Drug Abuse

Lao NEWS on LNTV: Laos will celebrate the Day Against Drug Abuse & Illicit Trafficking.23/6/2014
VO Laos will join the world celebrating the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26
INTRO: To mark International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26, Laos will hold a ceremony to incinerate confiscated amphetamines, narcotics and other illegal drugs. According to Chairman of LCDC, Kou Chansina, Laos is now working to curb the demand for drugs in a bid to reduce drug trafficking and the number of addicts. Enforcement officers and rehabilitators must work harder to free Laos from drugs by 2015
STORY: Kou Chansina announced that, Laos will join the world celebrating the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26. He said, among the illicit drugs known to be a problem is opium, which is cultivated throughout the region.
According to the latest United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime or UNODC opium survey in South East Asia , over 58,000 hectares were known to be under poppy cultivation in 2012, the majority in the three countries known to make up the Golden Triangle region.
According to the UNODC report, opium cultivation in Laos has increased from 1,500 hectares in 2007 to 6,800 hectares in 2012, but remains well below the levels recorded in the late 1990s.
Meanwhile, in one neighbouring country, cultivation has more than doubled from 21,600 hectares in 2006 to 51,000 hectares in 2012, while in another it has remained stable at a very low level.
In South-East Asia, opium poppies are mostly cultivated on steep hills with poor soil and no irrigation, and yields are much lower than in Afghanistan , where the crop is often cultivated on good soil and flat, irrigated land.
In 2012, opium yields were estimated at six kilogrammes per hectare in Laos and in neighbouring countries at between 13.5 to 15.6 kilogrammes per hectares. Total potential opium production in South-East Asia decreased from an estimated 1,435 tonnes in 1998 to only 734 tonnes in 2012.
In 1999, the Lao government and the UNODC developed a strategy called “Balanced approach to opium elimination in Laos “. In November 2000, the then prime minister ordered 14 concrete measures be taken against opium poppy cultivation and opium use.
In 2001, within the context of poverty reduction, the 7 th National Party Congress called for opium production and use to be eliminated by 2005. The National Campaign against Drugs was launched in October 2001 to encourage communities to give up opium production.
The Lao government stepped up the momentum of the campaign in 2004 and 2005, declaring its success in significantly reducing poppy cultivation and the number of opium users in the country in February 2006.
However, subsequent surveys have shown that the elimination of opium poppy cultivation is difficult to achieve. Cultivation figures have begun to increase and the continuing presence of opium cultivation in Laos indicates that it remains a source of income for some communities, but is mainly for local consumption.
From 2005 to 2009, the survey covered six provinces in northern Laos where opium poppy cultivation had taken place. From 2010, observations focused on Phongsaly, Huaphan, Luang Namtha and Xieng Khuang provinces, where most poppies were cultivated.
In 2012, the survey was extended to also cover Luang Prabang and Oudomxay provinces. The area under poppy cultivation was estimated through a helicopter survey in combination with satellite images of the major growing areas.