Crime in Afghanistan is present in various forms, and includes the following: corruption, contract killings or assassinations, bombings, kidnapping, drug trafficking, money laundering, black marketeering, and ordinary crimes such as theft and assault.
Opium poppy cultivation and drug trafficking have important role in the political and economic situation of Afghanistan for last twenty-five years. [1] In the aftermath of the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, opium poppy cultivation increased in the nation. [2] Many mujahideen commanders taxed opium poppy cultivation, even directly participated in illicit drug trade for military financing. [2] Although the Taliban condemned cultivation of narcotic substances, requirements of money encouraged toleration and taxation of drug cultivation. [3] In 1999, Afghanistan produced a peak of over 4,581 metric tons of raw and refined opium. [2] [3] This led to increasing international pressure from states having consumer population of Afghan drugs. [2] In response, the Taliban banned opium poppy cultivation in late 2000, but allowed the opium trade to continue. [2] Under the ban, opium poppy cultivation was reduced to 185 metric tons. [2] This little production of opium continued in areas under the control of the United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan. [2]
Since the downfall of the Taliban in 2001, cultivation and trafficking of opium has increased significantly. [4] Throughout the country regional militia commanders, criminal organizations and corrupt government officials have engaged in drug trafficking as a source of revenue. [1] Some anti-government groups make profit from the drug trafficking. [5] Due to these factors, drug trafficking increases political instability in the nation, [5] and is a threat to the country's weak internal security and embryonic democratic government. [1]
Afghanistan is the world's largest producer of opium [5] and in 2001, Afghanistan was the source of 87% of the world's illicit opium. [1] 80-90% of the heroin consumed in Europe comes from opium produced in Afghanistan. [5] According to Antonio Maria Costa "drugs are now a clear and present danger" in Afghanistan. [6] According to a survey in 2007 by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 93% of the opiates on the world market originated in Afghanistan. [7] In November 2023, a U.N report showed that in the entirety of Afghanistan, poppy cultivation dropped by over 95%, removing it from its place as being the world's largest opium producer. This was as a result of a ban on opium production by the Afghan government. [8] [9]
The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime's report in April 2023 highlights that analyses of the connection between Afghanistan's illicit economy and conflict have been narrowly focused on the opium economy and its by-products, while ignoring the diversified nature of the country's illegal markets, which includes sectors like illegal mining, the wildlife trade, and arms trafficking. The ephedra economy as a key ingredient in crystal meth is also a contentious issue with varying opinions on its significance, though UN agencies tend to downplay its relevance, and some independent analysts suggest that it is unlikely to replace the higher quality South East Asian meth. These various sectors are crucial to the crime-conflict nexus in Afghanistan and require greater attention. [10]
Unemployment among a large portion of the population and rudimentary basic services are major factors behind crime. [11] Other forms of crime include robbery as well as kidnappings and assault. [11] Many riots have occurred in the country in response to various political and other issues. [11]
Since the downfall of the Taliban, the crime rate has significantly increased in the capital city Kabul. [12] Armed robberies are regularly reported in the western districts of Kabul. [12] Between March 2002 and January 2003, 48 cases of homicide, 80 cases of theft and 12 cases of kidnappings were reported within Kabul municipal boundaries. [4] [12]
Terrorist attacks, including mass shootings and suicide bombings, have occurred many times since the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. They are carried out by the Taliban and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province.
Opium is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy Papaver somniferum. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which is processed chemically to produce heroin and other synthetic opioids for medicinal use and for the illegal drug trade. The latex also contains the closely related opiates codeine and thebaine, and non-analgesic alkaloids such as papaverine and noscapine. The traditional, labor-intensive method of obtaining the latex is to scratch ("score") the immature seed pods (fruits) by hand; the latex leaks out and dries to a sticky yellowish residue that is later scraped off and dehydrated. The word meconium historically referred to related, weaker preparations made from other parts of the opium poppy or different species of poppies.
The illegal drug trade, drug trafficking, or narcotrafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs through the use of drug prohibition laws. The think tank Global Financial Integrity's Transnational Crime and the Developing World report estimates the size of the global illicit drug market between US$426 and US$652 billion in 2014 alone. With a world GDP of US$78 trillion in the same year, the illegal drug trade may be estimated as nearly 1% of total global trade. Consumption of illegal drugs is widespread globally, and it remains very difficult for local authorities to reduce the rates of drug consumption.
Crime in Moldova, as everywhere in the Post-Soviet states, has risen in the 1990s, after the fall of the Soviet Union, although in recent years there has been an improvement. Corruption in Moldova, economic and drug-related crimes are the most visible and predictable results of the deteriorating economic situation. Racketeering and the mafia have also risen up during the 1990s and 2000s. Petty crimes, such as pickpocketing and street thefts, are also common.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, also referred to as the First Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, was a totalitarian Islamic state led by the Taliban that ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. At its peak, the Taliban government controlled approximately 90% of the country, while remaining regions in the northeast were held by the Northern Alliance, which maintained broad international recognition as a continuation of the Islamic State of Afghanistan.
Narco-state is a political and economic term applied to countries where all legitimate institutions become penetrated by the power and wealth of the illegal drug trade. The term was first used to describe Bolivia following the 1980 coup of Luis García Meza which was seen to be primarily financed with the help of narcotics traffickers. Other well-known examples are Honduras, Guinea-Bissau, Mexico, Myanmar and Syria, where drug cartels produce, ship and sell drugs such as captagon, cocaine, heroin and marijuana.
The Golden Crescent is the name given to one of Asia's two principal areas of illicit opium production. Located at the crossroads of Central, South, and West Asia, this space covers the mountainous peripheries of Afghanistan and Pakistan, extending into eastern Iran.
