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Illegal drug trade

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"Drug dealer" redirects here. For the legal drug trade, see Legal drug trade.
International drug routes.

The Illegal drug trade is a global black market that is dedicated to the cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, and sale of drugs that are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs through the use of drug prohibition laws.

A UN report said, "the global drug trade generated an estimated US $321.6 billion in 2003."[1] With a world GDP of US$36 trillion in the same year, the illegal drug trade may be estimated as nearly 1% of total global trade. Consumption of illegal drugs is widespread globally.

History

See also: History of opium in China

Chinese edicts against opium smoking were made in 1729, 1796 and 1800.[2] Addictive drugs were prohibited in the west in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.[3][4][5]

An illegal drug trade emerged in the early 19th century. China retaliated by enforcing the ban on imports of opium that led to the First Opium War (1839–1842) between Great Britain and Qing dynasty China. Chinese authorities had banned opium, but the United Kingdom forced China to allow British merchants to trade opium with the general population. Smoking opium had become common in the 19th century, and British merchants increased their trade with the Chinese. Trading in opium was lucrative. As a result of this illegal trade, by 1838 the number of Chinese opium addicts had grown to between four and twelve million.[6] The Second Opium War broke out in 1856, with the British this time joined by the French. After the two Opium Wars, the British Crown, via the treaties of Nanking and Tianjin respectively, took large sums of money from the Chinese government through this illegal trade, which were referred to as "reparations".

In 1868, as the result of the increased use of opium, the UK restricted the sale of opium in Britain by implementing the 1868 Pharmacy Act .[7] In the United States, control remained a state responsibility until the introduction of the Harrison Act in 1914, following the passing of the International Opium Convention in 1912.

Between 1920 and 1933, alcohol was banned in the United States. This law was considered to have been very difficult to enforce and resulted in the growth of vast criminal organizations, including the modern American Mafia.[8][9]

Since drugs traded on the black market can provide a secretive source of money, they have long been used by organizations such as the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency to fund covert operations and proxy wars. CIA involvement in heroin trafficking began with the French Connection in Marseille and continued with anti-Communist operations in Southeast Asia.[10] In the early 1980s, the CIA used cocaine as a medium to launder money in Central America (allegedly as part of the Iran–Contra affair).[11]

The Australian Crime Commission's illicit drug data report for 2011–2012 was released in western Sydney on 20 May 2013 and revealed that the seizures cause by illegal substances in Australia during the reporting period were the largest in a decade due to record interceptions of amphetamines, cocaine and steroids.[12]

The beginning of the 21st century saw drug use go up in North America and Europe, with particularly increased demand for marijuana and cocaine.[13][14] As a result, international organized crime syndicates such as the Sinaloa Cartel and 'Ndrangheta have increased cooperation among each other in order to facilitate trans-Atlantic drug trafficking.[15] Another illicit drug with increased demand in Europe is Hashish, which is generally smuggled from Morocco to Spain, from where it is later exported to its final market (mostly France and Western Europe).[16][17]

The UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), the chief drug policymaking body at the United Nations, held its annual meeting in Vienna, Austria in mid-March 2014 following a period of historic drug policy reforms throughout the world, such as the decision of the Uruguay government to become the first national jurisdiction in the world to legalise cannabis. The International Drug Policy Consortium stated in the lead-up to the meeting: "The meeting itself is likely to feature standoffs between reform-oriented countries and governments that favour failed criminal justice models, which have resulted in mass incarceration and rampant human rights abuses such as the death penalty for non-violent drug offences." The support of drug policy reform by Joanne Csete, deputy director of the Open Society Global Drug Policy Program, was also published in the Consortium's media release: “There will be no shortage of governments that seek to bury their heads in the sand and pretend these drug policy reforms aren’t happening. But try as they might, the movement for drug law reform is unstoppable.”[18]

See also: Capital punishment for drug trafficking

In many countries, drug smuggling carries severe penalties. These include lengthy periods of incarceration, flogging and even the death penalty (in Singapore, Malaysia, etc.). In December 2005, Van Tuong Nguyen, a 25 year old Australian drug smuggler, was hanged in Singapore after being convicted in March 2004.[19] In 2010, two people were sentenced to death in Malaysia for trafficking 1 kilogram/2.2 pounds of cannabis into the country.[20]

Drug trafficking is widely regarded as the most serious of drug offenses around the world. However, sentencing often depends on the type of drug (and its classification in the country into which it is being trafficked), the quantity trafficked, where the drugs are sold and how they are distributed; for example if the drugs are sold to underage people, then the penalties for trafficking may be harsher than in other circumstances.

