amphetamines Vienna International Centre, PO Box 500, A 1400 Vienna, Austria and ecstasydrugslibrary.wordpress.stir.ac.uk/files/2017/07/ATS... · 2017-07-10 · amphetamines and ecstasy

amphetaminesand ecstasy

2011 Global ats assessment

Vienna International Centre, PO Box 500, A 1400 Vienna, Austria Tel: +(43) (1) 26060-0, Fax: +(43) (1) 26060-5866, www.unodc.org

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Global SmArT Programme

AcknowledgementsThis report was produced by the Laboratory and Scientific Section (headed by Justice Tettey) under the supervision of Sandeep Chawla, Director, Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs.

Core team: Beate Hammond (coordination), Juan Carlos Araneda, Conor Crean, Jakub Gregor, Alice Hamilton, Raggie Johansen, Kristina Kuttnig, Sabrina Levissianos, Shawn Kelley, Tun Nay Soe.

The report also benefited from the work and expertise of many other UNODC staff in Vienna and in field offices around the world.

UNODC would like to specifically recognize funding partners Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea and Thailand for their investment in the Global Synthetics Monitoring: Analyses, Reporting and Trends (SMART) Programme. UNODC would also like to acknowledge the contribution of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD), for their support in the implementation of the SMART Programme in Latin America.

UNODC reiterates its appreciation and gratitude to Member States for the reports and information that provided the basis of this report as well as to the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB).

DISCLAIMER

The publication has not been formally edited. The boundaries, names and designations used in all maps do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations.

Comments on this report are welcome and can be sent to:

Laboratory and Scientific Section United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime PO Box 500 1400 Vienna, Austria E-mail: [email protected]

United Nations Publication Sales No. E.11.XI.13

e-ISBN: 978-92-1-055038-3

1

contents

Preface 3

exPlanatory notes 5

abbreviations 7

executive summary 9

ats markets: regional trends

Asia 17 Oceania 35

NearandMiddleEast/South-WestAsia 43

Europe 51

Africa 69

NorthAmerica 75

SouthAmerica,CentralAmericaandtheCaribbean 83

ats markets: Precursors and Production

PrecursorTrends 93 ManufacturingMethods 99

data constraints 105

conclusion 111

references 115

3

Three years after the last global assessment of Amphetamine-Type Stimulants (ATS), the manufacture and trafficking of these drugs remains a serious and constantly evolving challenge. The 2011 Global ATS Assessment shines a pow-erful light on ATS helping governments to better understand this important phenomenon.

Once viewed as purely a cottage industry, ATS manufacture and trafficking has undergone its own industrial revolu-tion. After cannabis, ATS are the second most widely used drugs across the globe outstripping the use of heroin or cocaine. ATS are now manufactured and marketed with organized crime groups involved throughout the production and supply chain.

Until recently, the ATS trade was sometimes ignored in favour of the traditional focus on heroin and cocaine. But there is growing recognition that the expansion of the ATS trade and its high profits threaten security, health and the welfare of populations across the globe.

While seizures of heroin, cocaine and cannabis remained largely stable between 2005 and 2009, ATS seizures, excluding ecstasy, showed a clear increase over the same period. In South-East Asia, for example, the number of methamphetamine pills seized grew significantly: from 32 million in 2008, to 93 million in 2009 and 133 million in 2010.

Injecting ATS use is also growing and increasing the risk of blood borne diseases such as HIV/AIDS. In Thailand, injecting is the second most common delivery system for ATS, while in New Zealand it is the most commonly injected drug. Injecting use is also now commonplace in some countries in Europe.

In addition to amphetamines and ecstasy, established ATS markets have seen the emergence of so-called analogue substances falling outside of international control. Substances such as mephedrone or methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) are sold as ‘bath salts’ or ‘plant food’ and act as substitutes for illicit stimulant drugs such as cocaine or ecstasy.

ATS are attractive to millions of drug users in all regions of the world because they are affordable, convenient to the user and often associated with a modern and dynamic lifestyle. Their risks are often underestimated in public perception.

In terms of the overall number of ATS users in the last twelve months, this appears to have stabilised, but there were increases in some parts of the world where there were few problems with ATS.

Such developments make ATS tidal by nature; rising and falling as demand increases and decreases around the globe. This also explains why the Assessment shows regions suffering high-tides or low-tides in ATS terms with the transition often occurring in extremely short periods of time. Most importantly, the flow of ATS trafficking exploits vulnerable states, often weakened by instability and insecurity.

ATS manufacture has also expanded into new regions and there has been a diversification of the drug’s precursor chemicals and manufacturing methods. Additional countries in South-East Asia now report ATS manufacture, as well as the growth of interregional trafficking in countries with no previous history of the drug.

Methamphetamine may also be expanding into Europe with several countries reporting an increase in its use and production. Illicit laboratories have been seized in many European countries. There are also signs that the drug may be replacing amphetamine in some parts of Europe.

Once thought to be largely unaffected by the illicit manufacture and trafficking of ATS, West Africa has now been drawn into the trade’s orbit. Methamphetamine manufacture has been reported from Nigeria. Since 2008, seizures in several East Asian countries —notably Japan and the Republic of Korea—appear to have their origin in West Africa. ATS manufacture is also increasingly reported from Central America and South America.

preface

4

2011 GLoBaL ATS ASSESSMENT

DataisfundamentaltounderstandingtheebbsandflowsofATS.UsingitsGlobalSyntheticsMonitoring:AnalysesReportingandTrends(SMART)programme,UNODChasasystemforwatchingthedrug’stidalmovementsinsomeregionsoftheworld.Thankstotheprogramme,thereismoreknowledgeandthereforeabetterunderstandingoftheproblem;inturn,thiswillassistGovernmentsintheformulationofeffectiveresponses.However,gapsremain.

Todealwiththischallenge,UNODCisensuringthatthetwin-relatedthreatsofdrugtraffickingandTransnationalOrganisedCrimearemainstreamedthroughouttheUnitedNationssystem,mobilizingjointactionandcreatingavisionfortheeffectivedeliveryofsolutions.TheseactivitiesattheinternationallevelshouldalsohelpstemtheATStide.

Finally,IwouldliketothankthedonorswhosupportedthisinitiativeandwhomadethisAssessmentpossible.Fur-ther investment isnecessary, ifwearetobuildonthisAssessmentandgainaclearerappreciationofthisglobalproblem.

YuryFedotovExecutiveDirector

UnitedNationsOfficeonDrugsandCrime

5

Thisreporthasnotbeenformallyedited.

Thedesignationsemployedandthepresentationofthematerial inthispublicationdonotimplytheexpressionofanyopinionwhatsoeveronthepartoftheSecretariatoftheUnitedNationsconcerningthelegalstatusofanycountry,terri-tory,cityorareaorofitsauthorities,orconcerningthedelimitationofitsfrontiersorboundaries.Countriesandareasarereferredtobythenamesthatwereinofficialuseatthetimetherelevantdatawerecollected.

The followingnotesdescribe certain terms, regional designations, data sources and timeframesused throughout thisdocument.

ats–Amphetamine-typestimulants(ATS)areagroupofsubstancescomprisedofsyntheticstimulantsincludingamphet-amine,methamphetamine,methcathinone,andecstasy-groupsubstances(e.g.,MDMAanditsanalogues).

Invarioussectionsofthisreport,amphetamineandmethamphetaminearealsoreferredtoasamphetamines-groupsub-stances. Incaseswherecountries report toUNODCwithout indicatingthespecificATStheyarereferringto, thetermnon-specifiedamphetaminesisused.Tabletswhicharemarketedtocontainanecstasy-groupsubstance,butmayactuallycontainavarietyofothersubstances,arereferredtoasecstasy.

terms:Sincethereissomescientificandlegalambiguityaboutthedistinctionsbetweendrug'use','misuse'and'abuse',thisreportusestheneutralterms,drug'use'or'consumption'.

maps: Theboundariesandnamesshownandthedesignationsusedonmapsdonotimplyofficialendorsementoraccept-ancebytheUnitedNations.AdottedlinerepresentsapproximatelythelineofcontrolinJammuandKashmiragreeduponby IndiaandPakistan.Thefinalstatusof JammuandKashmirhasnotyetbeenagreeduponbytheparties.Disputedboundaries(China/India)arerepresentedbycrosshatchduetothedifficultyofshowingsufficientdetail.

Population data: Populationdatausedinthisreportcomesfrom:UnitedNations,DepartmentofEconomicandSocialAffairs,PopulationDivision.WorldPopulationProspects:The2008Revision,2009.

regions:Invarioussections,thisreportusesanumberofregionaldesignations.Thesearenotofficialdesignations.Theyaredefinedasfollows:

AFRICA

•• EastAfrica:Burundi,Comoros,Djibouti,Eritrea,Ethiopia,Kenya,Madagascar,Mauritius,Rwanda,Seychelles,Somalia,Tanzania(UnitedRepublicof)andUganda

•• NorthAfrica:Algeria,Egypt,LibyanArabJamahiriya,Morocco,SudanandTunisia

•• SouthernAfrica:Angola,Botswana,Lesotho,Malawi,Mozambique,Namibia,SouthAfrica,Swaziland,ZambiaandZimbabwe

•• WestandCentralAfrica:Benin,BurkinaFaso,Cameroon,CapeVerde,CentralAfricanRepublic,Chad,Congo(DemocraticRepublicof),Congo(Republicof),Côted’Ivoire,EquatorialGuinea,Gabon,Gambia,Ghana,Guinea,Guinea-Bissau,Liberia,Mali,Mauritania,Niger,Nigeria,SaoTomeandPrincipe,Senegal,SierraLeone,Togo

AMERICAS

•• Caribbean:AntiguaandBarbuda,Bahamas,Barbados,Bermuda,Cuba,Dominica,DominicanRepublic,Grenada,Haiti,Jamaica,SaintKittsandNevis,SaintLucia,SaintVincentandtheGrenadines,TrinidadandTobago

•• CentralAmerica:Belize,CostaRica,ElSalvador,Guatemala,Honduras,Nicaragua,Panama

•• NorthAmerica:Canada,Mexico,UnitedStatesofAmerica(USA)

•• SouthAmerica:Argentina,Bolivia(PlurinationalStateof),Brazil,Chile,Colombia,Ecuador,Guyana,Paraguay,Peru,Suriname,Uruguay,Venezuela(BolivarianRepublicof)

expLanatory notes

6


ASIA

•• CentralAsiaandTranscaucasia:Armenia,Azerbaijan,Georgia,Kazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan,Tajikistan,Turkmenistan,Uzbekistan

•• NearandMiddleEast/South-WestAsia:Afghanistan,Bahrain,IslamicRepublicofIran,Iraq,Israel,Jordan,Kuwait,Lebanon,Oman,Pakistan,Qatar,SaudiArabia,SyrianArabRepublic,UnitedArabEmirates(UAE),Yemen

•• EastandSouth-EastAsia:BruneiDarussalam,Cambodia,China(includingHongKong,MacaoandTaiwanProv-inceofChina),Indonesia,Japan,RepublicofKorea,LaoPDR,Malaysia,Mongolia,Myanmar,Philippines,Singa-pore,Thailand,andVietNam

–GreaterMekongSubregion(GMS):Cambodia,LaoPDR,Myanmar,Thailand,VietNam,andborderingprov-incesofChina

–North-EastAsia:Japan,Philippines,RepublicofKorea

–SouthernArchipelago:BruneiDarussalam,Indonesia,MalaysiaandSingapore

•• SouthAsia:Bangladesh,Bhutan,India,Maldives,NepalandSriLanka

EUROPE

•• EastEurope:Belarus,RepublicofMoldova,RussianFederationandUkraine

•• South-EastEurope:Albania,BosniaandHerzegovina,Bulgaria,Croatia,Montenegro,Romania,Serbia,theformerYugoslavRepublicofMacedoniaandTurkey

•• WestandCentralEurope:Andorra,Austria,Belgium,Cyprus,CzechRepublic,Denmark,Estonia,Finland,France,Germany,Greece,Hungary,Iceland,Ireland,Italy,Latvia,Liechtenstein,Lithuania,Luxembourg,Malta,Monaco,Netherlands,Norway,Poland,Portugal,SanMarino,Slovakia,Slovenia,Spain,Sweden,SwitzerlandandUnitedKingdom

OCEANIA

•• Oceania:Australia,Fiji,Kiribati,Marshall Islands,Micronesia,Nauru,NewZealand,Palau,PapuaNewGuinea,Samoa,SolomonIslands,Tonga,Tuvalu,Vanuatu,andotherPacificislandstatesandterritories

data sources and timeframes–Unlessindicatedspecifically,datacontainedinthisreportdrawuponofficialsourcesasreportedintheUNODCAnnualReportsQuestionnaire(ARQ)byMemberStates,annualandtechnicalreportsoftheInternational Narcotics Control Board (INCB), official government and inter-governmental entities (e.g., Interpol/ICPO,Europol,WorldCustomsOrganization,Inter-AmericanDrugAbuseControlCommissionof(CICAD),UNODCFieldOfficeandHONLEAreports,datasystems(e.g.,DAINAP,CEN)andthescientificliterature.

