Cambodia is still a major source of cannabis, while large amounts of heroin are being smuggled through Cambodia’s borders from production zones in Burma, the International Narcotics Control Board, an independent UN body, stated in its latest annual report.
The board’s 2002 report—unveiled in Tuesday in Vienna, Austria—also expressed concern that Cambodia and North Korea remain the only two countries in East and Southeast Asia that have not yet become party to any international drug control treaties.
“Cambodia remains a major supplier of cannabis to countries in the region and in other parts of the world…. Large amounts of heroin are also smuggled through China, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Cambodia and Vietnam,” the report said.
According to the board, heroin traffickers are taking advantage of improved transport facilities in the region, and Australia is one of the foremost destinations for heroin produced in the lawless “Golden Triangle” region located on the borders between Burma, Laos and Thailand.
There has also been a sharp increase in methamphetamine abuse in Cambodia, particularly among street children, the report added.
Though the report expressed concern at Cambodia’s lack of international drug control treaties, it noted that Phnom Penh has conducted preparatory work for their ratification and urged signing “without further delay.”
The board also welcomed anti-drug efforts between Cambodia, China, Laos, Burma, Vietnam and Thailand.
Graham Shaw of the UN Office for Drugs and Crime in Phnom Penh said Thursday that as the report indicates, the cannabis situation in Cambodia has not markedly improved.
“There is also a recognition of increased heroin trafficking through Cambodia,” Shaw said.
Ratification of the three international drug treaties—which requires a vote by the National Assembly—will likely have to wait until after the general election in July, Shaw said. “But there is no reason why [Cambodia] could not have them ratified by the end of the year,” he said.
In 2001, Cambodia was fingered by the UN as one of the largest producers of cannabis in the world. The industry was estimated to be worth around $1 billion annually.
The report outraged the Interior Ministry, which claimed the data on cannabis production was outdated and the illegal industry had been mostly wiped out in the late 1990s.
Khieu Sopheak, deputy secretary-general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, reiterated on Thursday that the board’s information on Cambodian cannabis was wrong.
“[The INCB] can just say this. But they cannot provide any evidence,” he said.