Effects of illegal drug trade on societies

The countries of drug production and drug transit have been seen as some of the worst affected by the drug trade though countries receiving the illegally-imported substances are also affected by problems stemming from drug trade. For example, Ecuador has absorbed up to 300,000 refugees from Colombia who are running from guerrillas, paramilitaries and drug lords. While some applied for asylum, others are still illegal. The drugs that pass from Colombia through Ecuador to other parts of South America create economic and social problems.[21]

Honduras, through which an estimated 79% of cocaine passes on its way to the United States,[22] has the highest murder rate in the world.[23]

Violent crime

File:Drug lord Christopher Coke in custody.jpg
Jamaican drug lord Christopher Coke being escorted by DEA agents

In many countries worldwide, the illegal drug trade is thought to be directly linked to violent crimes such as murder. This is especially true in developing countries, such as Honduras, but is also an issue for many developed countries worldwide.[24][25]

In the late 1990s in the United States the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimated that 5% of murders were drug-related.[24]

After a crackdown by U.S. and Mexican authorities in the first decade of the 21st century as part of tightened border security in the wake of the September 11 attacks, border violence inside Mexico surged. The Mexican government estimates that 90% of the killings are drug-related.[26]

A report by the UK government's drug strategy unit that was subsequently leaked to the press, stated that due to the expensive price of highly addictive drugs heroin and cocaine, that drug use was responsible for the great majority of crime, including 85% for shoplifting, 70-80% of burglaries and 54% of robberies. "The cost of crime committed to support illegal cocaine and heroin habits amounts to £16 billion a year in the UK" (note: this is more than the entire annual UK Home Office budget).[27]

Illegal cocaine trade via West Africa

Cocaine produced in Colombia and Bolivia has been increasingly shipped via West Africa (especially in Cape Verde, Mali, Benin, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon,Guinea-Bissau, and Ghana[28]). The money is often laundered in countries such as Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal.

Cargo planes are now also used as a method of transport from the production countries to West-Africa. Before this, the cocaine was only shipped to the USA. Because the market became saturated there, illicit drug traders decided to increase shipping to Europe. When these new drug routes were uncovered by the authorities, West Africa was chosen as a stop-over. In 2005, the first major cocaine shipment was intercepted by the police. In 2007, 30% of all cocaine shipped to the UK was estimated to come from West Africa. In 2009, 50% of all cocaine shipped to the UK was estimated to come from West Africa.[citation needed]

Drug mules, fishing boats, container ships, and submarines have been used to transship illegal drugs from West Africa to Europe.[citation needed]

Especially in Guinea-Bissau, the drugs have been traded with the help of political leaders such as former presidents, the son of dictator Lansana Conté, and chiefs of staff of the army.[citation needed]

According to the Africa Economic Institute, the value of illicit drug smuggling in Guinea-Bissau is almost twice the value of the country's GDP.[28] Policemen are often bribed. A policeman's normal monthly wage of 75 € is less than 2% of the value of 1 kilogram of cocaine (7000 €).[citation needed]

The money can also be laundered using real estate. A house is built using illegal funds, and when the house is sold, legal money is earned.[29]

When drugs are sent overland, through the Sahara, the drug traders have been increasingly forced to cooperate with terrorist organizations, such as Al Qaida in Islamic Maghreb.[30][31]

Main drug trafficking route in Asia

A large amount of drugs are smuggled into Europe from Asia. The main source of these drugs is Afghanistan. Farmers in Afghanistan produce drugs which are smuggled into the West and central Asia. Iran is a main route for smugglers. The Chief of border police of Iran says that his country "is a strong barrier against the trafficking of illegal drugs to Caucasus, especially the Republic of Azerbaijan."[32]

Profits

US$207 million and additional amounts in other currencies were confiscated from Mexican Zhenli Ye Gon in 2007
Hashish seized in Operation Albatross, a joint operation of Afghan officials, NATO and the DEA.

