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The thin white line Bangkok post (1



Subject: The thin white line Bangkok post (12-9-99)

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The thin white line <br>
</font><font size=3>DRUG TENTACLES : </b>Despite regular raids, narcotics
continue to seep <br>
into Thailand's arteries <br>
<br>
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The destructive drug problem has worsened: there are more people using,
selling, and producing amphetamines - <br>
locally known as <i>ya baa - </i>in more places all over Thailand and
adjoining countries. <br>
Most of Thailand's <i>ya baa </i>-comes from major production plants in
Burma, run by over a dozen minority groups, five of which are major
producers and transporters of amphetamines (see map 1). <br>
The Wa group is the largest and most influential among these amphetamine
producers, based in two different areas. <br>
The North Wa holds great power and influence along the Sino-Burmese
border. The North Wa is more formally known as the UWSA (United Wa State
Army) under the leadership of PaoYoo Cheng. <br>
The South Wa dominates the Burmese-Thai border areas opposite Mae Ai
district in Chlang Mai. The South Wa is also known by the acronym SSNA
(Shan State National Army) and is under the commandof Pao Yoo Li<br>
Above Pao Yoo Li and Pao Yoo Cheng is the supreme commander, Wei Sia
Kang. <br>
This is the man who controls the economics, finances, production and
routing of amphetamines. Under him is a combined armed force of about
20,000 men and women. <br>
Second only to the Wa is the Kokang tribal group, known by the acronym
KDUA or Kokang Democracy United Army. The KDUA, a relatively new goup in
amphetamine manufacturing and trade, operates from the northern .part of
Shan State, close to the Chinese border. In recent times, some of the
forces have moved closer to the Thai border opposite Chiang Rai, in an
apparent move to protect the ampheta- mine trafficking business. <br>
Remnants of the former Khun Sa group, about 4,000 men formerly of the
Muang Tai Army, make up the third largest tribal amphetamine source.
<br>
After Khun Sa surrendered to the Burmese Government in 1996, his men
split into groups, some of which carried on the drug business along the
Burmese-Thai border, mostly in the areas opposite Chlang Rai's Mae Fah
Luang district, as well as in Mae Hong Son province. <br>
A smaller group of about 1,000 ranks fourth among these hilltribe
producers of amphetamines. The fourth group is composed of some 1,000
armed men, former members of the Communist Party of Burma. This group
operates in various areas along the border, between Burma and China. The
group is known as the Eastern Shan State.Army (ESSA). <br>
A fifth group is composed of Chinese Haw, Palong, Pa-o, Arakan and Muser
tribal groups. Classified by the Thai narcotic suppression bureau as
&quot;Independent groups,&quot; they operate from bases along the
Thai-Burmese border opposite Chlang Rai province. <br>
Together, these five groups produce a formidable amount of amphetamine
pills that inundate
Thailand.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<br>
A 1998 report from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB)
details 14 separate areas where the Wa manufacture <i>ya baa </i>and
heroin.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; t <br>
The report shows that the Kokang has 10 to 20 areas of illicit drugs
manufacturing, while the remnants of Khun Sa's Muang Tal Army have
production facilities in 15 to 20 areas. <br>
Meanwhile, the former members of the Communist Party of Burma have
production facilities in three areas. <br>
There are eleven other production areas which are run by independent
groups. According to the report, each area may have more than one drug
refinery&nbsp; or home laboratory. <br>
<font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=2><b>PRODUCERS IN TUMLAND <br>
</font></b><font size=3>most of the main substances used to produce <i>ya
baa</i>&nbsp; - ephedrine, pseudoe-phedrine, chloroform, caffeine -and
the production equipment come from China; very little comes from
Thailand. Due to the floods of cheaper <i>ya baa </i>pills from over the
Burmese border, producers inside Thailand have buck led under the com
etition. Coupled with increasing police surveillance and arrests, a
drastic decrease of <i>ya baa </i>production in Thailand has been
reported. <br>
Drug suppression authorities classify <i>ya baa </i>producers in Thailand
as either veterans (longtimers with large contacts and resources) and
newcomers (less than a year on the drug production scene.) <br>
The oldtimers continue amphetamine production and trade within and around
Bangkok while newcomers establish bases in various provinces. <br>
Recent ONCB reports reveal that production bases are scattered in 18
provinces, mostly in the northern and central areas (see map2). <br>
Last year, authorities found nine production centres, eight of which were
home labs where <i>ya baa </i>tablets were produced using basic household
equipment. Here, <i>ya baa </i>tablets bought from underground markets
were powdered, thinned with ' rice powder, and remoulded into tablets.