DatarelatedtoseizuresofATS,theirprecursorsandclandestinelaboratoriesaresubjecttochangeforavarietyofreasons,suchasneworlatedatabeingaddedorrevisionsindataalreadyprovidedbyMemberStates.Thus,somefiguresmaydifferfrompreviouslypublishedfigures.Alldatareportedhereinreflectthemostup-to-dateandaccurate informationavailableatthetimeofwriting.

7

aBBreviations

the following abbreviations have been used in this report:

ACC AustralianCrimeCommissionACCORD ASEANandChinaCooperativeOperationsinResponsetoDangerousDrugsADK NationalAnti-DrugsAgency,MalaysiaADLOMICO Anti-DrugLiaisonOfficials’MeetingforInternationalCooperationAFP AustralianFederalPoliceAIDS AcquiredImmune-DeficiencySyndromeAIHW AustralianInstituteofHealthandWelfareAIPAC AsiaPacificAmphetamine-TypeStimulantsInformationCentreARQ UNODCAnnualReportsQuestionnaireASEAN AssociationofSoutheastAsianNationsATS Amphetamine-typestimulants

BMK Benzylmethylketone(P-2-P)

BNN NationalNarcoticsBoard,IndonesiaBZP BenzylpiperazineCCDAC CentralCommitteeforDrugAbuseControl,MyanmarCEN WorldCustomsOrganization’sCustomsEnforcementNetworkCICAD Inter-AmericanDrugAbuseControlCommissionCIS CommonwealthofIndependentStatesDAINAP DrugAbuseInformationNetworkforAsiaandthePacificDCHQ NationalDrugControlHeadquaters(IslamicRepublicofIran)DEA DrugEnforcementAdministration(USA)DELTA UNODCDatabaseonEstimatesandLongTermTrendAnalysisEMCDDA EuropeanMonitoringCentreforDrugsandDrugAddictionESPAD EuropeanSchoolSurveyProjectonAlcoholandotherDrugsEuropol EuropeanPoliceOfficeGovt. GovernmentHIV HumanImmunodeficiencyVirusHKNB HongKongSpecialAdministrativeRegionofthePeople'sRepublic

ofChinaNarcoticsBureauHKSB HongKongSpecialAdministrativeRegionofthePeople'sRepublic

ofChinaSecurityBureau

HONLEA HeadsofNationalDrugLawEnforcementAgenciesICMP UNODCGlobalIllicitCropMonitoringProgrammeIDU InjectingdruguseINCB InternationalNarcoticsControlBoardINCSR InternationalNarcoticsControlStrategyReport(USA)Interpol/ICPO InternationalCriminalPoliceOrganizationJCITAC JapanCustomsIntelligence&TargetingCenterJMHCW MinistryofHealth,LabourandWelfare(Japan)JNPA NationalPoliceAgencyofJapanL-PAC l-phenylacetylcarbinol

8


LCDC LaoNationalCommissionforDrugControlandSupervisionLSD LysergicaciddiethlyamideMBDB N-Methyl-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-butanamineMDA 3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine(tenamfetamine)mCPP m-chlorophenylpiperazineMDE 3,4-MethylenedioxyethylamphetamineMDMA 3,4-MethylenedioxymethamphetamineMOHNZ MinistryofHealth(NewZealand)NACD NationalAuthorityforCombatingDrugs,CambodiaNDARC NationalDrugandAlcoholResearchCentre(Australia)NDIC NationalDrugIntelligenceCenter(USA)NDLEA NationalDrugLawEnforcementAgency(Nigeria)NGO Non-GovernmentalOrganizationNIDA NationalInstituteofDrugAbuse(USA)

NNCC NationalNarcoticsControlCommission(China)OAS/CICAD/MEM OrganizationofAmericanStates/Inter-AmericanDrugAbuseControlCommission/

MultilateralEvaluationMechanism

OECD OrganizationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopmentONCB OfficeoftheNarcoticsControlBoard(Thailand)P-2-P 1-Phenyl-2-propanone(BMK)PEN InternationalNarcoticsControlBoard’sPre-ExportNotificationonlinesystemPDEA PhilippinesDrugEnforcementAgencyPMK 3,4-Methylenedioxyphenyl-2-propanone(3,4-MDP-2-P)RCMP RoyalCanadianMountedPoliceSACENDU SouthAfricanCommunityEpidemiologyNetworkonDrugUseSAMHSA SubstanceAbuseandMentalHealthServicesAdministration(USA)SAPS SouthAfricanPoliceServiceSHORE CentreforSocialandHealthOutcomesReserachandEvaluation(NewZealand)SOCA SeriousOrganisedCrimeAgency(UnitedKingdom)SODC StandingOfficeonDrugsandCrime(formerlyStandingOfficeonDrugsControl),VietNamSPO SupremeProsecutor’sOffice,RepublicofKoreaTFMPP 3-trifluoromethylphenyl-piperazine

UAE UnitedArabEmiratesUNAIDS JointandCo-sponsoredUnitedNationsProgrammeonHumanImmunodeficiencyVirus/

AcquiredImmunodeficiencySyndrome

UNDCP UnitedNationsInternationalDrugControlProgrammeUNODC UnitedNationsOfficeonDrugsandCrimeWCO WorldCustomsOrganizationWDR UNODCWorldDrugReportWHO WorldHealthOrganization

1988Convention UnitedNationsConventionAgainstIllicitTrafficinNarcoticDrugsandPsychotropicSubstances,1988

2C-B 4-Bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine(Nexus)2C-T-2 4-Ethylthio-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine3,4-MDP-2-P 3,4-Methylenedioxyphenyl-2-propanone(PMK)4-MTA 4-Methylthioamphetamine

Weights and measurements

u. unitlt. litreg/mg gram/milligramkg kilogrammt metricton

executive summary

9

Amphetamine-typestimulants(ATS)arefirmlyestablishedonglobalillicitdrugmarketsandtheirusecontinuestoexceedthatofopiatesorcocaine.WhilethenumberofpeoplewhohaveusedATSatleastonceinthelast12monthshassta-bilizedatthegloballevel,increaseshaveoccurredinpartsoftheworldthatpreviouslyhadonlyverysmallATS-relatedproblems.

ThewidespreaduseofATSisaresultoftheirattractivenesstousers:theyseemtoappealtotheneedsoftoday’ssocietiesandhavebecomepartofwhat isperceived tobeamodernanddynamic lifestyle; in somesegmentsof society, theycontinuetobeusedfrequentlyforoccupationalpurposes.Itisalsoaresultofamarketpotentialwithcontinuouslyhighprofitsandlowrisksthatmaintaintheirattractivenesstocriminalgroupsaroundtheworld.

SincethelastglobalATSassessmentwaspublishedin2008,1therehavebeenseveralnewdevelopments.

Thereportprovidesevidenceforthesedevelopmentssince2008,withaspecialfocusonsubregionalpatternsandtrends,andhighlightsthechallengesahead.

expansion of ats manufacture to neW reGionsATSareattractivetoclandestineoperatorsbecausetherearenogeographicallimitationstowheretheycanbemanufac-tured,thereisalargevarietyofstartingmaterialsandmanufacturingmethods,andtheyofferconsiderableprofits.

Amphetamines-groupsubstances,(i.e.amphetamineandmethamphetamine)accountformostATSmanufacturedworld-wide,whilethemanufactureofecstasy-groupsubstances(i.e.MDMA,MDA,MDE)issignificantlylesswidespread.Onaglobalscale,afterstrongincreasespeakingin2004,thenumberofillicitlaboratories2declineduntil2007andincreasedin2008and2009.

Overthepastfiveyears,ATSmanufacturehasspreadtonewregionswhichpreviouslyreportedlittleornomanufacture.InSouth-EastAsia,forexample,Indonesia,Malaysiaand,toalesserextent,Cambodiausedtobeprimarilytransitcoun-triesforATSbutnowreportsignificantillicitATSmanufacture,primarilyofmethamphetamineandecstasy.Indonesiahasreportedaconsiderablenumberofseizuresof largesophisticatedillicit laboratoriesmanufacturingcrystallinemetham-phetamineandecstasy.In2009,druglawenforcementauthoritiesinIndonesiadismantledatotalof37ATSmanufactur-ing operations. The continuing high levels of ecstasy manufacture in Indonesia raise concern that the country couldreplaceEuropeasthesourceofMDMAintheregion.SimilardevelopmentshaveoccurredinMalaysia,whichusedtobeatransitcountryforsmallamountsofcrystallinemethamphetamine,ecstasyandketaminedestinedforAustralia,China,Indonesia,Japan,SingaporeandThailand.Inthemeantime,Malaysiahasbecomeasignificantmethamphetaminemanu-facturinglocationandthisdemonstratesthespeedwithwhichshiftsinpatternsofclandestinemanufacture,traffickingandusecanoccur.Since2008,Malaysianauthoritieshavereportedthedismantlingofmorethan30largeandsmall-scaleATSmanufacturinglaboratories.InCambodia,officialreportsofillicitATSmanufacturefirstemergedin2007whenpolicedismantledalarge-scalelaboratorythatwasreportedtohavemanufacturedatleast1mtofchloropseudoephedrine,anintermediateinthemanufactureofmethamphetamine.IllicitATSmanufactureinthecountryhassinceincreasedconsid-erably.ATSmanufactureorattemptstomanufacturehavealsobeenreportedfromChina(includingHongKongSAR),Japan,RepublicofKoreaandThailand.

Reports of ATS manufacture have also emerged from countries in Central America and South America. Six illicit ATSlaboratorieswere reportedseized in2009.However,asATSdata fromthe region is inshort supply,partlydue to thetraditionalfocusofdrugcontrolauthoritiesontraditionaldrugssuchascocaineandcannabis, it is likelythatthetruesituationisunderreported.ATSmanufacturehasbeenreportedfromArgentina,Belize,Brazil,Guatemala,NicaraguaandSuriname.

1 Accessibleat:http://www.unodc.org/documents/scientific/ATS/Global-ATS-Assessment-2008-Web.pdf

2 Includeslaboratoriesofanysizeandstateofoperation,aswellaswastedumpsitesandchemicalandglasswareseizures(‘warehouses’).

10


Foralongtime,WestAfricawasoneoftheworld’ssubregionswhichappearedtohavebeenlargelyunaffectedbytheillicitmanufacture,traffickinganduseofATS.However,since2008,anincreaseinmethamphetamineseizuresincountriesinEastAsia(primarilyJapanandRepublicofKorea),haspointedtopossiblemanufacture.In2009,evidenceofpossibleATSmanufacturewasdiscovered inGuineaand in2010, theUnitedStatesGovernment indictedmembersofa largeinternationalcocainetraffickingorganization,for,inter alia,theintenttoestablishanillicitlaboratoryinLiberiaforlarge-scalemanufacturingofmethamphetamine.InJune2011,amethamphetaminelaboratorywasdiscoveredinNigeria,ontheoutskirtsofLagos.Thelaboratoryhadanestimatedcapacityof160-200kgofcrystallinemethamphetamineperweek.