Due to its illicit nature, statistics about profits from the drug trade are largely unknown. In its 1997 World Drugs Report the UNODC estimated the value of the market at US$400 billion, ranking drugs alongside arms and oil among the world's largest traded goods.[33] An online report published by the UK Home Office in 2007 estimated the illicit drug market in the UK at £4–6.6 billion a year[34]

In December 2009, the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Antonio Maria Costa, claimed that illegal drug money saved the banking industry from collapse. He claimed he had seen evidence that the proceeds of organized crime were "the only liquid investment capital" available to some banks on the brink of collapse during 2008. He said that a majority of the US$352bn (£216bn) of drugs profits was absorbed into the economic system as a result. "In many instances, the money from drugs was the only liquid investment capital. In the second half of 2008, liquidity was the banking system's main problem and hence liquid capital became an important factor...Inter-bank loans were funded by money that originated from the drugs trade and other illegal activities... There were signs that some banks were rescued that way". Costa declined to identify countries or banks that may have received any drug money, saying that would be inappropriate because his office is supposed to address the problem, not apportion blame.[35]

Drug Cartels in the Western Hemisphere

Main article: Drug cartel
See also: Drug trafficking organizations

Background

There are several arguments on whether or not free trade has a correlation to an increased activity in the illicit drug trade. Currently, the structure and operation of the illicit drug industry is described mainly in terms of an international division of labor.[36] Free trade can open new markets to domestic producers who would otherwise resort to exporting illicit drugs. Additionally, extensive free trade among states increases cross-border drug enforcement and coordination between law enforcement agencies in different countries.[36] However, free trade also increases the sheer volume of legal cross-border trade and provides cover for drug smuggling by providing ample opportunity to conceal illicit cargo in licit trade. While international free trade continues to expand the volume of legal trade, the ability to detect and interdict drug trafficking is severely diminished. Towards the late 1990s, the top ten seaports in the world processed 33.6 million containers.[36] Free trade has fostered integration of financial markets and has provided drug traffickers with more opportunities to launder money and invest in other activities. This strengthens the drug industry while weakening the efforts of law enforcement to monitor the flow of drug money into the legitimate economy. Cooperation expands the power of cartels to distant markets and strengthens their abilities to evade detection by local law enforcement.[36] Additionally, criminal organizations work together to coordinate money-laundering activities by having separate organizations handle specific stages of laundering process.[36] One organization structures the process through which financial transactions will be laundered, while another criminal group provides the “dirty” money to be cleaned.[36] By fostering expansion of trade and global transportation networks, free trade encourages cooperation and formation of alliances among criminal organizations across different countries. The drug trade in Latin America emerged in the early 1930s.[37] It saw significant growth in the Andean countries, including Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, and Argentina.[37] The underground market in the early half of the 20th century mainly had ties to Europe. After World War II, the Andean countries saw an expansion of trade, specifically with cocaine.[37]

The United States

Background

The effects of the illegal drug trade in the United States can be seen in a range of political, economic, and social aspects. Increasing drug violence can be tied to the racial tension that arose during the late twentieth century along with the political upheaval that was prevalent throughout the 1960s and 70s. The second half of the twentieth century was a period when increased wealth, with concurrent increased discretionary spending, drove an increased demand for illicit drugs in certain areas of the United States.

Political impact

A numerically large generation, the baby boomers, came of age in the 1960s. Their social tendency to confront the law on specific issues, including illegal drugs, overwhelmed the understaffed judicial system. The federal government attempted to enforce the law, but with meager affect.

Marijuana was a popular drug seen through the Latin American trade route in the 1960s. Cocaine became a major drug product in the later decades.[38] Much of the cocaine is smuggled from Columbia and Mexico via Jamaica.[39] This led to several administrations combating the popularity of these drugs. Due to the influence of this development on the U.S. economy, the Reagan Administration began "certifying" countries for their attempts at controlling drug trafficking.[38] This allowed the U.S. to intervene in activities related to illegal drug transport in Latin America. Continuing into the 1980s, the United States instated stricter policy pertaining to drug transit through sea and as a result, there was an influx in drug-trafficking across the Mexican–U.S. border.[38] This increased the drug cartel activity in Mexico.[38] By the early 1990s, so much as 50 percent of the cocaine available on the United States market originated from Mexico, and by the 2000s, over 90 percent of the cocaine in the United States was imported from Mexico.[38] In Colombia, however, there was a fall of the major drug cartels in the mid-1990s. Visible shifts occurred in the drug market in the United States. Between the years 1996 and 2000, U.S. consumption of cocaine had dropped by 11 percent.[40]

