Dealers in high places

EDITORIAL

Published: 12/02/2012 at 04:03 AM
Newspaper section: News

With the staggering amounts of money to be made it should not surprise anyone if some people who are supposed to on the side of drug suppression are in fact involved in feeding the drug trade, both in Myanmar and Thailand

Recent weeks have seen some major drug busts in the Kingdom, the largest when police raided a house in Pathum Thani at the end of January and found almost four million ya ba (methamphetamine) pills and 71kg of crystal methamphetamine, or ''ice''. It is no secret that for many years most of the drugs entering Thailand have come from Myanmar, and a report in this week's Spectrum provides compelling evidence that in the last couple of years drug production has significantly increased. In the Spectrum report, professor Des Ball of Australia's Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, who has researched Myanmar's drugs trade for many years, says that ethnic ceasefire groups are in control of production and trafficking of drugs, and strongly implies it is with the government's knowledge. This is not a new accusation by any means, and common sense says for the trade to thrive as it has, at the very least there must be some people in high places turning a blind eye to it.

Unfortunately it appears that this may also be the case in Thailand. The drugs seized in Pathum Thani were traced to Niphon Kanchat, who revealed to interrogators that his trafficking operation depended on the cooperation of Maj Piyanat Ketchamras of the engineer battalion of the Third Army at Phitsanulok. Mr Niphon told police that Maj Piyanat worked as a courier and was paid one million baht to take drugs from Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district to Ayutthaya or Pathum Thani, where Mr Niphon waited to pick up the shipments. The army quickly gave up Maj Piyanat, who is now in custody and presumably will have his day in court, as will Mr Niphon, who police believe was working for the drug network once run by the late drug warlord Khun Sa in Thailand's northern border areas.

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Aussie John
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Discussion 7 : 13/02/2012 at 05:00 AM7
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As long as security forces in Thailand are run as 'mafia style cliques' there will be no end to criminal activity at both ends of the drug trade. Easy money with the protection of ones status has always allowed many of the illicit dealings and scams to continue in Thailand. Without real social reform the problem will only continue and unfortunately get larger. Too many people in high places are making too much money for it to stop tomorrow.
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tommylee
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Discussion 6 : 12/02/2012 at 04:38 PM6
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Unfortunately, the roots of the drug „industry” go much deeper and are more gruesome and sinister than explained in this comment; it is a global, organized crime syndicate.
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med142
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Discussion 5 : 12/02/2012 at 11:15 AM5
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Well written, well done. Becarefull though as you only state what everyone knows. and agrees with.
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bangmodken
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Discussion 4 : 12/02/2012 at 10:27 AM4
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D2 : I usually agree with you on most topics,but in this case you're so wrong. The war against drugs is more than 60 years old and the only winners have been the drug-lords. Legalizing drugs would diminish or eliminate crimes related to drug-use such as theft,buglary,assault and robbery which more often than not affects us ordinary tax-paying people.
In addition to my previous comment to D1 which hopefully will be posted,revenues from legal drug sales could/should finance drug-use education,drug-use prevention and drug-use rehabilitation. Yet another burden taken off the shoulders of us ordinary tax-paying people thereby freeing funds and man-power(police/military/courts/prisons/hospitals)for other more important tasks.
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bangmodken
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Discussion 3 : 12/02/2012 at 10:12 AM3
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D1 : I agree 100% and I am as stunned as you by the fact that some people believe any war on drugs can be won/successful. The only way to win over these "worst sort of people" is legalizing the drugs and setting up state owned or state controlled shops to sell them. Every other option is futile and a waste of lives and resources.
I conclude that the "worst sort of people/major drug-dealers/drug-lords" are in fact amongst those who continuously speaks out against legalisation of drugs.
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Renaissance
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Discussion 2 : 12/02/2012 at 06:16 AM2
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The Thais seem to want a culture of corruption, so they should take the rough with the smooth. They accept it and vote for corrupt people even. When they start to rebel against it, and demand severe punishments for corrupt people, particularly those involved in the drugs trade, then the corruption and the drugs trade will lessen and lessen. Until they come to their senses education of different kinds and the severest punishments for even small-time drug dealers and pushers are required. Perhaps leave out a subject from the curriculum and replace it with one that includes anti-drug education.
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felixqui
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Discussion 1 : 12/02/2012 at 06:15 AM1
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"But again, considering the staggering amounts of money to be made, as long as there is such a demand for illicit drugs it will almost certainly be met".

And it is government policy supporting these high profits for drugs that directly incites corruption, along with putting the business firmly in the hands of the worst sort of people. And yet there remain some who think that such a persistently and spectacularly failed policy is a success!
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Dealers in high places | Bangkok Post: opinion