IntheNearandMiddleEast/South-WestAsiasubregion,theIslamicRepublicofIranfirstreportedillicitmanufactureofmethamphetaminein2008.ThesubstanceisusedlocallybutalsosubsequentlytraffickedmostlytomarketsinEastandSouth-EastAsia. Strong increases inamphetamine seizures,mostly in the formofCaptagon,3 in somecountries, e.g.Jordan,theSyrianArabRepublicandtheUnitedArabEmiratesmightalsopointtopossiblemanufacturingactivityintheregion. Some law enforcement intelligence suggests that manufacture of amphetamine (Captagon) has shifted fromSouth-EastEuropetocountriesintheNearandMiddleEast.ThedeclineinamphetamineseizuresinBulgariaandTurkeywouldsupportthisdevelopment.SeveralcountriesintheregionalsohaveunusuallyhighrequirementsforATSprecursorssuchasephedrine,pseudoephedrineorP-2-P.However,asidefromtheIslamicRepublicofIran,noreportsofillicitmanu-facturehavebeenreceivedfromtheregiontodate.

DuetostrictercontrolsoverprecursorchemicalsnecessarytomanufactureATS(particularlyephedrineandpseudoephe-drineinbulkform),traffickershavebeenseekingtoobtainprecursorchemicalsindifferentphysicalformstoavoiddetec-

3 Captagonwasoriginallythetradenameforfenetylline,asyntheticstimulant.AnalysisofseizedCaptagonpillsshowthatmostcontainamphetamineandotheringredientssuchascaffeineandtheophylline.

intrinsic characteristics of ats contributing to their attractiveness vis-à-vis the traditional plant-based drugs heroin and cocaine:

on the demand side

•• ATS are attractive because they are perceived as enhancing performance and communication and have come to embody a modern and fashionable lifestyle (the extent to which ATS are used for occupational or recreational purposes depends on the specific substance);

•• ATS can be taken orally. In addition to being ‘convenient’ for the user, the use of pills also avoids injection or smoking and the dangers of social stigma associated with these administration routes;

•• ATS are affordable (available on retail markets in single pill units);•• The recreational use of ATS is generally perceived as not being very harmful, and controllable; public health risks

of ATS are frequently underestimated in public perception, as well as in the judicial and enforcement areas;

on the supply side

•• ATS are attractive because of high profits: with little initial investment, hugely profitable quantities of drugs can be manufactured;

•• ATS can be made readily from a variety of starting materials (precursors) using a variety of synthesis methods. When a traditional precursor becomes unavailable, the desired precursor may itself be synthesized from a pre-precursor chemical;

•• ATS manufacture is not limited to certain geographic locations. It can take place anywhere, be easily camou-flaged, and be relocated as enforcement pressure increases (e.g. makeshift laboratories set up to supply a single order and then dismantled to prevent detection);

•• Because there are no geographical limitations, ATS laboratories can be located close to the areas of consump-tion, thus minimizing the risk of detection when trafficking end-products across international borders;

•• Awareness of ATS end-products and/or their precursors is still limited in some parts of the world where other drugs prevail, thus minimizing the risk for illicit operators and trafficking groups;

•• For operators of small-scale ‘kitchen’ laboratories (typically methamphetamine laboratories), ATS are attractive because manufacture does not usually require advanced knowledge of chemistry and can be accomplished by

anyone from readily available chemicals.

(Information drawn partly from previous UNODC publications: Understanding clandestine synthetic drugs (2001) and Ecstasy and amphetamines - Global survey 2003)

11

executive summary

tion.Ephedrineorpseudoephedrineareobtainedintheformofpharmaceuticalpreparations(nasaldecongestants)bydiversionfromlocalpharmaciesandsubsequentlytraffickedaroundtheworld.Traffickershavealsoresortedtoalternativemanufacturingmethods,whichtypicallyinvolveeithersynthesizingnecessarychemicalsfromothersmoreeasilyavailableorbypassingtheiruseentirely.

Ephedrineandpseudoephedrineusedtobethepreferredstartingmaterialsfortheillicitmanufactureofmethampheta-mine.However,withaccess tothesesubstancescurtailedbymoreeffectivecontrols, traffickershaveresortedtousingP-2-Pasthestartingmaterial.InAustralia,forexample,anincreaseinthenumberoflaboratoriesusingP-2-Pasaprecur-sorinthesynthesisofamphetamineswasreportedin2009.Phenylaceticacid,animmediateprecursorofP-2-P,hasalsobeenwidelyusedbutcontrolsoverthesubstancewerestrengthenedin2010.4Inresponse,traffickershavebeenusingtheestersofphenylaceticacidwhichmaybereadilyconvertedtophenylaceticacid.Methylphenylacetateandethylphe-nylacetate have been seized in illicit ATS laboratories in Mexico. Another substitute substance, l-phenylacetylcarbinol(l-PAC),aprecursorofephedrine),wasreportedashavingbeenfoundinillicitATSmanufacturingoperationsinCanada.

neW ats trafficKinG routes in asiaOverthelastfewyears,theATSmarkethasmovedfrombeingacottage-typeindustry(withmanysmall-scalemanufac-turingoperations)tomoreofacocaine-orheroin-typemarket,characterizedbyahigherlevelofintegrationandinvolve-ment of organized crime groups that control the entire chain from the provision of precursors, to manufacture andtraffickingoftheend-product.RecentyearshaveseenagreaterdiversificationofATStraffickingroutes,particularly inSouth-EastAsia,aswellasthegrowthof inter-regionaltraffickingthroughcountriespreviouslynot identifiedasbeinginvolvedinATStrafficking.

South-EastAsiahasexperiencedsignificantincreasesintheseizuresofmethamphetaminepillsoriginatingfromMyanmar.Thenumberofmethamphetaminepillsseizedincreasedexponentiallyin2009.Morethan94millionpillswereseizedintheregionin2009,comparedto32millionpills in2008.Seizuresincreasedsharplyagainin2010,reachingatotalofover133millionpills.Methamphetaminepills,whicharemanufacturedintheShanstateofMyanmar,aretraffickedalongnewroutestoThailand,ChinaandLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic.TheMekongRiverisnowakeyroute,likelyduetoThailand’sstrictercontrolsaimedatsuppressingdrugtraffickingandpreventingdruguse.Thereareindicationsofnewroutes to thewesternpartofMyanmarandalso foronward trafficking toSouthAsia.Reports from India,NepalandBangladeshin2010and2011indicatethatSouthAsiaisalsoincreasinglyaffectedbythetraffickingofmethamphetaminepills.

AlthoughmostATSarestillmanufacturedwithintheregionsinwhichtheyareused,thereareindicationsofincreasinginter-regionaltrafficking.NorthAmerica(primarilyCanada)andEastandSouth-EastAsiahaveemergedassourcesofATSforinternationalmarkets.Since2008,therehasbeenanincreaseinmethamphetaminetraffickingcasestoEastAsiafromWestAfrica.ThenumberofseizuresandquantitiesseizedinEastAsiafoundtohaveoriginatedinWestAfricancountriessuchasBenin,Côted’Ivoire,Cameroon,Ghana,Guinea,SenegalandNigeriamore than tripled in2009.ATS,mostlymethamphetamine,istraffickedbyairfromWestAfricaviacouriers.MethamphetaminetraffickedfromtheIslamicRepub-licofIrantocountriesinAsiaandOceania(e.g.Azerbaijan,Japan,Malaysia,NewZealand,Thailand,SriLanka,Uzbekistan)isanotherdevelopmentthathasemergedsincethepublicationofthe2008GlobalATSAssessment.TurkeyreportsthatmethamphetamineissmuggledfromtheIslamicRepublicofIranintoTurkey,thentraffickedbyairtoEastandSouth-EastAsia.

emerGence of metHampHetamine in europeThereare indicationsthatmethamphetaminemarketsmaybeexpandinginEurope,asseveralcountrieshavereportedincreasedavailabilityofthedrugaswellasanincreaseinuseandmorewidespreadreportsofmanufacture.Illicitmeth-amphetaminelaboratorieshavebeenseizedforthefirsttimeinseveralEuropeancountries, includingAustria,Belarus,Lithuania,Netherlands,PolandandPortugal.InGermany,moremethamphetaminelaboratorieshavebeenreportedthanamphetaminesince2008.Bulgariareportedtheseizureoftwomobilemethamphetaminelaboratoriesin2010;thefirstsuchinstancesince2001.InEurope,methamphetamineisprimarilysoldinthepowderform.

There are signs that methamphetamine might be replacing amphetamine on the illicit market of some countries, forexample,Sweden,Norway,Lithuania,LatviaandEstonia.SeizuresofmethamphetamineinEuropeincreasedfrom133kgin2005to697kgin2009,thelatestyearforwhichdataareavailable.

4 In8March2010,phenylaceticacidwastransferredfromTableIItoTableIoftheUnitedNationsConventionagainstIllicitTrafficinNarcoticDrugsandPsy-chotropicSubstancesof1988–effectiveasof17January2011–inanattempttopreventdiversionsofthesubstanceintoillicitATSmanufacturebyincreas-inginternationalcontrolsandreporting.InApril2010,theGovernmentofMexicostrengthenedcontrolofphenylaceticacidbytransferringthesubstanceanditssaltsandderivativesfromTableIItoTableIofthefederallawonprecursorcontrol.Mexicoalsobroughtmethylamine,hydriodicacidandredphos-phorusunderitsnationalcontrol.ThosethreesubstancesarenotunderinternationalcontrolbutareusedintheillicitmanufactureofATS(INCB,2011b).

12


inJectinG ats use in some reGionsInabsolutenumbers,mostATSuserscontinuetoliveinEastandSouth-EastAsia,themostpopuloussubregionintheworld.TheinjectinguseofmethamphetamineanditsassociatednegativehealthconsequenceshasbeenreportedasagrowingprobleminEastandSouth-EastAsia.LaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublicandMalaysia,forexample,reportedtheinjectinguseofcrystallinemethamphetamineforthefirsttimein2008and2009,respectively.InThailand,injectingisthesecondmostcommonmodeofadministrationforcrystallinemethamphetamineandthethirdmostcommonmodeofadministrationformethamphetaminepills.InNewZealand,methamphetamineisthemostcommonlyinjecteddrugandinJapan,injectingistheprimarymodeofadministrationforcrystallinemethamphetamine.Highratesofamphetaminesinjection are also reported in the Czech Republic as well as Sweden, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Georgia andUkraine.

DecLine anD possiBLe resurGence of ecstasy anD emerGence of ana-LoGue suBstances in estaBLisHeD ats marKets In2008and2009,manyEuropeancountriesreportedadecliningavailabilityofecstasy,reflectedbysignificantdeclinesinecstasyseizuresaswellasdecreasingMDMAcontentdetectedthroughforensicanalysis. Inmanycases,declines insupplyandpuritywereaccompaniedbytheemergenceofanaloguesubstancesnotunderinternationalcontrol.Thesesubstances aremarketedas so-called ‘legalhighs’ andmimic theeffectsof taking illicit stimulant substances suchasecstasy or amphetamines. Widely used substances include BZP, mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone (4-MMC)) andMDPV.ThenewunregulatedsyntheticcompoundsappearedfirstinestablishedATSmarkets,particularlyinEurope,theUnitedStates,Canada,AustraliaandNewZealandbuthavemeanwhilespreadtoothermarkets,e.g.Philippines.

Most recent reportspoint to the increasingpurityofecstasyandapossible resurgenceof thedrugon the illicitdrugmarket.TheNetherlandsreportedincreasingpurityofecstasyin2010,whichwasat82%,comparedto70%in2008and2009.

Theresurgenceofecstasycouldalsohaveimpactedontheavailabilityofanaloguesubstancessuchasmephedrone,whichseemedtohavedisappearedfromtheillicitecstasymarketintheNetherlandsduringthefirsthalfof2010.Ecstasyseizures

Greater mekong subregion: primary methamphetamine trafficking routes

Source: CCDAC, 2009 Note: The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations.