In 2008, the United States government initiated another program, known as The Merida Initiative, to help combat drug trafficking in Mexico. This program increased U.S. security assistance to $1.4 billion over several years, which helped supply Mexican forces with "high-end equipment from helicopters to surveillance technology".[41] However, despite U.S. aid, Mexican "narcogangs" continue to outnumber and outgun the Mexican Army, allowing for the continued activities of drug cartels across the U.S.-Mexican border.[41]

Social impacts

Although narcotics are illegal in the U.S., they have become integrated into the nation's culture and are seen as a recreational activity by sections of the population.[42] Illicit drugs are considered to be a commodity with strong demand, as they are typically sold at a high value. This high price is caused by a combination of factors that include the potential legal ramifications that exist for suppliers of illicit drugs and their high demand. (limited supply can be caused by a range of factors).[43] Despite the constant effort by politicians to win the war on drugs, the U.S. is still the world’s largest importer of illegal drugs.[43]

Throughout the 20th century, narcotics other than cocaine also crossed the Mexican border, meeting the U.S. demand for alcohol during 1920s Prohibition, opiates in the 1940s, marijuana in the 1960s, and heroin in the 1970s." [44] Most of the U.S. imports of drugs come from Mexican drug cartels. In the United States, around 195 cities have been infiltrated by drug trafficking that originated in Mexico.[42] An estimated $10 billion of the Mexican drug cartel’s profits come from the United States, not only supplying the Mexican drug cartels with the profit necessary for survival, but also furthering Americans’ economic dependence on drugs.[42] As the drug industry expands in the U.S., a greater population of the public are beginning to rely on the drug industry for their source of income.

Demographics

With a large wave of immigrants in the 1960s and onwards, the United States saw an increased heterogeneity in its public.[45] In the 1980s and 1990s, drug related homicide was at a record high. This increase in drug violence became increasingly tied to these ethnic minorities. Though the rate of violence varied tremendously among cities in America, it was a common anxiety in communities across urban America. An example of this could be seen in Miami, a city with a host of ethnic enclaves.[45] Between 1985 and 1995, the homicide rate in Miami was one of the highest in the nation as well as having a drug homicide rate four times that the national average. This crime was correlated with regions that experieinced with low employment however and was not entirely dependent on the ethnicities present.[45]

The baby boomer generation also felt the effects of the drug trade in their increased drug use from the 1960s to 1980s.[46] Along with substance abuse, criminal involvement, suicide, and murder were also on the rise during this time. Due to the large size of the Baby Boomers, commercial marijuana use was on the rise. This increased the supply and demand for marijuana during this time period.[46]

Mexico

Political influences

Corruption in Mexico has contributed to the domination of Mexican cartels in the illicit drug trade. Since the beginning of the 20th century, Mexico's political environment allowed the growth of drug-related activity. The loose regulation over the transportation of illegal drugs and the failure to prosecute known drug traffickers and gangs increased the growth of the drug industry. Toleration of drug trafficking has undermined the authority of the Mexican government and has decreased the power of law enforcement officers in regulation over such activities. These policies of tolerance fostered the growing power of drug cartels in the Mexican economy and have made drug traders wealthier.[47] Many states in Mexico lack policies that establish stability in governance. There also is a lack of local stability, as mayors cannot be re-elected. This requires electing a new mayor each term. Drug gangs have manipulated this, ensuing a vacuum in local leadership to their own advantage.[38]

