US, opium, Karzai and other stories

Foremost in the minds of the international community these days is the Karzai government. Allegations of corruption are on the rise. It is alleged that Karzai’s own brother, Wali, is involved in the opium trade. Karzai is also facing criticism for his alliances with warlords. It would be interesting to see how Karzai addresses the concerns of the international community over the corruption charges leveled at him. In a recent television interview Karzai denied allegations of corruption against top government functionaries.

There are more than 100,000 North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and US-led troops stationed in Afghanistan at present, fighting the most serious Taliban insurgency since the Taliban regime was toppled eight years ago. Back in Washington, President Barack Obama is mulling over sending 40,000 more troops to Afghanistan.

Opium and the illicit trade of opiates – specifically heroin – have to be seen in this context. More than nine-tenths of the opium market worth $ 65 billion is flooded with Afghan opium according to UN findings. The rampant corruption and lawlessness inside Afghanistan, and the porous borders in the surrounding regions, ensure that only two percent of the opium is seized locally.

According to the UN, world-wide, opium takes 100,000 lives annually. In NATO member states alone, 10,000 people die of Afghan heroin. This is five times the number of NATO troops killed in action in Afghanistan since 2001. The worst affected is Russia, with 30,000 deaths annually. This is more than the Soviet deaths during USSR’s intervention in Afghanistan in 1979-1989.

These figures are indicative enough of the seriousness of the issue. There is little doubt that the struggle to uproot opium cultivation from the Afghan soil is as important as uprooting the Taliban if not more. The consequences of opium are certainly more insidious and devastating to society than terrorism.



There is further impetus to controlling drug trade in Afghanistan. Flush with drug money generated through direct involvement and taxing opium farmers in the regions under their control, the Taliban is slowly acquiring a war machine which is becoming technologically more complex, according to the UN report. The report also estimates that the Taliban has hoarded about 12,000 tons of Afghan opium.

In this grim situation there is a ray of hope. Afghan Opium Survey 2009 estimates that =opium cultivation in Afghanistan decreased from 157,000 hectares in 2008 to 123,000 hectares this year, a drop of 22%. The number of provinces free from opium cultivation has increased to 20 from 18 previously. The mix of carrot and stick policy and favourable terms of trade for legal crops coupled with introduction of “food zones” for the promotion of licit farming appears to be showing positive results. Along with this, the drop in opium prices due to over-supply at the source and low market penetration, especially in European markets, has started tilting the balance against opium cultivation.

These are good signs. A sustained targeting of real criminals instead of poor Afghan farmers and sincere efforts to eradicate poverty in the country would go a long way in bringing stability to the region. There is much to be accomplished on this front.

Politics over Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh

The Tibetan spiritual leader, Dalai Lama is currently on a week-long visit to Arunachal Pradesh. He arrived at the Tawang monastery on Nov 8 and is expected to stay there for four days. Fifty years ago, in 1959, a young Dalai Lama had fled Tibet after a failed uprising against Chinese occupation of his homeland to take refuge in the Tawang monastery. This is the 74-year-old Nobel Peace laureate’s fifth visit to the Indian state.

This visit is taking place in spite of stiff opposition from China which claims Arunachal Pradesh as a part of its territory.

Tawang, close to the Sino-Indian border, houses the Urgelling Monastery, one of the most sacred Buddhist monasteries. It was here that the sixth Dalai Lama had been born in the 17th century.

Tawang had eagerly awaited the arrival of the Dalai Lama since the beginning of the year. But the Dalai Lama had to cancel his earlier trip because the government did not want any trouble ahead of the general elections during April-May.



Arunachal is the bone of contention between the two Asian giants, India and China. It is currently the focal point of a long running border dispute which has seen the two countries go to war in 1962.

“We are resolutely against Dalai's visit,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu had told reporters earlier. “We think that has further exposed the anti-China and separatist nature of the Dalai clique.”

The Indian foreign ministry responded by saying that the Dalai Lama was free to travel anywhere in India.

The Dalai Lama himself had hit out against China a week ago for opposing his visit to Arunachal Pradesh, while on visit to Japan.

"I was surprised at China's criticism. If my visit creates problems, I am very sad, that's all... all my visits are non-political in nature," he had said while addressing reporters at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan.

"In 1962, during the India-China war, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) already occupied all these areas (Arunachal Pradesh) but they announced a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew, accepting the current international boundary," he had gone on to add.

“If you find out that what China’s Government is saying about Tibet is correct, then I will cease all my activities and apologise to them,” he further said.

Indian has always maintained Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India. It is heartening to see India put its foot down on what amounts to undue interference by China in its internal matters. The Dalai Lama’s presence in Tawang best symbolises India’s territorial integrity.

Drug trade in Afghanistan

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Afghanistan is the largest producer of opium in the world.

According to the United Nations, in 2007, more than 90% of the opium produced in the world came from Afghanistan. Opium cultivation and drug trafficking contribute 60 percent of the national income.

More disturbing is the fact that Taliban uses the drug money to finance its activities.

Major areas of opium cultivation in Afghanistan are the provinces bordering Pakistan and Iran, thus facilitating drug transactions. Opium farmers receive only a fraction of the returns from the drug trade but it still is about ten times higher than returns from wheat cultivation. For the impoverished Afghan farmers, it is an enticement hard to resist.



Being the most lucrative source of income in Afghanistan, opium trade has many stake-holders. Opium trade flourishes in regions which the Taliban now control. Ironically, it was Taliban which had initiated the world’s most successful drug eradication programme less than a decade ago when it declared opium cultivation as un-Islamic. The Taliban finance their terrorist activities with the returns from their drug trade.

Besides the Taliban, opium trade also thrives in regions controlled by former warlords. Historically, opium trade was used by them to finance the purchase of weapons. During the war on Afghanistan, United States used these warlords for the overthrow of the Taliban. Now a reluctant partnership exists between the warlords and the US. The US needs them in its hunt for Taliban. Thus, its ability to control the drug trade is greatly hampered.

Then there are government officials who turn a blind eye to the drug trade in exchange for bribes. This makes the implementation of anti-drug initiatives difficult at the grassroots level. There have been numerous reports of the Afghan police selectively destroying the crops of those farmers who did not or could not afford to pay bribes.



To top it all, there is the weak Hamid Karzai government which controls only parts of the country. There are also allegations that the government itself protects opium cultivation.

Opium cultivation flourishes in regions where political instability exists and economic avenues are constrained. Afghanistan is a good example. The most effective way to control drug trade is to check it at its source. To do so it is essential to provide opium cultivators with economically viable alternatives to growing opium.