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Minister Col
Tin Hlaing addresses 46th session of Commission on Narcotic Drugs
Yangon, 22 April- The 46th
Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs organized by United Nations Office
of Drugs and Crime was held at Austric Centre in Vienna, Austria, from 8 to 17
April. Implementation and difficulties of the Political Declaration approved by
the 20th special meeting on drug control held at the UN headquarters in New York
in 1998 were reviewed at the Ministerial Level Segment of the session on 16 and
17 April. Myanmar delegation led by Chairman of the Central Committee for Drug
Abuse Control Minister for Home Affairs Col Tin Hlaing attended the session.
Myanmar delegation comprised member of CCDAC Brig-Gen Kyaw Thein of the Ministry
of Defence, Ambassador U Nyunt Maung Shein of Myanmar Embassy in Berlin,
Germany, Joint-Secretary of CCDAC Police Col Kham Aung and Second Secretary Daw
Aye Mya Hman of Myanmar Embassy in Berlin. Minister Col Tin Hlaing made a speech
at the plenary meeting on 17 April. In his address, he said:
At the outset, on behalf of
Myanmar delegation, I would like to congratulate for being elected as the
Chairman of this most important meeting.
I am very pleased to report on
Myanmar's achievements and the difficulties encountered in meeting the goals and
targets set out in Political Declaration adopted at the 20th Special Session of
the United Nations General Assembly in 1998.
Starting 1989, the Myanmar
Government have taken advantage of the peaceful situations in the border regions
for the first time since independence in 1948, laying down a strategy to develop
the infrastructure of the border areas and upgrading the living standards of the
national races with a view that poppy cultivation will gradually be phased out.
The strategy has gradually paid off with the establishment of an Opium Free Zone
in 1997 in Mong La Area, Eastern Shan State, which is sustained to date. The
Kokang Special Region-1 followed suit by declaring they have stopped poppy
cultivation in 2003. Moreover, the Wa Special Region-2 guaranteed to stop
cultivation totally in 2005.
The Government itself launched an
ambitious 15-Year in 1999 to totally eradicate drugs in the country by 2014.
This major undertaking relies on our own resources and is based on the United
Nations' Balanced Approach and accordingly, will not only strive for reducing
supply but also reduce demand and drug abuse with community participation. As
part and parcel of the 15-Year Plan, a pilot project programme called "New
Destiny" was launched in April last year with a pre-emptive approach by setting
up seed banks and free distribution of substitute crop seeds to poppy farmers
before the poppy season. Project sites were identified in high-density
cultivation areas of the Shan State. Educational campaign, crop substitution,
livestock breeding, income-substituting cottage industries and various other
development programmes were introduced and subsidized by the Government in the
project sites. One of the important intervention of the projects is the
destruction of opium seed surrendered voluntarily by the farmers from their
stock for the coming poppy season. A total of 165,956 kilograms of poppy seeds
have been burnt and destroyed in front of the public in nine different
occasions. This intervention enabled the prevention of 41,128 hectares from
illicit cultivation that could produce 44.17 tons of opium.
I am pleased to report that this
concerted efforts have resulted a drastic reduction in the cultivation as well
as production of opium in Myanmar. Opium Yield Survey annually held jointly with
the United States Government since 1993 reported cultivation dropped sharply to
77,700 hectares with an estimate production of 630 metric tons in 2002 from an
estimate of 163,110 hectares of cultivation and a production of 2,560 metric
tons in 1996. This is a 77 per cent reduction within seven years without any
international assistance but with our own efforts and resources.
The three surveys undertaken
together with UNDCP under the Global Illicit Crops Monitoring Programme since
2001 also testified by the significant decrease of 80,000 hectares and estimate
production of 830 tons. Based on early reports from the surveys of this season,
there are indications of a reduction also this year.
These significant reductions have
been acknowledged by all credible sources including the INCB Report of 2002 and
we are grateful that the reality has been reflected in the report.
On the law enforcement sector,
there is also a marked decline in the amount of opium and heroin seized within
the country over the recent years. However, the escalating problems of synthetic
drugs like amphetamine type stimulants propel us to cooperate with our
neighbouring countries in the region on bilateral, trilateral and multilateral
basis. This problem is entirely different from the opium based drugs and
cultivation of poppy. Myanmar does not have a chemical industry and does not
manufacture precursor chemicals to produce these synthetic drugs. Due to the
fact that all these precursor chemicals are illicitly trafficked from
neighbouring countries, I am pleased to report that Myanmar is addressing this
regional problem with the full cooperation of China, India and Thailand and
technical assistance from UNODC.
I have great pleasure to report
to this meeting that Myanmar has enacted the Control of Money Laundering Law in
June 2002, which is in line with the 40 Recommendations of the Financial Action
Task Force.
For demand reduction, to address
the spread of HIV among injecting drug users, we have joined hands with the UN
Organizations as well as International Non Governmental Organizations working
not only in the control of the problem but also in harm reduction measures. To
this end, we are also tapping into the Global Funds for HIV/AIDS to combat this
problem.
In conclusion, to overcome these
problems, nations across the world should increase cooperation at the regional,
sub-regional and bilateral levels. Myanmar, on her part, is striving vigorously
with a national plan to eradicate opium within 15 years, based on our own
resources and is committed to maintaining the present momentum. However, if
international assistance is forthcoming, Myanmar is confident that we can
achieve the objectives in a much shorter period. In this connection, I would
like to take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to the Government of
China, Japan, Italy, Thailand and the United States for their kind contribution
to alternative development projects in Myanmar. I would lastly urge the United
Nations to further strengthen its leadership in the fight against drugs and
transnational crimes through impartial and effective programmes and likewise,
request member nations to lend assistance towards less developed countries.
Minister Col Tin Hlaing met with
Justice and Customs Minister Mr Chris Ellison of Austria on 16 April and
Executive Director Mr Antorio Maria Costa of UNODC on 17 April and discussed
matters related to cooperation in narcotic drug control, Myanmar's efforts for
elimination of narcotic drugs and difficulties and participation of UNDCP in
Myanmar's anti-narcotic drive. Myanmar delegation also met with Drug Control
Commissioner Minister for Health and Social Welfare Marion Caspers-merck of
Germany, Health Minister Achmad Sujudi of Indonesia, Ambassador Yukio Takasu of
Permanent Representative Office of Japan, and Justice Minister Pornthep
Jhepkanjana of Thailand and Mr Disnadda Diskul, Secretary-General of Mae Fah
Luang Foundation and discussed matters related to cooperation in narcotic drug
elimination and drug problems. The delegation arrived back here on 20 April.
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