Myanmar, Vietnam get drugs blame

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung blamed Myanmar and Vietnam yesterday for a massive influx of drugs flowing into the country.

Published: 07/09/2012 at 12:00 AM
Writer: Post Reporters

His comments came after Wednesday's seizure of 3.29 million methamphetamine pills with an estimated value of 1 billion baht in Nakhon Pathom's Buddha Monthon district.

He said the methamphetamine production bases are in Myanmar while the precursor chemicals used to manufacture the drugs come from Vietnam.

Mr Chalerm said the government's crackdown on pseudoephedrine, one of the main methamphetamine production precursors, has prompted traffickers to switch to Vietnam.

"The pills are manufactured in Myanmar while the trafficking route of base chemicals has switched to Vietnam after we successfully blocked pseudoephedrine," he said.

The United Wa State Army (UWSA) rebel group in Myanmar has been linked to the production of narcotic drugs.

Mr Chalerm said he had raised the issue with Myanmar during a recent meeting of Asean ministers but Myanmar claimed the rebel area is under the supervision of the military.

He said he would ask China to coordinate with Myanmar in addressing the narcotics problem.

Mr Chalerm also lashed out at the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) which had cautioned him to be careful when discussing the drug situation to avoid straining bilateral relations.

"They don't need to tell me what to do. I am mature. If we can't tell Asean, who can we tell?" he said.

Mr Chalerm said he would assign the Provincial Police Bureau 5 and the Border Patrol Police to work with the Pha Muang Task Force to contain drug smuggling along the northern border.

According to the deputy premier, the Pha Muang Task Force, which oversees the Thai-Myanmar border, estimates that 500 million speed pills are waiting to be smuggled in from Myanmar.

He said that Chiang Rai is a strategic location to curb drug trafficking.

Permpong Chavalit, deputy secretary-general of the ONCB, said he believed Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm sent the message in order to seek cooperation, not to assign blame.

Mr Permpong said the deputy premier wanted to make it clear that Thailand now faces a severe drug problem. Without close cooperation from neighbouring countries, it will be more difficult to suppress the drug trade.

Mr Permpong said Thailand has been cooperating well with its neighbours on drug suppression and prevention.

They have exchanged information on the drug trade and trafficking that led to arrests of drug suspects and seizures of drug shipments in past years, he said.

"For me, I don't think that the remarks of deputy premier Chalerm will affect our regional cooperation on drugs. Instead, it will make our neighbouring countries understand our problem more and our need for them to help," he said.

Mr Permpong said the government planned to announce its new anti-drug campaign next month; the existing campaign comes to an end this month.

He said the government's new campaign would focus on suppression, prevention, cooperation of people and communities, and rehabilitation of addicts.

Mr Permpong said newly appointed ONCB secretary-general Pol Gen Pongsapas Pongcharoen would help make the campaign a success.

Meanwhile, authorities yesterday announced two major drug busts of 10 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine, or ya ice, and 500,000 speed pills worth millions of baht.

The ya ice was seized on Wednesday afternoon and five people were arrested on Ratchadapisek Road for suspected trafficking. The suspects allegedly smuggled the drugs in from a neighbouring country. The value of the ya ice was estimated at 30 million baht.

In Chiang Mai, police arrested two Hmong villagers and seized 500,000 speed pills in Chai Prakan district.