1,000 km

PapuaNew Guinea

China

JAVA

BM 03.03.10

PAPUA

Viet Nam

Cambodia

Thailand

Myanmar

Bangladesh

Lao PDR

India

Expanded trafficking routes (after 2003)

Emerging trafficking routes

Traditional trafficking routes (before 2003)

�

�

�

Hanoi

Bangkok

Phnom Penh

13

executive summary

areatafive-yearhighintheUSA,withatotalof3,411kgreportedseizedin2009,a15%increaseover2008.Europolreportsthatitislikelythatecstasymanufactureandtraffick-ingwillbegintoincreaseagaininthecomingyears,whichcould affect the availability of unregulated substancesontheATSmarket.

Data constraintsAnalysing ATS markets and developing an evidence baseupon which actions to counter the ATS problem can bebuilt relies on accurate, comparable and timely data.UNODCanalyses arebasedondata reportedbyMemberStates.However,thereisirregularand/orincompletereport-ingfromseveralkeyregions,includingSouthAsia,theNearand Middle East, parts of the Americas, Africa and mostPacific Island states and territories. As this report shows,theseareoftentheveryregionsforwhichtherearealreadyindicationsofafuturespreadoftheATSproblem.

Irregular or incomplete reporting from Member States iscompoundedbythevaryingqualityofdataprovided.Spe-cifically,andsimilartootherdrugs, informationabouttheextent of ATS use is the weakest indicator, as householdandothersurveysarelackingorareoutdatedinsomecoun-triesinseveralofthemostaffectedregions.Unfortunately,thishappenstobethecase inseveralpopulouscountries(for example, China and India). The lack of systematicforensicinformationonthespecificATSsubstances,theactualprecursorsusedandthesizeandcapacityofclandestinelaboratoryoperations is another limitation.Without thesedata,whichprovide critical evidence forbothdemandandsupplysidetrends,specificregionalshiftsandemergingtrendsinATSmarketsfailtobedetectedinatimelymanner.Lackofthesedata,togetherwithlackofpricedata,alsoaffectsestimatesofwholesaleandretailmarketvalues,mark-ups,andtheprofitabilityoftheATSmarket.

concLusionsAftercannabis,ATSarethesecondmostwidelyuseddrugs.ThenumberofATSusershasstabilizedathighlevels:UNODCestimatesthattheannualprevalenceforamphetamines-groupsubstancesrangedbetween0.3%and1.3%in2009,orsome14to57millionpeopleaged15-64.Fortheecstasygroup,globalannualprevalenceisestimatedatbetween0.2%and0.6%ofthepopulationaged15-64,orsome11to28millionpast-yearusers.Thescaleoftheproblemisunderre-ported,assomelargecountriessuchasChinaorIndiahaveneverconductedanationallyrepresentativesurveytocollectdataonATSuse.

ThereporthasshownthattheATSproblemkeepsspreadingtonewregionsandcountriesnotpreviouslyaffectedbythephenomenon. It isadynamicproblemcharacterizedby rapidchanges in regional trends in the levelsofmanufacture,traffickinganduse.Anditisacomplexproblem,withagreatvarietyofsubstancessoldinanumberofdifferentforms-aspowders,pillsorhighpuritycrystals.

DuetothecomplexityanddynamicnatureoftheATSphenomenon,thecapacitytomonitortheillicitmanufacture,traf-fickinganduseofATSisasizeableandoftenenormouschallengeformanyGovernments.AttentiontotheATSproblemremainsunevenacrosstheworldandthereisaneedtoestablishandfurtherdevelopwaystoassesstheATSsituationinkeyregions.IntheNearandMiddleEast,theregionwiththehighestseizuresofamphetamines,thereisastrongneedtobroadentheinformationandknowledgebase.DataonATSusearealmostnon-existentandlittleisknownabouttheoriginofthepillswhichareseizedinlargequantitiesinmostcountriesintheregion.Africa,increasinglyassociatedwithtraffickingofprecursorsandexpandingATSmanufacturingcapacityisanotherregionwhichwouldbenefitfrominvest-mentintodrug-relatedproblems.MostPacificIslandStatesandterritorieslackinfrastructuretocollectandprovideinfor-mationonATSyetareincreasinglyassociatedwithtraffickingofprecursorsandthetransitofATS.

The internationalcommunityhasrecognized,mostnotably inthe1998UNGASSActionPlan on ATSaswellas inthe2008PoliticalDeclarationandPlanofActiononInternationalCooperationtowardsanIntegratedandBalancedStrategy

europe: seizures of methamphetamine 2005-2009

Source: UNODC ARQ/DELTA

323.1

696.5

133.1

189.8

390.7

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Seiz

ure

s o

f m

eth

amp

het

amin

e (k

g e

qu

ival

ents

)

14


toCountertheWorldDrugProblem,thatATScontinuetoposeaseriousandconstantlyevolvingchallengetointerna-tional drug control efforts; a challengewhich threatens the security, health andwelfare of thepopulation, especiallyyouth,andhascalledonMemberStatestoproducecomprehensivenational,regionalandglobalresponses.

ToproperlyrespondtotheATSproblem,furtherinvestmentsinATSinformationsystemsthatprovideaccurate,timelyandactionableinformationwithdetailatthesubregionalornationallevel,remainamongthehighestprioritiesforaction.

EmergingATSmarketsneedtobemonitoredandaddressedproactivelybeforetheyareestablishedandbecomeasig-nificantaddedburdentonationalhealthandjusticesystems.UNODCwillcontinuetoidentifyandcommunicateinforma-tiononemergingtrendstoassistrelevantGovernmentauthoritiesintheirunderstandingoftheATSmarket.

IllicitATSmanufactureneedstobetargetedattheoriginbyfurtherincreasingtheeffectivenessofprecursorcontrol.SucheffortsshouldalsoincludepreventingthediversionofpreparationscontainingATSprecursorsandofderivativesspeciallydesignedtocircumventexistingcontrols.

Finally,itisevidentfromthisreportthataworseningATSproblemiscorrelatedwithalackofinfrastructureandresources,andprioritymustthereforebegiventothosevulnerablecountriesandsubregionswhereATSarespreadingmostrapidlyandwheredataareknowntobelackingorinsufficient.5

5 Vulnerability,inthisregard,isaresultofbothlimitedawarenessandlackofpreparednesstoaddresstheATSphenomenonadequately,andreallimitationsinhuman, financial and technological resources, i.e. theoverburdeningofnational infrastructuresand lawenforcement, judicial,prisonandhealth careresources.

ats marKets: reGionaL trenDs

asia

17

east anD soutH-east asia

regional overviewEastandSouth-EastAsia,hometoaboutathirdoftheglobalpopulation,hasoneofthemostestablishedATSmarketsintheworld,primarilyformethamphetamine.Itisestimatedthatbetween3.5millionto20.9millionpersonsintheregionhaveusedATSinthepastyear.All11countriescoveredinthischapterhavereportedATSuse,andinseveralofthose,ATShaveemergedas theprimarydrug threat in recent years,displacing traditionallyusedplant-baseddrugs suchasheroin,opiumandcannabis.Theinjectinguseofmethamphetamineanditsassociatednegativehealthconsequencesisreportedasagrowingproblemintheregion.

Since2006,theillicitmanufactureofATShascontinuedathighlevelsintheregion.China,MyanmarandthePhilippinesremainthemajormanufacturingcountriesinEastandSouth-EastAsia.DuringthepastfiveyearssignificantnumbersofillicitATSmanufacturinglaboratorieshavealsobeenreportedfromIndonesia,Malaysiaand,toalesserextent,Cambodia.Previously,theselatterthreecountrieshadbeenprimarilytransitcountriesforATSbuthavemorerecentlyalsobecomekeymanufacturingcentres.Inaddition,asmallnumberofATS-relatedlaboratoriesandprecursorchemicalmanufacturingsiteshavebeenreportedfromChina,HongKong,China,Japan,RepublicofKoreaandThailand.Overall,thenumberofillicitATSlaboratoriesdismantledbetween2004and2009increasedsignificantly,from13to458.ThelargestnumberofmethamphetaminelaboratorieswasreportedinChina,followedbyIndonesia,Malaysia,MyanmarandthePhilippines.Limitedecstasymanufacturetakesplaceintheregion,includinginChina,IndonesiaandMalaysia.

Traffickingpatterns inEastandSouth-EastAsiahavealsoshiftedduringthepastfewyears,particularly intheGreaterMekongsubregion,whichincludesCambodia,theLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic,Myanmar,Thailand,VietNamandtheborderingsouthernprovincesofChina.The93.3millionmethamphetaminepillsseizedin2009inChina,LaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic,MyanmarandThailandrepresentathree-foldincreaseincomparisonwith2008figures.In2010,totalseizuressurpassed133millionpills.

ThisincreasedtraffickingofmethamphetaminepillsfromMyanmartomarketsintheregionwasreflectedbythesingleseizureofnearly22millionmethamphetaminepills inFebruary2010 inLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic,oneof thelargestseizureseverintheregion.Inaddition,increasingamountsofchemicalsandpharmaceuticalpreparationsusedfor

measure DruG Group 2005 2006 2007* 2008 2009

Laboratory (#) MethamphetamineOther synthetic/combined stimulantsEcstasy-group substances

49--

6617

98-

27

11244

33

16391

51

total 49 77 125 288 458

Seizures (kg)

Methamphetamine AmphetamineNon-specified amphetaminesEcstasy-group substances

12,171.95,262.21,388.91,137.8

12,118.476.5

2,339.1449.1

10,867.3128.6687.4

1,725.0

11,578.672.2

1.7814.3

15,810.4 -

175.0496.5

total 19,960.8 14,983.2 13,408.3 12,466.8 16,481.9

Annual Prevalence (15-64)

Amphetamines-group substancesEcstasy-group substances

0.9%0.1%

0.9%0.1%

0.8%0.3%

0.8%0.3%

0.8%0.3%

* From 2007 onwards, reported prevalence percentage is based on midpoint of range. - Not reported. Source: UNODC ARQ/DELTA

east and south-east asia: ats laboratories, seizures, and annual prevalence rates (2004-2009)

18


crystalline methamphetamine seizures in east and south-east asia, 2004-2010

Source: DAINAP

Ketamine seizures in east and south-east asia, 2006-2010

Source: DAINAP

Greater mekong subregion: primary methamphetamine trafficking routes


0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Seiz

ure

s (k

g)

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Seiz

ure

s (k

g)

1,000 km

PapuaNew Guinea

China

JAVA

BM 03.03.10

PAPUA

Viet Nam

Cambodia

Thailand

Myanmar

Bangladesh

Lao PDR

India

Expanded trafficking routes (after 2003)

Emerging trafficking routes

Traditional trafficking routes (before 2003)

�

�

�

Hanoi

Bangkok

Phnom Penh

19

Greater meKonG suBreGion / MyANMAR

themanufactureofmethamphetaminearebeingdivertedandtraffickedthroughtheGreaterMekongSubregion.Largevolumesofpharmaceuticalpreparationscontainingephedrineandpseudoephedrinehavebeenreportedinanumberofcountriesintheregion,mostnotablyinCambodiaandMyanmar.

Since2008,transnationalorganizedcriminalgroupsfromtheIslamicRepublicofIranandWestAfricahavebeenplayingagreaterroleinATStraffickinginEastandSouth-EastAsia.In2009,28IranianswerearrestedforattemptingtosmugglemethamphetamineincrystallineandliquidformsintoIndonesia.Malaysia,thePhilippinesandThailandhavealsoreportedincreasinginflowsofmethamphetamineandotherATSintothecountrybyIraniandrugtraffickingorganizations.Japanreportedthearrestofmorethan130Iraniansformethamphetamine-relatedoffencesoverthepastfewyears,includingonecaseofsuspectedmethamphetaminemanufactureinJune2010.TherearenewindicationsthatWestAfricangroups,whichhavehithertotraffickedprimarily incocaineandheroin,maybediversifying intotheregion’s lucrativemetham-phetaminetrade.