The following lists events that happened during 2000 in Afghanistan.
The Golden Triangle is a large, mountainous region of approximately 200,000 km2 (77,000 sq mi) in northeastern Myanmar, northwestern Thailand and northern Laos, centered on the confluence of the Ruak and Mekong rivers. The name "Golden Triangle" was coined by Marshall Green, a U.S. State Department official, in 1971 in a press conference on the opium trade. Today, the Thai side of the river confluence, Sop Ruak, has become a tourist attraction, with an Opium Museum, a Hall of Opium, and a Golden Triangle Park, and no opium cultivation.
Afghanistan has long had a history of opium poppy cultivation and harvest. As of 2021, Afghanistan's harvest produces more than 90% of illicit heroin globally, and more than 95% of the European supply. More land is used for opium in Afghanistan than is used for coca cultivation in Latin America. The country has been the world's leading illicit drug producer since 2001. In 2007, 93% of the non-pharmaceutical-grade opiates on the world market originated in Afghanistan. By 2019 Afghanistan still produced about 84% of the world market. This amounts to an export value of about US $4 billion, with a quarter being earned by opium farmers and the rest going to district officials, insurgents, warlords, and drug traffickers. In the seven years (1994–2000) prior to a Taliban opium ban, the Afghan farmers' share of gross income from opium was divided among 200,000 families.
Opium licensing is a policy instrument used to counter illegal drug cultivation and production. It has been used in countries such as Turkey and India to curb illegal opium production. The main mechanism used under opium licensing is a shift from cultivation and/or production for the illegal market towards legal uses such as the production of essential medicines such as morphine and codeine.
Afghan morphine or "Poppy for Medicine" is an alternative development solution put forward to combat the poverty and public disenchantment caused by international counter-narcotics eradication policies in Afghanistan. Licensing opium poppy cultivation in order to locally manufacture and market Afghan morphine, according to this proposal, would create the economic conditions to empower poverty stricken rural Afghans and cut their ties with the illicit poppy trade.
The illegal drug trade in China is influenced by factors such as history, location, size, population, and current economic conditions. China has one-sixth of the world's population and a large and expanding economy. China's large land mass, close proximity to the Golden Triangle, Golden Crescent, and numerous coastal cities with large and modern port facilities make it an attractive transit center for drug traffickers. Opium has played an important role in the country's history since before the First and Second Opium Wars in the mid-19th century.
This article deals with activities of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency related to transnational crime, including the illicit drug trade.
Crime in Pakistan is present in various forms and occurs everywhere, especially in the many major cities such as Karachi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Peshawar, Multan, Hyderabad, Islamabad and Quetta. Among other general crimes, it includes major crimes such as murder, rape, gang rape, sexual abuse of a minor, kidnapping, armed robbery, burglary and carjacking. For example, in the city of Lahore 379 murders, 500 attempted murders, 2,650 abductions and 55 rapes have occurred in 2019. A direct relationship has been identified between the crime rate and unemployment rate in Pakistan. Elevated unemployment diminishes the attractiveness of legal endeavors, consequently raising the potential gains from illicit pursuits. As a result, the likelihood of an upsurge in illegal activities rises. Crime Statistics of Pakistan shows that there is a rapid increase in the number of crime reported over time like other countries of the world. It may be because of high unemployment, rising poverty, increasing inflation and urbanization. Some other non-economic factors are also responsible for it.
Mohammed Daud Daud, also known as General Daud Daud, an ethnic Tajik, was the police chief in northern Afghanistan and the commander of the 303 Pamir Corps. He was an opponent of the Afghan Taliban.
Legal cultivation of opium for medicinal purposes is carried out in India, only in selected areas, under free licensing conditions. India is the world's largest manufacturer of legal opium for the pharmaceutical industry according to the CIA World Factbook. India is one among 12 countries in world where legal cultivation for medical use is permissible within the ambit of United Nations, Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961. In India legal cultivation is done primarily in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Despite producing poppy for opium production India depends heavily on imports to meet need of Poppy seed for edible purposes and domestic Codeine demand for medical purposes . Opium is heavily imported from its top producing nations like Afghanistan. There is also an account of Opium black marketing in India.
Opium production in Myanmar has historically been a major contributor to the country's gross domestic product (GDP). Myanmar is the world's largest producer of opium, producing some 25% of the world's opium, and forms part of the Golden Triangle. The opium industry was a monopoly during colonial times and has since been illegally tolerated, encouraged and informally taxed by corrupt officials in the Tatmadaw, Myanmar Police Force and rebel fighters, primarily as the basis for heroin manufacture. While opium poppy cultivation in Myanmar had declined year-on-year since 2015, cultivation area increased by 33% totalling 40,100 hectares alongside an 88% increase in yield potential to 790 metric tonnes in 2022 according to latest data from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Myanmar Opium Survey 2022 With that said, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has also warned that opium production in Myanmar may rise again if the economic crunch brought on by COVID-19 and the country's February 1 military coup persists, with significant public health and security consequences for much of Asia.
Cannabis is illegal in Afghanistan. It has been cultivated for centuries, and experienced relatively little interference until the 1970s, where after it became an issue both in international politics and in the finance of the series of wars which occurred in Afghanistan for forty years. In 2010, the United Nations reported that Afghanistan was the world's top cannabis producer.
Drug smuggling is an issue that is gaining international attention, particularly in the Indian Ocean region. The Indian Ocean borders 24 states, and accounts for a third of the world’s ocean area. Previously, other challenges, such as Somali piracy, have been at the forefront of international action. However, the utilisation of the Southern route by drug traffickers, and the consequent issues this has caused, has led to increased focus on how to tackle this issue.
The 20-year-long War in Afghanistan had a number of significant impacts on Afghan society.
