade runs uninterrupted as they smuggle their produce into China and Thailand.
According to Routray (2018), the synthetic drugs trade in Myanmar earns producers and smugglers about $4 billion USD annually. The amount continues to increase as demand for meth and fentanyl increases in the larger Southeastern Asia region.
On May 19, 2020, the BBC reported that Myanmar authorities seized “more than 193m methamphetamine tablets, 500kg of crystal methamphetamine and 290kg of heroin” in one swoop in Shan state. This is the largest seizure in the history of the war against synthetic drugs in the country.
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Nature of Synthetic drugs trade in Myanmar (2/2)
Laboratory-made drugs in Myanmar have become popular because their availability is not seasonal like traditional heroin (Routray, 2018).
Precursor chemicals are easily accessible over the boarder in India and China.
Drug syndicates have “super-labs” in militia-controlled areas.
The China-Laos-Thailand-Myanmar Golden Triangle is the most notorious for this business (UNDOC).
Myanmar has emerged as the region’s largest producer of synthetic drugs for two main reasons. First, significant regions of the country are in conflict where ethnic groups are at each other’s throats constantly.
The militias that operate in these conflict-ridden areas offer protection for the drug syndicates by securing their “super-labs” as well as the smuggling routes.
Production of the illicit drugs has increased in the country especially as demand shifts from traditional drugs that rely on seasonal harvests (Routray, 2018). The drug networks have taken advantage of Myanmar’s instability to set up “super-labs” for largescale production.
The second reason why Myanmar has emerged as an important producer of synthetic drugs is the easy availability of precursor chemicals in neighboring China and India.
The precursor chemicals follow the same smuggling routes to enter Myanmar into the super-labs where meth, heroin, and fentanyl are mass-produced.
Primarily, the Golden Triangle that comprises regions of China, Laos, and Thailand that adjoin Myanmar is the most notorious and most crucial for the success of this business, according to United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
The UN alongside Myanmar’s authorities and other stakeholders continue to make drug bursts even as efforts to combat the trade escalate.
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impact of Synthetic drug trade on Myanmar’s government
The government of Myanmar has been unable to bring peace into the entire country because drug syndicates need the violence to carry on their trade activities (Ganesan, 2015).
Government has been losing revenue income because the trade steals from it productive labor and resources.
The government lacks goodwill from its neighbors because of its inability to reign in its subjects.
Although Myanmar returned to civilian government, the many ethnic groups have refused to quieten their guns because of the need to continue protecting the drug syndicates in their areas (Ganesan, 2015).
According to Ganesan (2015), some ethnic groups refused to sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) of October 15, 2015 because of unwillingness to give up the income they generate from protecting the drug syndicates and their supply chain.
Because of this reluctance, the country continues to fail at the quest of returning all its people to peaceful coexistence.
Continued conflict also implies the affected regions have dysfunctional economies. This means the people in the regions cannot gain meaningful income which can also contribute to the country’s tax revenue. As a result, the government continues to face steep shortages of revenue.
People in these regions that depend on the drug trade for income cannot involve themselves in meaningful employment, according to (Routray, 2018). The inability of the government to utilize the productive labor from the areas denies it the opportunity to generate income for national needs.
Just two months ago, authorities nabbed the largest consignment of synthetic drugs in Myanmar. Such instances cast the government in bad light especially concering its commitment to the war against this illicit business.
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policies that may be helpful in mitigating synthetic drugs trade in Myanmar
Government should prioritize provision of services and alternative livelihoods for people working in synthetic drug super labs (Gutierrez, 2020).
Authorities should increase efforts to pacify the regions that are still experiencing conflict.
Address other crimes such as human trafficking which facilitate the transportation of the drugs to their final destinations.
Neighboring China and India should tighten their surveillance of criminal syndicates that produce and supply precursor chemicals for use in Myanmar’s super labs.
According to Gutierrez (2020), the success of organized crimes such the synthetic drug trade go hand in hand with the presence of desperate of people who will do anything for survival.
The government of Myanmar, therefore, needs to ensure that people especially in states like Shan have access to alternative means of sustaining themselves for them to turn away from working the super labs.
