“Afghan President Hamid Karzai spoke at the Third National Conference on Counter Narcotics in Kabul today and asked for more cooperation among international stakeholders and donors to fight the growing threat presented by poppy cultivation, and narcotics production and smuggling.

Reiterating Afghanistan’s commitment to fight the narcotics problem, he asked that the international community and regional countries do their share to help stem the opium production cycle and crack down on the drug trade.

Following the latest report released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime that shows a new high in opium production in Afghanistan for 2007, the President also asked that the international community expands its cooperation with the Afghan government. He said the fact that worldwide trade of opium is in the hands of the international criminal organizations necessitates joint international cooperation to combat it.

The President pointed to accomplishments, including the increase in the number of poppy-free provinces from six to 13 over the past year, and further reduction in several others, where security and government presence is strongest. Alluding to the growth of opium production in the Southern province of Helmand, President Karzai blamed the international community for failing to plan with Afghan authorities or coordinate security-related and anti-drug activities at the national and provincial levels.

As demonstrated by the data, there is a direct link between the expansion of government authority, security and decrease in poppy cultivation. The production levels have gone up in provinces with greatest security threats in the forms of criminality and Taliban activity. This means that counter-narcotics and counter insurgency strategies need to be further linked.

There is correlation between increased trafficking and heroin refining and the global demand market. A comprehensive approach to dealing with this threat is necessary. A revised Afghan counter narcotics strategy using best practices and lessons learnt over the years to make adjustment to the current plan is currently in the works.

In turn, insecurity has limited the ability of the central government and donors to provide economic development, alternative livelihood programs, new jobs, civil society activities, investment and even education services.

While Afghanistan will continue to fight a culture of impunity, different forms of practical incentives have proven beneficial to encourage farmers not to revert back to poppy planting, through development, building infrastructure, providing alternative crops, financial remuneration and job creation initiatives.

The questions and varying approaches pertaining to eradication and other options need to be addressed and resolved amongst proponents for final approval by the Afghan government and Parliament.

As far as the credibility of a proposal by certain quarters to legalize Afghanistan's opium poppy crop is concerned, given Afghanistan’s real challenges with governance, rule of law, institution building and national security, it will continue to remains as an idea on the table.

While a serious security vacuum exists in parts of the country, legalization will have devastating effects across Afghanistan in case poppy free areas revert back to cultivation.

The proposal, which calls for a licensing platform for use of opium for medicinal use, will remain unfeasible for as long as violence disrupts normalcy and prevents a viable government presence in all regions affected by the insurgency. Armed activity, farmer harassment and a black market-driven local economy will surely drive the license market out of business.

The present solution lies in keeping the population on the government side through the accelerated buildup of administrative, judicial and security structures, running parallel with intensive development and alternative livelihoods work over several years, until the stated goals are attained.”

Embassy of Afghanistan in Canada

August 29, 2007