Week 3 Opium goes Global

Week 3 Opium Goes Global Student’s Name Institution Course # and Name Instructor’s Name Submission Date Part 1 Threat Assessment (2011) promulgated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the role that Organized Crime Groups and Narco-Traffickers in perpetuating narcotics abuse and addiction. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) issued "The Global Afghan Opium Trade: A Threat Assessment’’ in 2011, which covers the global contribution of Afghanistan opiates. This paper is aimed at revealing the leading role of drug gangs and narco-traffickers in drug abuse and addiction. The UNODC Threat Assessment highlights the drastic scale of the opium trade from Afghanistan, which constitutes the bulk of the world's opium production, at a staggering 90% (UNODC, 2011). The report stresses the fact that Afghan opiates are a source of a large amount of money for financing criminal organizations and insurgency. By 2009, the world opiate market had been valued at $68 billion, and a large share of this money was being earned by organized crime groups and insurgents like the Taliban (UNODC, 2011). These finances are used to aid in terrorist activities, armed conflict, and other war-related actions, which lead to more violence and instability in the regions that are already suffering from the conflict. Role of Organized Crime Groups to the Problem Organized crime groups participate in opiate manufacture, trafficking, and distribution. These groups gain a lot from the trade using their widespread networks in smuggling opiates from Afghanistan to different parts of the world (Kreutzmann, 2019). They use every opportunity provided by weak border controls and corruption in transit countries, extracting substantial profits at each stage of the supply chain. These groups go beyond basic transportation; they also hold the entire production process, from cultivation to processing and export, all with the sole aim of making the highest profits. This power is established by violence, intimidation, and corruption, making it difficult for authorities to intervene and stop their operations. Organized crime groups foster narcotics abuse and addiction by engaging in opiate commerce. The Afghan Taliban earned approximately $150 million from this trade in 2009 via taxation rather than being active participants (UNODC, 2011). However, some insurgents participate in the opiate supply chain directly, including facilitating the sourcing of acetic anhydride. In addition, areas that are struggling with insurgency find it increasingly difficult to curb abuse and addiction due to limited law enforcement reach (UNODC, 2011). Therefore, organized crime groups and insurgents facilitate narcotics abuse and addiction because they do not institute efforts to curb opiate trade and consumption. Role of Narco-Traffickers As a part of the distribution chain, the narcotics traffickers play a vital role in ensuring that Afghan opium is supplied to the global market. The UNODC report identifies that the traffickers have diversified their approaches and are now widely using maritime routes and sophisticated smuggling techniques, which are hard to detect by law enforcement agencies. The opium trade being profitable makes traffickers keep on adapting to the changing nature of the market, and this way, they will always have the supply to match the global demand. This flexibility includes the application of modern technologies, like secretive communication and GPS, which help them to organize their activities and avoid being found ...