<br>
However, an abandoned factory uncovered in Bang PIi in Samut Prakarn had
the capacity to produce up to one million tablets a day from raw
ephedrine. The factory operators included Boonlue Narkprasit, who spent
six years in prison following his arrest in 199 1, and were known to have
close ties with upcountry groups. <br>
<b>TRAFFICICING ROUTES <br>
</b>The transport and distribution of finished <i>ya baa </i>pills is
mostly conducted along by-roads which access the production sites. <br>
These routes are usually under the protection of the drug producers. For
instance, drug dealers feel secure as they traverse areas under the Wa's
influence, transporting large volumes of <i>ya baa </i>to Kentung, a
major town in Burma's Shan State. From there, the pills enter Thailand
through,, the Burmese border at Tha Khi Lek, opposite Mac Sal district in
Chiapg Ral. <br>
Other routes are used to send large quantities of equipment, raw
materials and finished pills across. various border points from Burma to
Thailand. <br>
>From Laos, the traffickers ship the drugs by boat along the Mekong river
to various jungle trails along Thailand's border areas (see map3). <br>
<b>BORDER DRUG DEPOTS Authorities have identified several vdlages on
either @ side of the borders that join Thailand, Laos and Burma which
serve as storage areas for traff- ickers. <br>
</b>The drugs are kept in the villages until transportation and orders
arrive. The villages are usually tribal minority groups (see map4). 
<br>
On the Thai side of the border,, a number of-hilitribe villages known to
drug officials for their involvement in - the illicit drug trade or
related transpor- <br>
tation have been extra wary. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=2><b>BORDER DRUG DEPOTS
<br>
</font></b><font size=3>Authorities have identified several villages on
either side of the borders that join Thailand, Laos and Burma which serve
as storage areas for traffickers. <br>
The drugs are kept in the villages until transportation and orders
arrive. The villages are usually tribal minority groups (see map4). 
<br>
On the Thai side of the border, a number of hilltribe villages known to
drug officials for their involvement in the illicit drug trade or related
transportation have been extra wary. <br>
Aside from storage, the villages also serve as meeting points for
selling, buying and delivery of illegal drugs. Such villages are usually
located near at least one other village on the opposite side of the
border. Both villages have regular contacts, bound by blood or marriage,
and common interests.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; : <br>
According to an ONCB report, &quot;The drug trade goes on almost every
day in border villages; people from different places meet and talk drug
business.&quot; <br>
ONCB officials found that tribesmen earn between one and three baht for
each <i>ya baa </i>tablet they transport across the border into a Thai
village. <br>
The report details villages located on either side ofthe border, mostly
in (1) Maung,Pang ma Pha and Pai districts (2) Vieng Haeng,Chiang
Dao,Chai Prakarn,Fang and Mae Ai districts of Chiang&nbsp; Mai province
and (3) Mae Chan, Mae Fah Luang, Mae Sai, Chiang Saen districts in Chiang
Rai province. <br>
Along the Laotian border, the villages pinpointed as being active in the
drug trade.are located along the border in (1) Chlang Khong, Vieng Kaen,
and Therng districts in Chiang Rai and (2),,Chiang Kham in Phayao. <br>
Authorities have identified 157 border villages that serve as stopovers,
storage areas, trading areas, or meeting areas in the illicit drug
industry. Of'<b> </b>these, 100 villages are located in Thailand, 42 are
In Burma and 15 are in Laos. <br>
On 2 June last year, Thai narcotic suppression police officers raided a
Lisor hilltribe village in Chiang Mai. They found 2,000 tablets of <i>ya
baa </i>and 10 million baht in cash at the Ban Lisor <br>
<br>
Hua Nam village, located in the Tha Ton subdistrict of Mae Ai. <br>
They also found a number of Wea- pons. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=2><b>IARGEST DRUG CACHE
<br>
</font></b><font size=3>To-date, this is the largest cache of drugs,
cash, and weaponry ever found in a tribal village by drug agents. <br>
However, nobody was arrested in the village, which was known to be under
the influence of the Wa group. <br>
The village lies ten kilometres away from a Wa production base in the
Burmese area, where armed Wa soldiers are said to patrol regularly. 