In 1929, The PRI (The Institutional Revolutionary Party) was formed to resolve the chaos resulting from the Mexican Revolution. Over time, this party gained political influence and had a major impact on Mexico's social and economic policies.[38] The PRI created ties with various groups as a power play in order to gain influence, and as a result stirred corruption in the government. One such power play was an alliance with drug traffickers. This political corruption obscured justice, making it difficult to identify violence when it related to drugs.[48] By the 1940s, the tie between the drug cartels and the PRI had solidified. This arrangement created immunity for the leaders of the drug cartels and allowed drug trafficking to grow under the protection of the government officials. During the 1990s, the PRI lost some elections to the new PAN (National Action Party. Chaos again emerged as elected government in Mexico arrived a turning point.[49] As the PAN party took control, drug cartel leaders took advantage of the ensuing confusion and used their existing influence to further gain power.[49] Instead of negotiating with the central government as was done with the PRI party intact, drug cartels utilized new ways to distribute their supply and continued operating through force and intimidation.[49] As Mexico became more democratized, the corruption fell from a centralized power to the local authorities.[49] Cartels began to bribe local authorities, thus eliminating the structure and rules placed by the government, giving cartels more freedom.[49] As a response, Mexico saw an increase in violence caused by drug trafficking.

The massive amounts of corruption cartels created resulted in distrust of government by the Mexican public.[49] This distrust became more prominent after the collapse of the PRI party.[49] In response, the presidents of Mexico, in the late twentieth century and early twenty-first century, implemented several different programs relating to law enforcement and regulation. In 1993, President Salinas created the National Institute for the Combat of Drugs in Mexico. From 1995–1998, President Zedillo established policies regarding increased punishment of organized crime, allowing "telephonic interception, protected witnessed, covert agents, and seizures of goods", and increasing the quality of law enforcement at the federal level. From 2001–2005, President Vicente Fox created the Federal Agency of Investigation (comparable to the FBI of the United States[citation needed]).[47] These policies resulted in the arrests of major drug-trafficking bosses Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo of the Sinaloa Cartel in 1989, Joaquín Guzmán Loera of the Sinaloa Cartel in 1993, Héctor Luis Palma Salazar in 1995, Juan Garcia Abrego of the Gulf Cartel in 1996, Ismael Higuera Guerrero[47] and Jesus Labra of the Tijuana Cartel, Adan Amezcua of the Colima Cartel, Benjamin Arellano Felix of the Tijuana Cartel in 2002, and Osiel Cardenas of the Gulf Cartel in 2003.[47]

Mexico's Economy

Drug cartels, over the past few decades, have become integrated into Mexico’s economy. Approximately 500 cities are directly engaged in drug trafficking and nearly 1,450,000 people are employed by drug cartels.[49] Additionally, 3.2 million people’s livelihood is dependent of the drug cartels.[49] Between local and international sales, such as to Europe and the United States, drug cartels in Mexico see a $25–30 billion yearly profit.[49] Drug cartels are fundamental in local economics. A percentage of the profits seen from these most cartels trade are invested in the local community.[49] Such profits contribute to the education and healthcare of the community.[49] While these cartels bring violence and hazard into communities, they nonetheless create jobs and provide income for its many members.[49]

Culture of Drug Cartels

Major cartels saw growth due to a prominent set culture of Mexican society that created the means for drug capital. One of the sites of origin for drug trafficking within Mexico, was the state of Michoacán. In the past, Michoacán was mainly an agricultural society. This provided an initial growth of trade. Industrialization of rural areas of Mexico allowed facilitated a greater distribution of drugs, expanding the drug market into different provinces.[48] Once towns became industrialized, cartels started to form and expand. The proliferation of drug cartel culture largely stemmed from the ranchero culture seen in Michoacán. Ranchero culture values the individual as opposed to the society as a whole.[48] This culture fostered the drug culture of valuing the family that is formed within the cartel. This ideal allowed for greater organization within the cartels. Gangs play a major role in the activity of drug cartels. Two such gangs (the MS-13 and Deiciocho) are notorious for their contributions and influence over drug trafficking throughout Latin America. MS-13 has controlled much of the activity in the drug trade spanning from Mexico to Panama[49] Female involvement is present in the Mexican drug culture. Although females are not treated as equals to males, they typically hold more power than their culture allows and acquire some independence. The increase in power has attracted females from higher social classes.[50] Financial gain has also prompted women to become involved in the illegal drug market. Many women in the lower levels of major drug cartels belong to a low economic class. Drug trafficking offers women an accessible way to earn income.[50] Females from all social classes have become involved in the trade due to outside pressure from their social and economic environment.