ATSuseinEastandSouth-EastAsiacontinuestoriseandby2009ATSrankedinthetopthreedrugsofuseinallcountriesintheregion.MethamphetamineinpillformranksasthetopdrugofuseintheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublicandThailand, while methamphetamine in crystalline form ranks as the most commonly used drug in Brunei Darussalam,Cambodia,Japan,theRepublicofKoreaandthePhilippines.Theexpansionofcrystallinemethamphetaminetraffickingintotheregionhasbeenaccompaniedbyanupsurgeintheuseofthedrug.Ecstasyuseisreportedinmostcountries,albeitatrelativelylowanddeclininglevels.

ThischapterfocusesontheevolvingATSsituationinEastandSouth-EastAsiasince2008.Thecoverageisdividedintosubregions,beginningwiththeGreaterMekongSubregion,followedbyNorth-EastAsiaincludingJapan,theRepublicofKoreaandthePhilippines,andtheSouthernArchipelagonationsofIndonesiaandMalaysia.

Greater meKonG suBreGionTheGreaterMekongSubregion,which includesCambodia,theLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic,Myanmar,Thailand,VietNamandborderingprovincesofsouthernChina,continuestobeheavilyaffectedbythemanufacture,traffickinganduseofATS,primarilymethamphetamine,onalargescale.WhereaspreviouslyMyanmar,theborderingprovincesofsouthernChinaandThailandhavebeenmostimpactedbyATS,theproblemhasalsoshiftedoverthepastfewyearstoCambodia,theLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublicandVietNam.EmergingATStrendsincludeshiftingpatternsofdrugtraffickingroutesthroughouttheregionaswellasincreasinguseofcrystallinemethamphetamine.Whilenotyetwide-spread, the increasing injectinguseofmethamphetaminehasbeenofficially reportedbyCambodia, the LaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublicandThailand.Meanwhile,legalanddrugtreatmentsystemscontinuetobedominatedbymetham-phetaminecases.

myanmar

Myanmarremainsthemajorsourceofmethamphetaminepills intheGreaterMekongSubregion.Most illicitmetham-phetaminemanufacturetakesplaceintheeasternpartofShanState.ForensicprofilingofATSinThailandsuggeststhereareatleast12methamphetaminemanufacturingsitesinMyanmar.Inaddition,thereareindicationsthatatleast50dif-ferentorganizedcriminalgroupsareinvolvedinactivitiesrelatedtothetraffickingofdrugsfromMyanmar.1Thepresenceofdifferenttypesof‘WY’methamphetaminepills inKayahStateandKayinState,whichare30-50%cheaper inpricecomparedtopillsproducedinShanState,suggestspossiblelocalmethamphetaminemanufactureinthosestates.2

MethamphetaminepillsmanufacturedinShanStatearetraffickedalongnewtraffickingroutesthathaveemergedsince2003,directlytoThailand,ChinaandtheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic,3withtheMekongRivernowakeyroute.4ThereisalsoevidenceofnewtraffickingroutestothewesternpartofMyanmarandonwardtraffickingtoSouthAsia.5

Between1998and2010,only39manufacturingfacilitieswereseizedinMyanmar,mostlyconsistingofsmallertabletingoperations, with only two large-scale operations. This information is inconsistent with the vast number of pills seized

1 ONCB,2009.

2 UNODC,2010c.

3 ONCB,2009.

4 Thismaybeduetoincreasedcounter-narcoticseffortsbytheGovernmentofThailand,aimedatthesuppressionofdrugtraffickingandthepreventionofdruguse,whichforceddrugproducersandtraffickerstofindnewtraffickingroutes.

5 In2009,anewtraffickingrouteemerged,toRakhineStatefromYangon.PillsseizedinRakhineStatein2009werelikelyforexportratherthanforlocalconsumption(UNODC,2010c).

20


myanmar: domestic trafficking routes of methamphetamine pills


combined methamphetamine pill seizures in china, Lao people’s Democratic republic, myanmar and thailand

Source: DAINAP

myanmar: seizures of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, 1997-2010

*Cold tablets containing pseudoephedrine. Source: CCDAC, 2009

0 150 30075 km

SHAN

BAGO

MAGWAY

MANDALAY

CHIN

AYEYARWARDY

RAKHINE

YANGON

KAYAH

TENASSERIM

KACHIN

SAGAING

KAYIN

BANGLADESH

LAOPDR

BHUTAN

INDIA

THAILAND

CHINAMuseBhamo

Myitkyina

MandalayTaunggy

Bago

Yangon

Pa-an

Myawaddy

Sittwe Pin Laung Tachileik

Kyaling TonaPansengHopan

Kunlong

Nong Cho

Lashio

Tan Yen

Phor Kant

-

20,000,000

40,000,000

60,000,000

80,000,000

100,000,000

120,000,000

140,000,000

160,000,000

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Nu

mb

er o

f p

ills

china lao Pdr myanmar thailand

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

sei

zure

s (k

g)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

sei

zure

s (m

illio

n t

able

ts)

ephedrine

cold tablets*

21

Greater meKonG suBreGion / ThAILAND

throughouttheregion.6Noreportedcrystallinemetham-phetaminemanufacturingfacilitieshavebeenseizedinthecountry,butmostcrystallinemethamphetamineseizedinnorthern Thailand during the past three to four yearsoriginated from the Myanmar part of the Golden Trian-gle.7

Only two million methamphetamine pills were seized in2010, compared to seizures of nearly 24 million pills in2009.Seizuresin2008and2007amountedto1.1millionpills and 1.6 million pills, respectively.8 The significantincrease in2009was likelyduetoGovernmentpressureonceasefiregroups,manyofwhichmanufactureATS,tocome under Government control. Although seizures ofmethamphetaminepillsdroppedsharplyin2010,seizuresofcrystallinemethamphetamineduringtheyearamountedto226kg,showinganupwardtrendfortwosuccessiveyears.Theamountofcrystallinemethamphetamineseized

in2009amountedto124kgcomparedwithatotalofonly20kgseizedbetween2006and2008.9

Ephedrineandpseudoephedrine,themainmethamphetamineprecursors,aretraffickedintothecountryfromChina,IndiaandThailand.10From2003to2008,lessthan1mtofephedrinewasseizedeachyearexceptfor2006when1.3mtwereseized. In2009,ephedrineseizures jumpedto1.5mtandthendroppedagain in2010to34kg.11Atthesametime,however,Myanmarhasreportedsignificantseizuresofcoldtabletscontainingpseudoephedrine,with9.4millionsuchpillsseizedin2009and4.5millionpillsseizedin2010.12Increasingseizuresofpharmaceuticalpreparationsthatcontainephedrineandpseudoephedrinemayaccountforthelowamountofbulkephedrineseizuresinrecentyears,asprecursortraffickershavestartedtousedifferentformsofprecursorchemicalsinordertoavoidlawenforcementdetectionandtocircumventstrictinternationalcontrolsonprecursorchemicals.

Most of the methamphetamine manufactured in Myanmar is trafficked to other countries, primarily in the GreaterMekongSubregion.However,domesticmethamphetamineuseisreportedlyontherise.Useofmethamphetaminepillshasincreasedeveryyearsince2003.13Usehasspreadfromtheborderareasnearmanufacturingcentrestourbanareas.Therehasbeennoreporteddomesticuseofcrystallinemethamphetaminetodate.14

thailandThailandhasoneofthelargestmarketsformethamphetamineintheregion.Whilemethamphetaminepilluseremainsthemostcommonformofdruguse in thecountry, theuseofcrystallinemethamphetaminehasbecome increasinglywidespread.

DomesticmanufactureofmethamphetamineinThailandislimitedtosmall-scalemanufacture.Overthepastthreeyears,lawenforcementauthoritieshaveseizedmethamphetaminepilltabletingoperationslocatedintheoutskirtsofBangkokandinsurroundingprovincesaswellasinthenorthernprovinceofChiangRai,indicatingthatpillpressingoperationsaretakingplaceintheareaborderingMyanmar.15InJuly2010,aSwedishnationalarrestedintheeasternprovinceofRayongwaschargedwithmanufacturingcrystallinemethamphetamineinhishome.16

Largequantitiesofcoldtabletscontainingpseudoephedrine,sourcedprimarilyfromThailand,MalaysiaandtheRepublicofKorea,wereseizedinThailand’sborderareasandatSuvarnnabhumiInternationalAirportin2009and2010.17Most

6 UNODC,2010c.

7 ThishasbeensuggestedbyauthoritiesfromMyanmarandThailand(ONCB,2009).

8 UNODC,2010c.

9 UNODC,2010c.

10 ONCB,2009andCCDAC,2010.

11 UNODC,2010d.Theincreasein2006wasduetogreaterlawenforcementefforts(UNODC,2008).

12 DAINAP;UNODC,2010c.

13 UNODC,2010d.

14 UNODC,2010d.

15 ONCB,2010a.

16 ONCB,2011.

17 ONCB,2010b.

myanmar: bottles of ephedrine-containing nasal drops seized in special region 1 (Kokang)

Source: CCDAC, 2009

22


of the tablets were believed to be destined for illicit ATSmanufacturingfacilities inMyanmar.Since2008,approxi-mately 35millionpreparations and192 kgof bulk pseu-doephedrine have been seized in the country.18 Theincreasingquantityoftheseizures indicatestraffickersaresmugglinglargerquantitiesofpharmaceuticalpreparationstoproductioncentres.

Although there is growing domestic methamphetaminemanufactureinThailand,themajorityofthemethamphet-aminepillsfoundinthecountryissourcedfromMyanmar.DuetoincreasedillicitmanufactureinMyanmar,seizuresofmethamphetamineinbothpillandcrystallineformsinThai-land have increased each year since 2007. During thatperiod,methamphetaminepillseizuresrosefrom14millionpills in2007to22millionpills in2008,27millionpills in2009andnearly50millionpillsin2010.Atthesametime,seizures of crystalline methamphetamine also increaseddramatically,with47kgseizedin2007,53kgin2008,209kgin2009and773kgin2010.19

MostofthemethamphetaminethatentersThailandisfordomesticusebutlimitedquantitiesarealsotransshippedtoothermarkets,includingEurope,NorthAmerica20andtheMiddleEast.CrystallinemethamphetamineistraffickedintothecountryfromMyanmarandCambodiabothfordomes-ticuseand foronward trafficking toMalaysia, thePhilip-pines,HongKong,ChinaandJapan.21Asinseveralothercountries inEastandSouth-EastAsia, increasingamountsofcrystallinemethamphetaminearetraffickedintoThailand

bycouriersfromtheIslamicRepublicofIran.In2009,eightIraniandrugtraffickerswerearrestedwith27kgofcrystallinemethamphetamine.FromJanuarytoSeptember2010,79IraniandrugtraffickerswerearrestedinThailandwithnearly109kgofthedrug.Iraniancourierstypicallyattempttotrafficmethamphetamineincrystalline,liquidandpowderformintothecountryviaSuvarnnabhumiInternationalAirport.22

MostecstasyinThailandisreportedlytraffickedbyairfromtheNetherlands.23Inaddition,criminalsyndicatesbasedinMalaysiaandSingaporetrafficecstasyintoThailandbylandandair.24MostketamineistraffickedintoThailandacrossitsborders with Cambodia and Malaysia. In 2010, police arrested seven Indian couriers and seized 150 kg of ketaminepowderatSuvarnnabhumiInternationalAirport.25ReporteduseofecstasyandketamineinThailand,however,isdeclin-ing.

Theuseofmethamphetaminepillsandcrystallinemethamphetaminehasshownanupwardtrendsince2008.In2010,morethan80%ofallpersonswhoreceiveddrugtreatmentinspecializedtreatmentfacilitiesandcorrectionalinstitutionsreportedmethamphetaminepillsastheprimarydrugofuse.Thailandisoneofthefewcountriesintheregionthatpro-videsspecializedtreatmentforATSusers.

