National Authority Claims Drug Use Declining

By Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
30 September 2009

Illicit drug use has decreased over the past four years, officials said Tuesday, following crackdowns on manufacturing facilities inside the country.

“If our law enforcement agencies had not suppressed in time manufacturing locations, hundreds of thousands of people inside and outside Cambodia could have suffered,” Ke Kim Yan, head of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, said on Tuesday, opening an Asean conference on drugs.

The number of illicit drug users decreased from more than 7,000 in 2005 to nearly 6,000 last year, according to report released by the authority during the meeting.

In the first half of 2009, the authority investigated 140 drug-related cases, leading to 287 arrests and the confiscation of more than 70,000 methamphetamine tablets, more than 1,000 grams of methamphetamine called ice, and more than 10,000 liters of saffron-rich oils, which are used in methamphetamine production, the report says.

Despite these numbers, officials from non-governmental organizations working with drug addicts say the number of users is actually on the rise.

Chhoeung Reut, a coordinator for the group Korsang, which works with drug users, said there are between 50 to 100 new users every three months.

“Illicit drug use is increasing at the moment because of the availability of imported drugs such as ‘yama’ [methamphetamine pills], ice and heroine,” he said.

“These days, we also see between 10 and 20 new users every month, in addition to the more than 1,000 drug users we are working with,” said Pin Sokum, drug program coordinator at Friends, which works with street children addicted to drugs.

Many drugs come to Cambodia via the Golden Triangle, an opium-producing region in Southeast Asia, though local drug producers also produce some. Cambodia has 14 private and state-owned treatment centers, but the national drug authority said these often only separate addicts from the drugs temporarily.

Cambodia to tighten drug controls

Phnom Penh, Jan 22 (VNA) - Cambodia will introduce draft legislation to better control the use and trafficking of illicit drugs, Cambodian officials announced.

If a new draft law is introduced in March, as expected, drug traffickers will receive harsher punishments for possessing smaller quantities of illegal substances, the Phom Penh Post said on Jan. 21.

Under the proposed law, drafted by the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD) at the Ministry of Interior, individuals found to be in possession of 80 grams of heroin will be given a sentence of life imprisonment.

Currently, life sentences are only given to those who are found to be in possession of 100 grams or more.

The draft legislation, formulated with the advice of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), will also strive to comply with international drug control laws, including those that apply to prescription drugs that can be purchased over the counter in Cambodia, officials said.

Cambodia to work out new law to punish drug traffickers

PHNOM PENH, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Drug traffickers will receive harsh punishments for possessing small quantities of illegal substances if a new draft law to be worked out in March, national media reported on Wednesday.

Under the proposed law, drafted by the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD) at the Ministry of Interior, life imprisonment will be given to those who are in possession of 80 grams of heroin, according to the Phnom Penh Post.

Currently, life terms are only handed down to those who are in possession of at least 100 grams.

"The new law is more detailed. We have given greater consideration to guilt, punishment and the amount of drugs (necessary for punishment)," Lour Ramin, permanent vice chairman of NACD told the Post.

The draft, written with the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as advisers, will also strive to comply with international drug control laws including those regarding prescription drugs available over the counter in Cambodia, officials said.

Lars Pedersen, officer in charge and project coordinator for the UNODC in Cambodia, described the new legislation as having a much "tighter control" on drug trafficking across Cambodia's borders with neighboring countries.

"The drug situation in Cambodia has escalated over the years with the use of illicit drugs increasing and drug trafficking becoming a major concern for the Cambodian government," he said.

CAMBODIA: Methamphetamine usage rising

Crystal methamphetamine being sold on the streets of Phnom Penh (Photo: Vinh Dao/IRIN)
Addicted to crystal methamphetamine, 24-year-old Thom has been living on the streets of Phnom Penn for four years (Photo: Vinh Dao/IRIN)

"In 2000, when the substance users first started using drugs, it was sniffing glue. Now, over the years, 'meth' has become easily available and turned into the new gateway substance for street kids."

PHNOM PENH, 21 August 2008 (IRIN) - Shirtless, with crude tattoos and scabs on his upper arms, 24-year-old Thom has been living on the streets of Phnom Penh for the past four years, one of a growing number of youths struggling with their addiction to crystal methamphetamine, also known as “ice”.