Colombia

Political Ties

It was common for smugglers, specifically in Colombia, to import liquor, alcohol, cigarettes, and textiles, while exporting cocaine.[37] Personnel with knowledge of the terrain were able to supply the local market while also exporting a large amount of product.[37] The established trade that began in the 1960s involved Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, and Cuba. With peasant farmers producing coca paste in Peru and Bolivia, Colombia smugglers would process the coca paste into cocaine in Colombia, and product was trafficked through Cuba.[37] This trade route led to established ties between Cuban and Colombian organized crime. From Cuba, cocaine would be transported to Miami, Florida, and Union City, New Jersey. Quantities of the drug were then smuggled throughout the US.[37] The international drug trade created political ties between the involved countries, encouraging the governments of the countries involved to collaborate and instate common policies to eradicate drug cartels. Cuba stopped being a center for transport of cocaine following the establishment of a communist government in 1959. Instead, Miami and Union City became the sole locations for trafficking.[37] The relations between Cuban and Colombian organized crime remained strong until the 1970s, when Colombian cartels began to vie for power. In the 1980s and 1990s, Colombia emerged as a key contributor of the drug trade industry in the Western Hemisphere. While the smuggling of drugs such as marijuana, poppy, opium, and heroin became more ubiquitous during this time period, the activity of cocaine cartels drove the development of the Latin American drug trade. The trade emerged as a multinational effort as supplies (i.e. coca plant substances) were imported from countries such as Bolivia and Peru, were refined in Colombian cocaine labs and smuggled through Colombia, and were exported to countries such as the U.S.[51]

Colombia's Economy

Colombia has had a significant role in the illegal drug trade in Latin America. While active in the drug trade since the 1930s, Colombia's role in the drug trade did not truly become dominant until the 1970s.[51] When Mexico eradicated marijuana plantations, demand stayed the same. Colombia met much of the demand by growing more marijuana. Grown in the strategic northeast region of Colombia, marijuana soon became the leading cash crop in Colombia.[37] This success was short-lived however due to anti-marijuana campaigns that were enforced by the U.S military throughout the Caribbean.[37] Instead, drug traffickers in Colombia continued their focus on the exportation of cocaine.[37] Having been an export of Colombia since the early 1950s, cocaine remained popular for a host of reasons. Colombia's location facilitated its transportation from South America, into Central America, and then to its destination of North America. This continued into the 1990s where Colombia remained the chief exporter of cocaine.[40] The business of drug trafficking can be seen in several stages in Colombia towards the latter half of the 20th century. Colombia served as the dominant force in the distribution and sale of cocaine by the 1980s. As drug producers gained more power, they became more centralized and organized into what became drug cartels.[40] Cartels controlled the major aspects of each stage in the traffic of their product. Their organization allowed cocaine to be distributed in great amounts throughout the United States. By the late 1980s, intra-industry strife arose within the cartels.[40] This stage was marked by increased violence as different cartels fought for control of export markets. Despite this strife, this power struggle led to then having multiple producers of coca leaf farms. This in turn caused an improvement in quality control and reduction of police interdiction in the distribution of cocaine.[40] This also led to cartels attempting to repatriate their earnings which would eventually make up 5.5% of Colombia's GDP.[40] This drive to repatriate earnings led to the pressure of legitimizing their wealth. This caused an increase in violence throughout Colombia.[40]

Throughout the 1980s, estimates of illegal drug value in Colombia ranged from $2 billion to $4 billion.[51] This made up about 7-10% of the $36 billion estimated GNP of Colombia during this decade. In the 1990s, the estimates of the illegal drug value remained roughly within the same range (~$2.5 billion).[51] As the Colombian GNP rose throughout the 90s ($68.5 billion in 1994 and $96.3 billion in 1997),[51] the illegal drug value began to comprise a decreasing fraction of the national economy.[51] By the early 1990s, though Colombia led in the exportation of cocaine, it found increasing confrontations within its state. These confrontations were primarily between cartels and government institutions. This led to a decrease in the drug trade's contribution to the GDP of Colombia, dropping from 5.5 to 2.6%.[40] Though a contributor of wealth, the distribution of cocaine has had negative effects on the socio-political situation of Colombia and has weakened its economy as well.[40]