18 ONCB,2010b.

19 DAINAP;2010,ONCB2010b.

20 INCB,2010a.

21 ONCB,2010b.

22 ONCB,2010b.

23 ONCB,2010a.

24 ONCB,2010b.

25 ONCB,2010b.

thailand: seizures of crystalline methamphetamine, 2004-2010

Source: DAINAP

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Nu

mb

er o

f se

izu

res

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

Seiz

ure

s (k

g)

Number of seizuresSeizures (kg)

23

Greater meKonG suBreGion / ThAILAND

DruG type

neW aDmissions aLL aDmissions

maLe femaLe totaL maLe femaLe totaL

Methamphetamine pills 73,530 6,940 80,470 89,822 8,225 98,047

Crystalline methamphetamine 939 691 1,630 1,214 805 2,019

Ecstasy-type (MDMA) 83 69 152 102 82 184

Cannabis 5,559 66 5,625 6,664 77 6,741

Cocaine 7 5 12 11 7 18

heroin 500 18 518 1,276 62 1,338

Inhalants 3,064 88 3,152 4,037 115 4,152

Ketamine 3 5 8 6 5 11

Kratom 1,904 52 1,956 2,136 53 2,189

Opium 713 205 918 1,451 436 1,887

total 86,302 8,139 94,441 106,719 9,867 116,586

Source: DAINAP

thailand: drug treatment admissions, 2010

DruG type

neW aDmissions aLL aDmissions

maLe femaLe totaL maLe femaLe totaL

Methamphetamine pills 64,690 6,945 71,635 78,620 8,196 86,816

Crystalline methamphetamine 350 351 701 435 408 843

Ecstasy-type (MDMA) 155 96 251 181 103 284

Cannabis 6,610 89 6,699 7,794 104 7,898

Cocaine 10 2 12 15 4 19

heroin 513 25 538 1,232 62 1,294

Inhalants 4,466 160 4,626 5,517 197 5,714

Ketamine 10 1 11 11 1 12

Kratom 1,385 35 1,420 1,527 34 1,561

Opium 795 261 1,056 1,482 485 1,967

total 78,984 7,965 86,949 96,814 9,594 106,408

Source: DAINAP

thailand: drug treatment admissions, 2009

DruG type (measurement)

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

no. of seizures Quantity





Methamphetamine pills (pills)

36,252 13,820,000 73,014 14,340,000 113,877 22,115,911 105,916 26,640,206 125,195 48,587,522

Crystalline metham-phetamine (kg)

734 92.2 1,258 47.4 1,960 52.9 2,507 209 6,602 733.02

Ecstasy-type (MDMA) (pills)

300 26,656 295 315,444 460 486,533* 296 58,024 147 16,081

Ketamine (kg) 95 22.7 63 2.8 140 18.1 130 18.9 154 172.03

* 2008 pill seizures converted into kg equivalents at 1 pill = 300 mg.Source: DAINAP

thailand: ats and ketamine seizures, 2006-2010

24


Lao people's Democratic republicDrugcontrolauthoritiesintheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublichaveidentifiedtherapidspreadofATSandothersyn-theticdrugsasthecountry’sprimarydrugthreat.LaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublichasnotreportedanyillicitmetham-phetaminemanufacturesince1998.Recentseizuredataindicatethatmethamphetamineincreasinglytransitsthecountryfrom Myanmar to Cambodia, Thailand and Viet Nam, particularly along the Mekong River and the country’s rapidlyimprovingroadnetwork.26In2008,157seizuresofmethamphetamine(about81%ofallmethamphetamineseizures)weremadeenroutefromtheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublictoThailand.27

Priorto2008,annualseizuresofmethamphetaminepillsintheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublicamountedtobetween0.5millionand2millionpills,exceptin2005whenalmost4.7millionpillswereseized.Inlinewiththespikeinmetham-phetamine pill seizures in other countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion, the Lao People’s Democratic Republicreportedamorethanfour-foldriseinpillseizuresfrom84casesin2007to194casesin2008and357casesin2009.In2010, methamphetamine pill seizures increased significantly, due to a single seizure in February of 21.8 million pillsbelievedtohaveoriginatedfromMyanmar,evidentlyenroutetoThailand.28ItwasoneofthelargestmethamphetaminepillseizureseverintheGreaterMekongSubregion.Thetotalwasnearlytentimeshigherthanthe2.3millionmetham-phetaminepillsseizedin2009.

Inaddition,thereareindicationsthattransnationalorganizeddrugtraffickinggroupsareincreasinglysmugglingprecursorchemicalsusedinthemanufactureofATSthroughtheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic.29InAugust2009,lawenforce-mentauthoritiesseizedlargequantitiesofcoldremediesbeingtraffickedtoMyanmarfromVietNamthroughLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic,whichwereintendedtoprovidepseudoephedrineformethamphetaminemanufacture.

ThespilloverofmethamphetaminefromMyanmarhasimpacteddrugusepatternsintheLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepub-lic which were previously dominated by opium use. In 2005, government authorities in the Lao People’s DemocraticRepublic reported theescalationofmethamphetamineusealongtrafficking routesadjacent to theMekongRiverandidentifiedmethamphetaminepillsastheprimarydrugofuseinthecountry.Inthesameyear,theLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublicrecordeditsfirstcrystallinemethamphetamineseizure,indicatingthatthesupplyofmethamphetamineenteringthecountrywasdiversifying.Injectinguseofmethamphetaminewasreportedforthefirsttimein2008.

ATSuseishighestinurbanareasandisincreasingamongyoungdrugusers.UNODCestimatesthatin2008,anestimated1.4%ofthepopulationaged15-64hadusedmethamphetamineatleastonceinthepreviousyear.30Thereisalsoincreas-ingATSuseinsomeruralareasthatformerlycultivatedopiumpoppy.31Overthepastfiveyears,morethan80%ofalldrug-relatedarrestsandthemajorityofdrugtreatmentadmissionshaveinvolvedmethamphetamineinpillform,32rep-resentingaconsiderableburdenonthe limited lawenforcement, judicial,prisonandhealthcare resourcesof theLaoPeople’sDemocraticRepublic.

Lao people’s Democratic republic: seizures of methamphetamine pills, 2006-2010

DruG type measurement 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Methamphetamine pills No. of pills 1,755,989 1,272,815 1,227,205 2,335,330 24,530,177

Source: DAINAP

number of patients at somsanga treatment and rehabilitation center, 2003-2009

DruG type 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Total no. of patients 1,714 2,658 1,376 1,177 1,894 1,682 1,964

Females 0 0 25 28 137 105 118

Source: LCDC, 2010b

26 LCDC,2010a.

27 WCO,2009.

28 LCDC,2011.

29 INCB,2011a.

30 UNODC,2011a.

31 LCDC,2010a.

32 DAINAP.

25

Greater meKonG suBreGion / CAMBODIA

cambodiaCambodiahasasignificantandincreasingproblemwiththeillicitmanufacture,traffickinganduseofATS.Inaddition,thecountryisbeingtargetedbytransnationaldrugtraffickingorganizationsasatransitrouteforATSandotherdrugstoothercountriesbothinandoutsidetheregion.

OfficialreportsofillicitATSmanufactureinCambodiafirstemergedin2007whenpolicedismantledalarge-scalelabora-tory inKompongSpeuprovince thatwas reported tohavemanufacturedat least1mtofchloropseudoephedrine,anintermediateinthemanufactureofmethamphetamine.IllicitATSmanufactureinthecountryhassinceincreasedconsid-erably.In2009,Cambodiareportedtheseizureoffivelaboratoriesandprecursormanufacturingsites.33

SeizuresofsubstantialquantitiesofprecursorchemicalsusedforillicitATSmanufacturehavealsobeenreportedinCam-bodiainrecentyears.In2009,Cambodianauthoritiesseized886kgofpreparationscontainingpseudoephedrine,2,814kgofephedragrass,13kgofephedraseedsaswellas1,373kgofunknown liquids.34 In thesameyear,Cambodiareporteditsfirstseizureofanextractionsiteforephedrine,intheKompongChamprovince,whichwasutilizingephedragrasssuspectedtohavebeentraffickedfromnorthernChina.35

InAugust2010,drug lawenforcementauthorities inCambodiarecordedthe largestsingleseizureofsmuggledpseu-doephedrinetodateinthecountry.About12.9milliontabletswereseizedinBanteayMeancheyprovinceneartheThai-Cambodiaborder.TheseizurewascarriedoutincooperationwithlawenforcementofficersfromtheRepublicofKoreaandThailand.36SignificantseizuresofpseudoephedrinetabletswerealsoreportedinDecember2010inPhnomPenh.

Safrole-richoils(SRO),37havevariouslicitcommercialusesintheperfumeandpesticideindustry,butcanbedivertedfortheillicitmanufactureofecstasy.SROcontinuetobeillicitlyharvestedandsold,althoughatfarlowerlevelsthaninpre-viousyears.

WhilethereissomeindicationthatthedomesticmanufactureofATSisincreasing,mostATSfoundinCambodiaistraf-fickedfromneighbouringcountries.Previously,ATSenteredCambodiaprimarilythroughitsborderwithThailand,whereasoverthepastfewyearsmostATSseizedinCambodiahavebeensmuggledacrossitsborderwiththeLaoPeople’sDem-ocraticRepublic,inparticularthroughtheremotenorthernprovincesalongtheMekongRiver.AlargeamountoftheATSandotherdrugstraffickedintoCambodiaisdestinedforillicitmarketsinothercountries.38Someofthemethampheta-minetraffickedintothecountryisre-tabletedandsoldonthestreetsaslowpuritymethamphetaminepills.39

Since2007,methamphetaminepillseizuresinthecountryhavedeclined,whichmaybeanindicationofincreaseddomes-ticillicitATSmanufactureandareducedneedforthetraffickingofthedrugsintothecountry.In2010,methamphetaminepillseizuresinCambodiatotaled82,746,nearly40%lowerthanthe2009totalandnearly30%lowerthanthe2008total.Atthesametime,however,the10kgofcrystallinemethamphetamineseizedinthecountryin2010ismorethantwicetheamountseizedin2009(4.6kg)andrepresentsthehighestamountseizedinthecountrysince2007.

Although thedomestic useofmethamphetamine inCambodia remainshigh,government experts have reported twosuccessiveyearsofdeclininguse.In2009,usersofmethamphetamineinbothpillandcrystallineformaccountedforabout70%ofall illicitdrugusers.Cambodianauthoritiesreportthatuseofcrystallinemethamphetaminehasovertakentheuseofmethamphetaminepills.40PreliminarydatareportedbyCambodiain2011,however,indicatesapossiblespikeinmethamphetaminepillseizures.

33 NACD,2009.

34 NACD,2010a.

35 NACD,2009.

36 NACD,2010b;UNODC,2010b.

37 SafroleisasubstancelistedinTable1oftheUnitedNationsConventionAgainstIllicitTraffickinginNarcoticDrugsandPsychotropicSubstancesof1988,aswellas inCambodia’sDrugLaw.The InternationalNarcoticsControlBoarddefinessafrole-richoilsasbeing ‘anymixturesornaturalproductscontainingsafrolepresentinsuchawaythatitcanbeusedorrecoveredbyreadilyapplicablemeans’(INCB,2009b).