<br>
The Lisor village also had seven permanent guests who, villagers say,
were the &quot;village's representatives of the Wa.&quot; <br>
However, the ONCB report identifies these representatives as &quot;Wa or
Thai or other tribal race.&quot; <br>
These informants, working either for the Wa drug ring or the United Wa
State Army, keep an eye on the drug cache, make deals with buyers,
collect money and make contacts outside the villages. <br>
Authorities found evidence that these Wa representatives deposit drug
money at banks in Mae Ai as well as in Chiang Mai's Fang district. <br>
Authorities also found the <i>ya baa </i>tablets are sold in a minimum of
one tua (one lot), comprising 100,000 tablets. <br>
The small Lisor village has been hosting transactions that average a
million. tablets a month. <br>
According to the report, a large amount of <i>ya baa </i>was shipped out
of the village just before the raid. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=2><b>INUNDATED
]BYAMPHETAMINES <br>
</font></b><font size=3>Over the past 10 years, amphetamine production
and trafficking structures have been
strengthening</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=2><b>. 
<br>
</font></b><font size=3>Minority groups, for instance,' have focused
efforts on exporting ya <i>baa pills</i> using&nbsp; drug&nbsp;
organisations inside Thailand. This has resulted in the flooding of
amphetamine pills into markets in the north, northeast, central plains
and southern Thailand. <br>
Large provinces in particular&nbsp; have been inundated. <br>
The worst drug situations are in Loci, Nakhon Phanom, Mukdaham, Tak and
Kanchahaburi. <br>
In central Thailand, the worst drug areas are in Phetchabun, Lopburi,
Sara- buri, Nakhon Ratchasima and
Bangkok</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=2>. <br>
<b>OPIUM STILL THRIVES <br>
</font></b><font size=3>Heroin and opium production in the Golden
Triangle remains high.<b> <br>
</b>Up to 200 tonnes of opium is expected this year, of which 80 percent
will come from Burma, according to officials. <br>
Reports identify the producers of heroin and <i>ya baa </i>as being the
same. Heroin refineries are scattered in the same areas as amphetamine
production labs. <br>
Moreover,&nbsp;&nbsp; official reports say that heroin export volumes
passing through Thailand have been on the rise. <br>
 .&quot;This speculation is based on the increased opium produce and
number of refineries recently established in the Golden Triangle,&quot;.
an ONCB official said. <br>
Public Health Ministry statistics say that there are 300,000 heroin
addicts in Thailand, but few are new users because it is known that the
drug is too dangerous. <br>
This means that most new drug users are addicted to <i>ya baa. <br>
</i>&quot;This is also due to the wide spread of <i>ya baa, </i>which is
more accessible, cheaper, and known to be less dangerous.&quot; <br>
A recent spread of popular drugs, including the 'E' pill (also known as
Ecstasy and Adam) cocaine or ketamin have been controlled. <br>
However, the authorities noted that international drug traders -
Africans, Europeans and Asians, that used to only bring in E pills are
now bringing heroin out of Thailand. <br>
Heroin is also smuggled out through parcel services. <br>
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