Secondly, Gutierrez (2020) showed that conflict is the most significant enabler of crime. The drug syndicates need the cover of conflict to keep their supply chain humming. Therefore, the government needs to come up with a comprehensive policy that should pacify the entire country. The 2015 NCA was a great step in the right direction but, as it was clear, more effort in the part of the central government is needed.
Thirdly, human trafficking is critical to the success of the trade. Drug syndicates exploit the trafficked people as labor in the super labs as well as drug mules in the supply chain. Addressing human trafficking could help to mitigate synthetic drugs trade in Myanmar.
Fourthly, China and India should do more in terms of stemming the outflow of precursor chemicals into Myanmar. Without the precursor chemicals, the super labs cannot produce a single grain of meth.
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A Holy Bible analysis of the nature of synthetic drug trade
Drug syndicates operate their businesses with full knowledge of the adverse effects their products have on their consumers.
Hebrews 10: 26 warns against sinning deliberately.
People who engage in the illicit drug trade lack humanity.
Mark 8: 36 condemns such men as having forfeited their souls
According to the UNDOC report cited earlier, Southeast Asia is growing in significance as a hub for synthetic drugs because of the easy availability of labor and chemicals.
But the drug syndicates know all too well that their products are harmful and that they kill many people.
In fact, statistics show that more than 750,000 globally die every year because of the effects of illicit drugs such as those made in Myanmar (Our World in Data, 2019, December).
For the drug syndicates, this is a case of sinning deliberately because they are well aware of the statistics. Even those who do not die are addicted and this ruins their lives for good.
In Hebrews 10: 26, the Scripture says, “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,…” Here, the Bible warns that there is no redemption for those who sin with full knowledge of the nature of their ill deeds. It is a warning against drug syndicates that their evil is irredeemable.
The scripture adds in Mark 8: 36 that “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” This is further warning that criminals involved in theh drug trade deserve the worst punishment there is because they have forfeited their humanity.
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Conclusion
Myanmar is a victim of years of instability
A repressive junta created ethnic militias that will do anything to survive including establishing super labs for production of synthetic drugs.
Burmese who lack means of survival have no alternative but to involve themselves in the drug trade.
The government should move with speed to pacify the entire country if the trade is to be stopped.
The drug syndicate involves people who have forfeited humanity and will do anything to push their products.
Myanmar has known little peace since the military overthrew the civilian government in 1962. The years that followed have been populated with numerous instances of repression and state terror visited on the people.
The result is division of the country into smaller ethnic militias that will go to any length to ensure that its people survive. Once of the side effect of the instability created by the junta is incessant conflict.
The incessant conflict has created the ideal cover for drug syndicates to prowl the country where they have established super labs for production of tons of synthetic drugs.
Many people do not choose to involve themselves in the trade were it not for the need to survive. The drug syndicates have capitalized on this desperation to create an elaborate supply chain that feeds consumers worldwide.
The first step to mitigating this crime is for the government to pacify the entire country. With the pockets of instability eradicated, the drug syndicates will not have the cover to sin.
The Bible identifies the drug syndicate as people who have forfeited their humanity and the worst punishment should be visited on them to do away with the sin.
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References
Aung, S. M. T., & Arnold, M. (2018). Managing Change: Executive Policymaking in Myanmar.
BBC. (2020, May 19). Myanmar drugs seizure 'off the scale'. BBC News. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52712014
CIA. (n.d.). East Asia/Southeast Asia :: Burma — The world factbook. Welcome to the CIA Web Site — Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/print_bm.html
Ganesan, N. (2015). Ethnic insurgency and the nationwide ceasefire agreement in Myanmar. Asian Journal of Peacebuilding.
Gutierrez, E. D. (2020). The paradox of illicit economies: survival, resilience, and the limits of development and drug policy orthodoxy. Globalizations, 1-19.
Hebrews 10: 26 In New International Version
Our World in Data. (2019, December). Opioids, cocaine, cannabis and illicit drugs. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from https://ourworldindata.org/illicit-drug-use
Routray, B. P. (2018). Narco Economy in Myanmar: From Opiates to ATS.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. (2019, July 18). Organised crime syndicates are targeting Southeast Asia to expand operations: UNODC. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from https://www.unodc.org/southeastasiaandpacific/en/2019/07/transnational-organised-crime-southeast-asia-report-launch/story.html
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