38 NACD,2011.

39 NACD,2010c.

40 DAINAP.

26


viet nam

VietNamisbecomingthenextbigmarket formethamphetaminemanufactured in theregion,partlydueto its large,increasinglyaffluentandurbanpopulation.Theuseofheroinandopiumcontinuetodominateinthecountry.Theuseofmethamphetaminepillsandecstasyhasincreasedeveryyearsince2003.41Crystallinemethamphetamineuse,whichwasfirstreportedinVietNamin2008,42hassincerisensignificantly,especiallyamongyoungpersonsinurbanareas.43

MethamphetaminemanufactureinVietNamappearsminimal,withthefirstmanufacturinglaboratoryreporteddisman-tledinJune2005.44However,thefullextentofATSmanufactureandthetradingofprecursorchemicalsinVietNamisdifficult to assess due to the limited information available. The large number of chemical wholesalers, suppliers andmanufacturers inVietNamprovides an increasingopportunity for thediversionofprecursor chemicals into illicitATSmanufacture.SomeofthepseudoephedrineseizedinAustraliain2008-2009wasreportedlyshippedfromVietNam.45

SeizuresofATSarenotuniformlyreportedinVietNam,butthelimiteddatashowthatinthefirstsixmonthsof2010,atotalof22kgandmorethan83,000pillsofmethamphetaminepillswereseized.46MostofthemethamphetaminefoundinVietNamandsmalleramountsofheroinaresourcedfromMyanmarandaretraffickedintothecountrybylandfromCambodia.47

Duringthepastfewyears,anincreasingamountofsyntheticdrugsaswellashallucinogenswhicharenotcontrolledbytheGovernmentofVietNamhavebeenseizedbypoliceinmajorprovincesandcities.TheuseofTFMPP(Trifluorometh-ylpennylpiperazine),BZPand‘SeaWater’ (GammaHydroxybutyricAcid,orGHB),widespread inentertainmentvenues,hasbeenidentifiedbyVietnameseauthoritiesasanewtrendandseveralreportsstatethatthesedrugsareavailableforsaleontheInternet.48

chinaATSuse inChinahadbecome increasinglywidespreadby theendof the1990sandby theearly2000sATSusehadovertakenopiumasthesecondmostcommonlyuseddrug inthecountry.Ketamineusehasalsobecomeincreasinglyprevalentsinceitwasfirstreportedin2004,asthecountryisamajorproducerofthesubstance.Thelackofnationallyrepresentativedruguseprevalenceestimates,however, remainsamajorchallengetotheadequatemonitoringofATStrendsinthecountry.

MostofthemethamphetamineusedinChinaismanufactureddomestically.However,comparedtoothercountriesintheGreaterMekongSubregion,ChinaexperiencedasurgeinmethamphetaminepillstraffickedintothecountryfromMyan-marin2009and2010,49atrendreflectingthesubstantialandincreasingseizuresofmethamphetaminepillsinYunnanprovinceborderingMyanmar.50 In2009,more than40millionmethamphetaminepills51were seized inChina,which

41 DAINAP.

42 DAINAP.

43 SODC,2010a.

44 SODC,2008.

45 INCB,2011a.

46 DAINAP.

47 SODC,2009.

48 SODC,2010b.

49 NNCC,2010a.

50 Methamphetamineseizuresintheprovincerosefrom2.2mtin2008to3.2mtin2009and4.6mtin2010(NNCC,2010b;NNCC,2011a).

51 Figuresfor‘China’donot includeadditionalsignificantseizuresmadeintheSpecialAdministrativeRegions(SAR)ofHongKongandMacao,andTaiwanProvince.

DruG type measurement 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Methamphetamine pills No. of pills 351,651 428,553 420,287 116,772 137,249 82,746

Crystalline methamphetamine kg 2 16.2 6.75 1.9* 4.6 9.9

Ecstasy-type (MDMA) No. of pills – – 300 33 3,352 1,056

Ketamine kg – – – 495** 1.14 0.001

* Plus 15 'small packs' undefined weight. ** Small bottles, undefined weight.Source: DAINAP

cambodia: seizures of selected drugs, 2005-2010

27

Greater meKonG suBreGion / ChINA

accounted for roughly 40%of all themethamphetaminepills seized in theEast andSouth-EastAsia regionduringtheyear,ascomparedtoonlyapproximately6millionpillsseizedinChinain2008.In2010,thetotalnumberofmeth-amphetaminepillsseizedamountedtoover58.4million.

Despite the impactof the spilloverofMyanmar-manufac-turedmethamphetaminepills in2009,aggregateseizuresof methamphetamine (in both pill and crystalline forms)duringtheyear(6.6mt)remainedwithintherangeofthe6.1mtand6.8mtseizedeachyearduringthe2005-2009period. In 2010, aggregate seizures of methamphtamineincreasedto9.9mt,withlargeamountsseizedinYunnanprovince;areflectionofthediversificationofATStraffickingroutesintheGreaterMekongSubregion.52

SeizuresofillicitATSmanufacturingfacilitiesinChinahaveincreased significantly since 2005 and a considerablenumber of ketamine manufacturing facilities have alsobeen dismantled. China reports the highest seizures ofketamineintheworld,havingreportedannualseizuresofabout5.4mtforthepastfouryears.The5.3mtofketa-mine seized in China in 2008 accounted for nearly two-thirdsofthe8.2mtseizedgloballyduringtheyear.53

ATSmanufacture inChina isbecomingmoresophisticatedandincreasinglydiversifiedwiththesynthesisofprecursorsandthedifferentstagesofmanufacturingbeingdividedacrossprovinces,includingTaiwanProvinceofChina.54In2010,atotalof378illicitATSmanufacturinglaboratoriesweredetected55comparedto391facilitiesin200956and244facili-tiesin2008.57Priorto2006,mostillicitATSmanufacturingactivityinChinaoccurredinthesouth-easternprovincesofGuangdongandFujian.However,increasedlawenforcementeffortsappeartohaveshiftedsomemanufacturetocentralChina.In2009,mostoftheclandestinemanufacturinglaboratoriesseizedwereinGuangdong,Sichuan,Henan,HunanandHubeiprovincesandweremanufacturingcrystallinemethamphetamineandketamine.58

SignificantseizuresofprecursorchemicalscontinuedtobereportedinChina. In2010,234suchcaseswerereported,includingtheseizureof869mtofcontrolledprecursorchemicalsand49mtofuncontrolledchemicals.In2009,Chinareported1,366violationsofprecursorchemicalcontrolandtheseizureofapproximately3.2mtofprecursors,includingtheseizureofnearly9mtofhydroxylaminehydrochloride,aprecursorusedinthemanufactureofketamine.59

Hong Kong (special administrative region of china)MostclandestineATSmanufactureinHongKong,Chinahasconsistedofecstasy-typetabletingandrepackagingopera-tions.60However,HongKongpolice reported the seizureof twosmall-scale clandestinecrystallinemethamphetaminemanufacturing facilities in 2009 and the dismantling of a larger crystalline methamphetamine manufacturing facilitylocatedinanindustrialestatein2010.61

Ecstasyusehasdeclinedinrecentyears,possiblyduetothegrowingpopularityofthesignificantlylessexpensiveketa-mine.MuchoftheecstasyseizedinHongKong,ChinacontainssubstancesotherthanMDMA,suchasketamineandmethamphetamineand,morerecently,trifluoromethylphenylpiperazine(TFMPP),whichiscurrentlynotcontrolledinHongKong,China.62

52 NNCC,2011b.

53 UNODC,2010e.

54 NNCC,2009.

55 NNCC,2011b.

56 Ithasnotbeenestablishedwhetherall391illicitlaboratorieswererelatedtoATS(NNCC,2010b).

57 UNODC,2010e.

58 NNCC,2011a.

59 NNCC,2010c.

60 HKNB,2010.

61 HKNB,2011.

62 HKNB,2011.

china: ats seizures, 2001-2010

Source: DAINAP

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Seiz

ure

s (m

etri

c to

ns)

28


Ketamineusersaccount fornearly38%ofalldrugusers inHongKong,China.Amongdrugusersbelow theageof21anestimated84%haveusedketamine.63Previously,mostof theketamine trafficked intoHongKong,ChinawastraffickedinsmallquantitiesacrossthelandboundarywithmainlandChina,byalargenumberoftraffickers.By2005,large,multi-kiloquantitiesofketamineoriginatinginIndiaandtransportedintoHongKong,ChinaviaSouth-EastAsiawere also detected. There are indications that criminal syndicates are increasingly procuring the precursor chemicalhydroxylamine hydrochloride to manufacture ketamine in illicit laboratories rather than diverting the drug from thelegitimatemarket.64

Theuseofmethamphetamine,primarilyincrystallineform,emergedinHongKong,Chinaintheearly1990s,andhasstabilizedinrecentyearsatabout10%ofthedruguserpopulationandapproximately16-21%ofreporteddrugusersundertheageof21.65Seizuresofcrystallinemethamphetaminehaveremainedstablesince2007atabout43kgperyear.MostofthecrystallinemethamphetaminetraffickedintoHongKong,ChinaistraffickedfrommainlandChina;someofitdestinedforoverseasmarketssuchasAustralia.66

taiwan province of chinaTaiwanProvinceofChinaisasourceofmethamphetaminemanufactureandremainsasourceforpharmaceuticalprepa-rationscontainingpseudoephedrinethataredestinedforcountriesinCentralAmericaandOceania.

In2010,TaiwanProvinceofChinareporteditslargesteverketamineseizureof850kgwhichoriginatedfrommainlandChina,aswellasanadditional480kgofketaminewhichwasdetectedonboardafishingvessel. InNovember2010,authoritiesseized60kgofamphetamineoriginatingfrommainlandChinawithastreetvalueofUSD1.6millionatTaipeiPort.Duringtheyear,authoritiesalsoreportedtheseizureofabout20kgofpseudoephedrinepillsandamanufacturinglaboratoryinKaohsiungwithamanufacturingcapacityofapproximately1.5mtofmethamphetamine.67

TaiwanProvinceofChinaalsoseizessignificantandincreasingquantitiesofketamineandmethamphetaminethatorigi-natefrommainlandChina.IndiaalsoremainsasourceofdivertedketaminetraffickedintoTaiwanProvinceofChina.

nortH-east asiaThemajordrugcontrolprobleminNorth-EastAsiacontinuestobetheuseofATS,primarilycrystallinemethamphetamine.ATSmanufactureremainslimitedinJapanandtheRepublicofKorea,althoughsignificantquantitiesofcrystallinemeth-amphetaminearemanufacturedinthePhilippines.

JapanInJapan,crystallinemethamphetaminecontinuestobethemaindrugofuse.Thecountryfirstexperiencedwidespreadmethamphetamineuseinthe1950s,andagaininthemid-1980sandlate1990s.68ManufactureofmethamphetamineinJapanisextremelyrare,butinJune2010,twoIraniannationalswerearrestedonsuspicionofmanufacturingmetham-phetamine in theirhome. In addition, Japanhas reported several incidents involving thediversionofpharmaceuticalscontainingATSprecursorchemicalssince2003,with66suchcasesbeingreportedin2008.In2010,authoritiesreportedseveralincidentsofdomesticmethamphetaminemanufactureandseizuresofliquidmethamphetamineatvariousinter-nationalairportsinJapan,69pointingtothepossibleriskofexpandingdomesticillicitmanufacture,especiallyasmeth-amphetaminepricesinthecountryareincreasing.70

Traditionally, China has been the primary source of methamphetamine seized in Japan, but in recent years metham-phetaminefromothercountriesaroundtheworldhasbeentraffickedintothecountry.71MuchofthemethamphetaminefoundinJapanissmuggledfromoverseasbyinternationalandJapanesedrugtraffickingorganizations.Morethanhalfofthearrestsrelatedtomethamphetamineduringthepastfiveyearshaveinvolvedlocal‘Boryokudan’(‘Yakuza’)organ-

63 HKSB,2011.

64 HKNB,2010.

65 HKNB,2010.

66 HKNB,2010.

67 INCSR,2011.

68 JNPA,2011.

69 INCSR,2011.

70 JMHLW,2009.

71 JNPA,2010a;JNPA,2010b.

29

nortH-east asia / REPUBLIC OF KOREA

izedcrimemembers.AswithmanycountriesinAsia,manynationals from the Islamic Republic of Iran have beenarrestedinJapaninmethamphetamine-relatedcasesinthepast few years, including 85 in 2009 and 50 in 2010.72MuchofthemethamphetaminetraffickedintoJapancon-sists of small packages carried by couriers who enter thecountrybyair and sea.However, sophisticated traffickingnetworks areplayingan increasing role inmethampheta-minetraffickinginJapan,whichisreflectedbythenumberoflargeseizuresrecordedinthecountry.Since2008,Japanhas reportedanaverageof352kgofmethamphetamineseized each year, slightly less than the amounts seized intheearlypartofthedecade.73

Crystalline methamphetamine use in Japan has remainedgenerallystableduringmostofthepastdecade.Injectingistheprimarymodeofadministrationforcrystallinemetham-phetamine in thecountry.Methamphetaminepillusehasnot been reported in Japan. Use of ecstasy pills is morecommon but declining numbers of arrests and decliningseizuresofthedrugoverthepastseveralyearssuggestthatusehasgonedown.74Duringthepastdecadeabout80%of all drug-related arrests in the country have involvedmethamphetamine. In addition, more than 50% of alldrug-relatedtreatmentdemandfromclients inpsychiatrictreatment facilities was for ATS use (last reported in2005).75

republic of KoreaCrystallinemethamphetamine,commonlyknownlocallyas‘philopon’or‘hiroppon’intheRepublicofKorea,remainsthemostcommonlyuseddrugandhasaccountedforabout60-70%ofalldrug-relatedarrestsinthecountrysince2008.However,reporteduseandavailabilityofthedrughavesincedeclined,whichisalsoreflectedbythecontinuallydecliningseizures,fromapproximately26kgin2008to11kgin2010,andsteadilyrisingpricesforthedrug.76ATSusershaveaccountedformorethan95%ofallpersonsadmittedtodrugtreatmentinthecountrysince2008.