Social Impacts

By the 1980s, Colombian cartels became the dominant cocaine distributors in the US.[37] This led to the spread of increased violence throughout both Latin America and Miami.[37] In the 1980s, two major drug cartels emerged in Colombia: the Medellin and Cali groups. Throughout the 90s however, several factors led to the decline of these major cartels and to the rise of smaller Colombian cartels.[51] The U.S. demand for cocaine dropped while Colombian production rose, pressuring traffickers to find new drugs and markets. In this time period, there was an increase in activity of Caribbean cartels that led to the rise of an alternate route of smuggling through Mexico. This led to the increased collaboration between major Colombian and Mexican drug traffickers. Such drastic changes in the execution of drug trade in Colombia paired with the political instabilities and rise of drug wars in Medellin and Cali, gave way for the rise of the smaller Colombian drug trafficking organizations (and the rise of heroin trade).[51] As the drug trade’s influence over the economy increased, drug lords and their networks grew in their power and influence in society. The occurrences in drug-related violence increased during this time period as drug lords fought to maintain their control in the economy.[51] Typically a drug cartel had support networks that consisted of a number of individuals. These people individuals ranged from those directly involved in the trade (such as suppliers, chemists, transporters, smugglers, etc.) as well as those involved indirectly in the trade (such as politicians, bankers, police, etc.). As these smaller Colombian drug cartels grew in prevalence, several notable aspects of the Colombian society gave way for further development of the Colombian drug industry. For example, until the late 1980s, the long-term effects of the drug industry were not realized by much of society. Additionally, there was a lack of regulation in prisons where captured traffickers were sent. These prisons were under-regulated, under-funded, and under-staffed, which allowed for the formation of prison gangs, for the smuggling of arms/weapons/etc., for feasible escapes, and even for captured drug lords to continue running their businesses from prison.[51]

Trade in specific drugs

Cannabis

4 ounces of cannabis
Main article: Legality of cannabis

While the recreational use of (and consequently the distribution of) cannabis is illegal in most countries throughout the world, it is available by prescription or recommendation in many places, including Canada and some US states, with Washington state and Colorado being the two first states to legalize marijuana for recreational use, although importation and distribution is prohibited at the federal level.[52] Beginning in 2014, Uruguay will be the first country to legalize cultivation, sale, and consumption of cannabis for recreational use for adult residents.

Cannabis use is tolerated in some areas, most notably the Netherlands which has legalized the possession and licensed sale (but not cultivation) of the drug. Many nations have decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Due to the hardy nature of the cannabis plant, marijuana is grown all across the world and is today the world's most popular illegal drug with the highest level of availability. Cannabis is grown legally in many countries for industrial, non-drug use (known as hemp) as well. Cannabis-hemp may also be planted for other non-drug domestic purposes, such as seasoning that occurs in Aceh.[citation needed]

The demand for cannabis around the world, coupled with the drug's relative ease of cultivation, makes the illicit cannabis trade one of the primary ways in which organized criminal groups finance many of their activities. In Mexico, for example, the illicit trafficking of cannabis is thought to constitute the majority of many of the cartels' earnings,[53] and thus the main way in which they (the cartels) finance many other illegal activities ranging from the purchase of other illegal drugs for trafficking and weapons that are ultimately used to commit murders (causing a burgeoning in the homicide rates of many areas of the world, but particularly Latin America).[54][55]

Alcohol

Main article: Alcohol

Alcohol, in the context of alcoholic beverages rather than denatured alcohol, is illegal in a number of countries, such as Saudi Arabia, and this has resulted in a thriving illegal trade in alcohol being commonplace.[56][vague] The manufacture, sale, transportation, importation and exportation of alcoholic beverage were illegal in the United States during the time known as prohibition in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Heroin

Main article: Heroin
A field of opium poppies in Burma.

Up until around 2004 the majority of the world's heroin was produced in an area known as the Golden Triangle (Southeast Asia).[57][page needed] However, by 2007, 93% of the opiates on the world market originated in Afghanistan.[58] This amounted to an export value of about US$64 billion, with a quarter being earned by opium farmers and the rest going to district officials, insurgents, warlords and drug traffickers.[59] Another significant area where poppy fields are grown for the manufacture of heroin is Mexico.

According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the price of heroin is typically valued 8 to 10 times that of cocaine on American streets, making it a high-profit substance for smugglers and dealers.[60] In Europe (except the transit countries Portugal and the Netherlands), for example, a purported gram of street heroin, usually consisting of 700–800 mg of a light to dark brown powder containing 5-10% heroin base, costs between 30 and 70 euros, making the effective value per gram of pure heroin between 300 and 700 euros. Heroin is generally a preferred target for smuggling and distribution over unrefined opium due to the cost-effectiveness and increased efficacy[citation needed] of heroin.

