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Meth Trafficking Has Exploded Throughout Asia Despite Hardline Laws
Publication date:
Vice News - Methamphetamine seizures in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Oceania have exploded in recent years, nearly quadrupling from some 11 tons in 2008 to 42 tons in 2013, according to a report released Tuesday by the United Nations' Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Tom Blickman, a researcher at the Transnational Institute's Drugs and Democracy Program, told VICE News that the UNODC's concern over kratom is overblown, especially given its role as an alternative to harder drugs.
"One wonders why the UNODC is spending so much of its scarce financial and human resources on a biased monitoring of these substances," he said, noting that kratom in particular is used in the treatment of opium, heroin, and methamphetamine addiction. "To demonize these substances is counterproductive."