Wrong end of the snake or wrong end of the stick? The US (in particular) and the West (in general) has been waging out two most vital wars of the age, the ‘war on terror’ and the ‘war on drugs,’ but at different fronts and levels for almost a decade now. Unfortunately, both the wars don’t seem to dissolve and perhaps will continue to push the world further into the dark future, posing serious threats to the development and existence of life worldwide.

The disappointment at both the wars is more or less connected to each other. Failure of ‘war on drugs’ is largely responsible for the disappointment in the ‘war on terror,’ as the illegal drugs trade persist with its support to the Islamic insurgents, endangering the lives of millions of innocent civilians, together with military troops, in volatile Afghanistan.

In spite of billions of dollars of aid to cut the opium trade and the presence of international troops, opium production in Afghanistan has doubled in past two years, reaching a new high this year. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has come up with some staggering facts in its latest annual opium report that tells the tail of the failure of the ‘war on drugs.’

• The area planted with opium poppies in Afghanistan has risen to 193,000 hectares from 165,000 last year, a 17 per cent rise.
• With the number of heroin labs increasing, opium production jumped 34 per cent this year compared with last year in the nation.
• The report estimates the total opium harvest for the year at 8,200 tones, up from 6,100 tones last year.
• Afghanistan accounts for 93 per cent of the global opiates market.
• The southern province of Helmand (in Afghanistan) has become the world’s biggest source of illegitimate drugs, exceeding the output of entire nations.

What is driving farmers to flout the government’s ban and cultivate poppy?

One of the major reasons for soaring production of the illegal crop is indifferent attitude of the NATO umbrella that has by now shown little interest to hold back the illegal growers as well as traders of poppy in the region.

Moreover, the government has largely failed to provide employment or economic protraction to the poor workers and farmers who ultimately are left with no other option than to indulge in opium cultivation and trade, the major source of the livelihood for the larger sect of farmers and laborers across the nation.

High price or good returns for opium is another factor that easily outstrips any other agricultural product and attracts more farmers and workers into the black trade. In addition, corrupt officials in President Hamid Karzai’s government also play their part in flourishing the illegal but productive business.

Worsening the situation, opium traders finance the Taliban and al-Qaeda insurgency, getting bigger day by day, for protecting their convoys smuggling opium into neighboring countries. The mutual growth of drugs and terrorism (narco-terrorism) has already killed thousands of innocent people and dispersed millions out of their homeland.

However, all isn’t hunky-dory with the opium trade in Afghanistan, as the UN report did note some positive development as well. While the opium boom has taken place in the troubled Helmand province in the Southern Afghanistan, which also is a stronghold of Taliban and al-Qaeda, on the other hand, the drugs trade in Northern provinces has marked a significant decline.

Problems cannot be resolved unless they are first understood. And it just looks that the Bush-Blair band has by and large failed to reach the root cause of the problem and tried to battle it senselessly at the shallow surface. They completely botched to address the relation between the two ‘wars’ and find an extensive strategy to resolve the problem.

Nevertheless, this is an alarming situation not just for the regional governments but the world community, as the production of poppy in Afghanistan directly or indirectly supports the terrorism and drugs trade (major threats for stability and peace) worldwide. Since it is almost impossible to battle the two vices at scattered fronts, such evils should be nipped in the bud. Furthermore, there should be some other work opportunities or economic backing for the people, largely earning their lives from poppy trade, because more employments and work options will at least diminish the illegal trade, if not wipe out completely, in the volatile nation.