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Discussion 1 : 08/09/2012 at 09:41 AM: UBUNTU D18: "Aside from destroying society and killing our own children" Are you speaking about alcohol and nicotine too?
Discussion 2 : 07/09/2012 at 06:36 PM: Just wondering what happened to the 50 million bottles of cough syrup which had disappeared from Thai hospitals recently Khun Chalerm? Perhaps put your own house in order first before pointing fingers.
Discussion 3 : 07/09/2012 at 05:32 PM: Still waiting for Khun Chalerm to rid the tourist areas of the mafia-like influence that he promised to do in 90 days.
Discussion 4 : 07/09/2012 at 05:31 PM: I see many post here about killing and locking up drug dealers and pushers doesnt work and never has. So, can anyone suggest what to do with them. Set them free so they can continue or what?Destroying the factories and labs wont work either, new ones will come as its the ol' supply and demand story. Marijuana should have never been illegalized, but heroin, methamphedimines, ice, crack etc, is another story, In my rightful old age and personal experience I have never seen anyones life ruined from marijuana usage. Heroin and all the rest mentioned above I have seen businesses fail, families destroyed and death. Just cant see legalizing it as some suggest.
Discussion 5 : 07/09/2012 at 03:09 PM: Blame it on someone else and never take responsibility for anything, sorry to say this, but it almost seem to be the Thai way of handling things.
Discussion 6 : 07/09/2012 at 01:52 PM: Aside from destroying society and killing our own children, did the millions of yaba precursor "pseudophedrine" tablets that disappeared from multiple Thai hospitals not fuel the narcotics trade?
Discussion 7 : 07/09/2012 at 01:01 PM: ... but it looks as if Thai people inside Thailand are buying/selling this stuff imported from Myanmar...
Discussion 8 : 07/09/2012 at 12:47 PM: @capealava #12: You are absolutely right but unfortunately a big part of the voters (almost anywhere in the world) still think that locking up and killing drug pushers will solve the problem. Most of them see that the current war on drugs does not work but instead of looking for a new approach they just want more of the same (obviously not working) solution. This will never work but as long as politicians get elected because they are tough on drugs there is no hope that the real problem will be solved.
Discussion 9 : 07/09/2012 at 12:12 PM: Quite correctly as Mr Yubamrung has realized, a country like Thailand should emphasize the importance of war against drugs. And one might have a lot of arguments against this government, but now at least something is happening.. I do like war on drugs, chase some of the involved in the police force and the army and i will undoubtedly love it.
Discussion 10 : 07/09/2012 at 11:16 AM: Come on, Chalerm it's easy to point your finger at the neighbors. The drugs passing through the borders are only fair competition to those produced locally. Start cleaning your own backyard before yelling at the neighbors.
Discussion 11 : 07/09/2012 at 10:11 AM: Is'nt he an embarrasment to Thai people?
Discussion 12 : 07/09/2012 at 09:27 AM: Drugs have been politicized. Chalerm is making the most of this. I agree it smells of “McCarthyism”. He want o execute people within 15 day. This guy is an extremists. Thailand has some of the most draconian drug laws in the world as it is. Thailand’s prison are over flowing with 252,044 inmates in 2011. This ‘War on Drugs” is obviously not working worldwide. The USA has 2.4 million in prison with 60% drug related. The costs are astronomical both socially and financially. Time to move toward decriminalization and legalization.
Discussion 13 : 07/09/2012 at 09:16 AM: Its always easy to blame the other country when you dont want to do your job....you know the problem in chiang rai and you also know who is in charge in that region ....everybody knows about the large quantity of drug in Thailand but no arrest in bkk area except a few small dealer..the big chief r friends so who will arrest them ????? not the police ...so nobody to arrest them but its ok they r friends
Discussion 14 : 07/09/2012 at 09:10 AM: I can see how blaming our neighbours may be used to try to shift the blame away from what Thailand is doing (and failing to do) but I can not understand how it will get more/better cooperation. "The ASEAN way" does have severe limitations about how successful it can be, but it absolutely does not include public statements that are offensive to other members.
Discussion 15 : 07/09/2012 at 09:08 AM: Chalerm this and Chalerm that: it almost seems like PT has only one politician – except the boss of course. Chalerm is since about a year in charge of the Thai police. How many corrupt officers were prosecuted since he is in charge? How many mafia bosses have been prosecuted under his command? Chalerm is obviously the wrong man for that job - or any other decent job I can think of. Clean up the corrupt police and the crime rate will go down at least by 50% or probably more like 90%. We all know where the problem is but it seems like this or any other Thai government is not willing to really solve the problem.
Discussion 16 : 07/09/2012 at 08:56 AM: Chalerm and his drug crusade is becoming eerily similar to Senator Joe McCarthy and his anti-communist rants in the USA 60 years ago. Drug are simply not the greatest problem facing Thailand now and do not merit the excessive and manic attention they are getting. Does he really think any foreign government is going to care what he says?
Discussion 17 : 07/09/2012 at 08:15 AM: Seems Khun Chalerm has only just realised what others such as ONCB have known all along and trying to engage our neighbours to solve. Perhaps the Foreign Minister should also get engaged and do something useful for once to orchestrate some international and ASEAN pressure on Burma and Vietnam to deny the drug makers a production base
Discussion 18 : 07/09/2012 at 08:15 AM: RE: D4. cocoricco..you are correct that many of those you mentioned are directly involved in the trade themselves or are paid to look the other way. I think all of the political parties are actually trying to address it but it is not easy when there are billions of dollars are involved. TS took a very hard stance in dealing with these people and look where it got him. He was accused of killings that were actually the same people you mention killing each other, and anyone that knew anything so they can not tell. If you think the drug problem is bad in Thailand then look to south America and Mexico and you will see just how bad it can get.
Discussion 19 : 07/09/2012 at 07:41 AM: if you are so brilliant, why do you find it so difficult to say something that makes sense. The problem is where the drugs are made, not in the transit areas, a lot of them come through in Chiang Mai too, they have been making some large busts up here lately, and a lot of our neighborhood problems are currently in jail.
Discussion 20 : 07/09/2012 at 07:40 AM: He fails to mention corrupt police , military and bureaucrats in Thailand that facilitate the trade. In all the years of drug suppression in Thailand or Asean only mules are caught and scapegoated in the drug trade. There's never been a mastermind or big fish caught because the same governments that declare their war on drugs protect the influential that trade in drugs, human trafficking and anything else a quick buck can be made. In Nana all the above are right in your face yet nothing matches the hot air lip service. This government practices propaganda not policy, the poor bottom feeders are the only ones punished.
Discussion 21 : 07/09/2012 at 07:39 AM: Chinese triads are the biggest producers of meth in the region. What exactly is K. Chalerm talking about ?
Discussion 22 : 07/09/2012 at 07:24 AM: Disconnect receiver from supply. We except horrific pics on cigaret packages yet are reluctant to go public on the horrific madness this Ya baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa can cause to our society (read living conditions) Crazy.
Discussion 23 : 07/09/2012 at 05:54 AM: Chiang Rai is a red shirt and PTP stronghold. Why can't Chalerm do something?

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