Because of the high cost per volume, heroin is easily smuggled. A US quarter-sized (2.5 cm) cylindrical vial can contain hundreds of doses. From the 1930s to the early 1970s, the so-called French Connection supplied the majority of US demand. Allegedly, during the Vietnam War, drug lords such as Ike Atkinson used to smuggle hundreds of kilos of heroin to the U.S. in coffins of dead American soldiers (see Cadaver Connection). Since that time it has become more difficult for drugs to be imported into the United States than it had been in previous decades, but that does not stop the heroin smugglers from getting their product onto U.S. soil. Purity levels vary greatly by region with, for the most part, Northeastern cities having the most pure heroin in the United States.

Penalties for smuggling heroin and/or morphine are often harsh in most countries. Some countries will readily hand down a death sentence (e.g. Singapore) or life in prison for the illegal smuggling of heroin or morphine, which are both, internationally, Schedule I drugs under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.[citation needed]

Methamphetamine

Main article: Methamphetamine

Methamphetamine is another popular drug among distributors. Three common street names are "crystal meth", "meth", and "ice".[61]

According to the Community Epidemiology Work Group, the numbers of clandestine methamphetamine laboratory incidents reported to the National Clandestine Laboratory Database decreased from 1999 to 2009. During this same period, methamphetamine lab incidents increased in midwestern States (Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio), and in Pennsylvania. In 2004, more lab incidents were reported in Missouri (2,788) and Illinois (1,058) than in California (764). In 2003, methamphetamine lab incidents reached new highs in Georgia (250), Minnesota (309), and Texas (677). There were only seven methamphetamine lab incidents reported in Hawaii in 2004, though nearly 59 percent of substance abuse treatment admissions (excluding alcohol) were for primary methamphetamine abuse during the first six months of 2004. As of 2007, Missouri leads the United States in clandestine lab seizures, with 1,268 incidents reported.[62] Often canine units are used for detecting rolling meth labs which can be concealed on large vehicles, or transported on something as small as a motorcycle. These labs are more difficult to detect than stationary ones, and can often be obscured with the legal cargo on big trucks.[63]

Methamphetamine is sometimes used in an injectable form, placing users and their partners at risk for transmission of HIV and hepatitis C.[64] "Meth" can also be inhaled, most commonly vaporized on aluminum foil, or through a test tube or light bulb fashioned into a pipe. This method is reported to give "an unnatural high" and a "brief intense rush".[65]

In South Africa methamphetamine is called "tik" or "tik-tik".[citation needed] Children as young as eight are abusing the substance, smoking it in crude glass vials made from light bulbs.[citation needed] Since methamphetamine is easy to produce, the substance is manufactured locally in staggering quantities.[citation needed]

The government of North Korea currently operates methamphetamine production facilities. There, the drug is used as medicine since no others are available; it also is smuggled across its border with China.[66]

The Australian Crime Commission's illicit drug data report for 2011–2012 stated that the average strength of crystal methamphetamine doubled in most Australian jurisdictions within a 12-month period and the majority of domestic laboratory closures involved small "addict-based" operations.[12]

Temazepam

Main article: Temazepam

Temazepam, a strong hypnotic benzodiazepine, is illicitly manufactured in clandestine laboratories (called jellie labs) to supply the increasingly high demand for the hypnotic drug internationally.[67] Many clandestine temazepam labs are in Eastern Europe. The labs manufacture temazepam by chemically altering diazepam, oxazepam or lorazepam.[68] Clandestine "jellie labs" have been identified and shutdown in Russia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Latvia and Belarus.[69]

In the United Kingdom, temazepam is the most widely-abused legal prescription drug[citation needed]. It is also the most commonly abused benzodiazepine in Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, India, Russia, People's Republic of China, New Zealand, Australia and some parts of Southeast Asia[citation needed]. In Sweden it has been banned due to a problem with drug abuse issues and a high rate of death caused by temazepam alone relative to other drugs of its group. Surveys in many countries show that temazepam, MDMA, nimetazepam, and methamphetamine rank among the top illegal drugs most frequently abused.[70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80]

See also

International coordination:

References

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