72 JNPA,2011.

73 JNPA,2011.

74 JNPA,2010b.

75 JMHLW,2007.

76 SPO,2011.

DruG type 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Methamphetamine 11,606 12,009 11,025 11,655 11,999

Ecstasy-type (MDMA) 370 296 281 107 62

Source: JNPA, 2011

Japan: ats-related arrests, 2006-2010


Crystalline methamphetamine Kg 126.8 339.3 397.5 356.3* 302.3

Ecstasy-type (MDMA) and other synthetic drugs

Pills 186,226 1,233,883 217,172 85,688 17,326

* UNODC, 2010d.Source: JNPA, 2011

Japan: ats seizures, 2006-2010

sources of methamphetamine trafficking to Japan, 2010

Source: JNPA, 2011

Mexico4.4%

Thailand3.7%

TaiwanP rovinceofChina10.4%

Others29.6%

China17.8%

HongKong,China6.7%

UAE8.1%

Nigeria7.4%

Malays ia6.7%

Benin5.2%

30


MostofthecrystallinemethamphetaminefoundintheRepublicofKoreahascomefrommainlandChinabutincreasingamountsofthedrugareenteringthecountryfromCambodia,Malaysia,SouthAfricaandtheTaiwanProvinceofChina.77Inrecentyears,severalnationalsofChinaandThailandhavebeenarrestedintheRepublicofKoreafortraffickingmeth-amphetamine.78

LimitedillicitmethamphetaminemanufacturehasbeenreportedintheRepublicofKoreasincethelate1990s.However,in2010authoritiesreportedtheseizureoffoursmall-scale‘kitchen-type’clandestinemethamphetaminemanufacturingoperations.79In2008and2009therewerenoreportedseizuresofprecursorchemicalsintheRepublicofKorea,althoughithasbeenindicatedasoneofthesourcecountriesforephedrinetraffickedtoAustralia.80InAugust2010,approximately12.8 million pharmaceutical preparations containing pseudoephedrine, originating from the Republic of Korea, wereseizedinCambodiaafterhavingbeentraffickedacrossthelandborderwithThailand.However,itisunclearwhethertheseproductswereintendedfordirectuseorforuseinillicitmethamphetaminemanufacture.81

republic of Korea: ats-related arrests, 2006-2010

DruG type 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

ATS 6,006 8,521 7,457 7,965 6,771

total 7,709 10,649 9,898 11,875 9,732

Source: SPO, 2011

republic of Korea: ats seizures, 2006-2010


Crystalline methamphetamine kg 21.5 23.7 25.5 15.2 11.8

Methamphetamine pills No. of pills 0 196 151 1 5

Ecstasy -type (MDMA) No. of pills 356 18,323 714 894 486

Source: SPO, 2011

retail prices of crystalline methamphetamine in the republic of Korea, 2006-2010


Crystalline methamphetamine Per gram 860 770 536 664 693

Source: SPO, 2011

philippinesCrystallinemethamphetamine(‘shabu’)hasbeenthemostcommonlyuseddruginthePhilippinesforthepasttwodec-adesandsignificantillicitmethamphetaminemanufactureandtraffickingcontinuetooccur.In2009,crystallinemetham-phetamineusersaccountedfor62%ofalldrugusers inthecountryand,since2004,theyhaveaccountedforalmost63% of persons receiving drug treatment. Since 2008,about two-thirdsofalldrug-relatedarrests in thecountryhavebeenrelatedtocrystallinemethamphetamine.Thereisno reported use of methamphetamine pills in the Philip-pines.

Inmajorcitiestheuseofecstasy isbecoming increasinglypopular among young nightclub goers. Ecstasy use,however, remains limited due to the high price and lowavailability. The use of synthetic substances, such asBenzylpiperazine (BZP), or ‘mimic ecstasy’, has also beennoted.82

77 SPO,2010.

78 SPO,2009.

79 SPO,2011.

80 INCB,2010a.

81 UNODC,2010b.

82 PDEA,2010.

profile of drug users in the philippines, 2010

•• poly-drugusers

•• morethansixyearsdurationoftakingdrugs

•• 57.23%single

•• 33.92%unemployed

•• majorityofthepatientswereonlyabletofinishhighschool

•• maletofemaleratio9:1

•• 20to29yearsagebracket

Source: PDEA, 2011

31

nortH-east asia / PhILIPPINES

IllicitcrystallinemethamphetaminemanufactureinthePhil-ippineswas first reported in1996, and in1997, the firstindustrial-scaleclandestinemanufacturing facilitywasdis-mantled. From 2002 to 2010, a total of 72 clandestinecrystallinemethamphetaminelaboratoriesweredismantledbydruglawenforcementauthorities.83Overthepastfewyears, methamphetamine manufacture has shifted fromlargeandmedium-sized facilities to smaller ‘kitchen type’laboratoriesinmetropolitanareasandhasbeencharacter-izedbythemanufactureofincreasinglyhigherpuritymeth-amphetamine. Overall methamphetamine seizures havedeclinedsharplyinthePhilippinessince2008,from845kgto149kgin2009and64kgin2010.84

Domesticallymanufacturedmethamphetamineisalsotraf-fickedtocountries intheregionsuchasCambodia, Indo-nesia and Thailand as well as to countries outside theregion. The PhilippinesDrugEnforcementAgency reportsthatninetransnationalcriminalgroupsand85localgroupsare involved indrugmanufacturingand trafficking in thecountry. 85 Methamphetamine is also trafficked into thecountryfromChina,primarilybymaritimevessels.86

83 PDEA,2011.

84 DAINAP.

85 PDEA,2010.

86 PDEA,2009.

primary ats trafficking routes for the philippines

Source: PDEA, 2010 Note: The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations. Lines represent origin and intended destination, not necessarily the exact route used, and may include completed or stopped trafficking attempts.

philippines: rehabilitation centre admissions, 2006-2010

Source: PDEA, 2011

Thailand

Cambodia

Viet Nam

Lao PDR

Myanmar

Malaysia

Philippines

China

Malaysia

Primary international trafficking routes for crystalline methamphetamine manufactured in the Philippines

ATS manufactured in China are trafficked directly tothe Philippines or through Thailand

Area of research

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soutHern arcHipeLaGoAskeytransitcountriesformethamphetaminetrafficking,bothIndonesiaandMalaysiahaverecentlyexperiencedincreas-ingproblemswiththemanufactureanduseofATSdrugs,particularlymethamphetamineincrystallineform.

malaysiaPreviously,Malaysiawasakeytransitcountryforsmallamountsofcrystallinemethamphetamine,ecstasyandketamineenroutetoconsumersinAustralia,China,Indonesia,Japan,SingaporeandThailand,duetothehighpricesofthesedrugsintheaforementionedcountries.87Overthepastfiveyears,Malaysiahasalsobecomeasignificantmethamphetaminemanufacturing location,demonstratingthespeedwithwhichshifts inpatternsofclandestinemanufacture,traffickingandusecanoccur.

Since2008,authoritieshavereportedthedismantlingofmorethan30largeandsmall-scaleATSmanufacturinglabora-tories.In2009,authoritiesseized11suchfacilities,primarilylocatedinKualaLumpurandsouthernMalaysia,aswellasalargequantityofprecursorchemicals,including80kgofephedrineand80kgofpseudoephedrine.In2010,Malaysiareportedtheseizureofsixlargemethamphetaminemanufacturinglaboratories,onelargeecstasymanufacturingfacilityandonelargeketamineproducingoperation.88

ThecountryisalsobeingtargetedbyIraniandrugtraffickingorganizations. In2009and2010,morethan150IraniannationalswerearrestedforattemptingtosmugglecrystallinemethamphetamineintoMalaysia.89Myanmaristheprimarysource of methamphetamine pills trafficked into Malaysia and is also a source of some crystalline methamphetaminefound inthecountry.Ecstasy isgenerallysmuggled intothecountryfromtheNetherlands,90althoughseizuresof thedrughavedeclinedsharplysince2008.

KetamineissmuggledintoMalaysia(mainlybyIndiannationals)fromChennai,India,viaairandsearoutes.91Ketamineseizuresdoubledeachyearbetween2007and2009,whennearly1.1mtofthesubstancewereseized.In2010,ketamineseizuresdroppedto334kg.

In 2008, crystallinemethamphetamine seizures in Malaysia increased ten-fold from the previous year to 679 kg, andincreasedbyanother70%in2009to1,160kg,duetoasingleseizureof972kgofcrystallinemethamphetamineinMay2009.Crystallinemethamphetamineseizuresdroppedto887kgin2010,butstillrepresentedthesecondhighestseizuretotaleverreportedinthecountry.

ATSusehasincreasedconsiderablyinMalaysiainthepastfewyears.In2010,anestimated36%ofalldrugusersinthecountryusedATS,comparedwith18%in2009and8%in2008.92InjectinguseofcrystallinemethamphetaminewasreportedforthefirsttimeinMalaysiain2009.

indonesiaSimilartoMalaysia,IndonesiawasformerlyatransitcountryforATSwhichhasgoneontodevelopsignificantproblemswithATSmanufactureanduse.By2010,crystallinemethamphetaminesurpassedcannabisastheprimarydrugofuseinthecountry.

Forthepastsixyears,Indonesiahasreportedaconsiderablenumberofseizuresoflargesophisticatedillicitlaboratoriesmanufacturingcrystallinemethamphetamineandecstasy.In2009,druglawenforcementauthoritiesinIndonesiadisman-tleda totalof37ATSmanufacturingoperations, thehighest figure reportedtodate.Theseizedfacilities included12small-scale‘kitchentype’laboratoriesinprivateresidences,suggestingthatsomeATSmanufacturersarereducingthesizeoftheirfacilitiestoavoiddetectionbythelaw.93Ofthe26illicitATSmanufacturingfacilitiesdismantledin2010,nineweresmall-scalecrystallinemethamphetaminemanufacturingoperationsand12wereecstasymethamphetamineopera-tions.Anadditionalthreeecstasytabletingfacilitieswerealsoseizedduringtheyear.94ThecontinuinghighlevelofecstasymanufactureinIndonesiaraisesconcernthatthecountrycouldreplaceEuropeastheprincipalsourceofMDMAintheregion.

87 RMP,2010a.

88 DAINAP.

89 RMP,2010b.

90 RMP,2010a.

91 RMP,2010a.

92 RMP,2010c.

93 BNN,2010.

94 DAINAP.

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soutH asia / INDIA

Althoughtheillicitmanufactureoflargequantiti

amphetamines Vienna International Centre, PO Box 500, A 1400 Vienna, Austria and ecstasydrugslibrary.wordpress.stir.ac.uk/files/2017/07/ATS... · 2017-07-10 · amphetamines and ecstasy

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