Typically smoked, the potent central nervous system stimulant is highly addictive, causing paranoia, delusions and hallucinations.

According to an annual narcotics report released on 12 August by the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD), use of “ice” is on the rise even though illicit drug use in Cambodia is stabilising, and drug related arrests in 2007 were over 50 percent down on what they were in 2006.

Working with the NACD, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) compiled data from the Ministry of Interior and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working in the drug sector.

The report gives a comprehensive picture of illicit drug use, and on a smaller scale evaluates the reliability of the routine surveillance systems being employed.

Traditionally a drug-trafficking route in southeast Asia, the report says that for the first time Cambodia has emerged as a possible methamphetamine producing country.

Drug raids

Earlier this month, anti-drug police raided a clandestine drug lab on a cattle ranch in the province of Kompong Speu, about 81km southwest of Phnom Penh.

No drugs were found, but the NACD identified chemicals used in the two-stage process of manufacturing methamphetamine, known as the “Emde Process”.

“There is a level of sophistication evident from the Kompong Speu raid that is a bit disturbing. Because we only found the first stage of production there, we suspected that there was another facility nearby,” Lars Pederson, head of UNODC in Cambodia, told IRIN.

Drug experts estimate that, based on the materials found at the site, several million doses of methamphetamine could have been produced.

Four foreign nationals along with 14 Cambodians were arrested. One of the foreign nationals arrested, a Chinese national, had been detained at Phnom Penh International Airport in October 2002 for smuggling 10kg of palladium which is an integral ingredient in the second stage in the “Emde Process”.

He was later released as the importation of palladium was not controlled at the time in Cambodia, but he never returned to claim the unpaid duty on the substance. Soon afterwards, the Cambodian government placed palladium on the list of controlled substances.

Another indicator that Cambodia has emerged as a producer of methamphetamines was the arrest of the leader of a methamphetamine tableting operation in August 2007.

At a site in Phnom Penh, military police found a variety of illicit drugs. During the raid, military police also found a rotary tableting machine with the capacity of producing 10,000 methamphetamine tablets per hour. Such a machine had never been seized by officials in Cambodia before.

“These two raids highlight the risk of industrial-sized drug producing capability in Cambodia,” Pederson said. “This showed a level of sophistication in the manufacturing process, which included multiple production locations and logistics.”

New drug of choice

The NACD report also says there has been a shift in usage, mainly by Cambodian youth who have switched from glue-sniffing to “ice”.

In 2000 a survey produced by Mith Samlanh, a local NGO that rehabilitates street children in Phnom Penh, found that 12 percent of street children were using methamphetamines. By 2007 the number had jumped to 87 percent.
In 2000, when the substance users first started using drugs, it was sniffing glue. Now, over the years, `meth’ has become easily available and turned into the new gateway substance for street kids.

But what is more alarming is the increase of methamphetamine use among street children aged 12-18, while usage among those in those aged 19-25 declined over the same period.

“In 2000, when the substance users first started using drugs, it was sniffing glue,” said David Harding, technical adviser for drug programmes at the NGO Friends International. “Now, over the years, `meth’ has become easily available and turned into the new gateway substance for street kids.”

“We are now starting to see small numbers of kids at the age of eight using meth,” Harding added.

Rehab centres

NACD Secretary-General Lour Ramin said the government was now adjusting its tactics and focusing on arresting drug dealers, while referring illicit drug users to rehabilitation centres.

One such rehabilitation centre, Korsang, run by a risk reduction NGO specialising in injecting drug users, is where many go for treatment for their addiction.

Thom said he has been going to the facility for six months in the hope of kicking his methamphetamine habit.

“I had problems with drugs for many years. Now I am here at Korsang to try to cut down my drug usage,” he said.

A group of about 30 youths mill around the centre, illustrating the problems Cambodia currently faces with illicit drug use. But there is a glimmer of hope for the youth of tomorrow as stated by Sophea “Wicket” Heng, director of Korsang: “The government is catching onto the problem and is working with grassroots agencies and local authorities to tackle the problem.”