Have been watching a long time but didn't say it From: <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> Date: 3/23/01 3:22 AM Mountain Standard Time Message-id: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Have been watching a long time but didn't say it ------------------------------------------------ (From The New light of Myanmar Friday, 23 March, 2001) The problem of narcotic drugs will continue to exist as long as it is not considered as a social problem, but being used instead as a tool for economic and political purposes. The narcotic drugs have existed in the world since the very early period of human history. Man during the Stone Age used the leaves, fruits or latex of the wild plants to make themselves merrier at festivals for offering sacrifices to the gods. Poppy which grew naturally at the Mediterranean Sea region was used by the ancient Greek physicians as a pain-killer. Opium was used as a potent medicine in Egypt about 1,500 years ago. At the start of the Christian era, opium was used in curing coughing, dysentery and pains. In Europe, various kinds of modern medicines, derived from opium, were produced and sold. Englishman C R Wright discovered the method of refining heroin in 1847. At that time, heroin was called diacetylmorphine. Twenty years later the German refined heroin of superior quality and used it in producing medicines. Bayer pharmaceutical company of Germany produced and sold various kinds of heroin-based medicines. Although the drugs could cure (due to the effects of opium) the illness, the patients became drug-addicts. Drug abuse problems arose and then the story of the world=E2= =80=99s drug addiction started. In 1906, the US Medical Science Association re-commended that heroin could be used as a potent drug. There were about 200,000 drug-addicts in America in 1924. Now that number has mounted to millions. It is clear that the native land of poppy, from which the opium is derived, and the creator of heroin are in the western part of the world. Arabs are the initiators in trafficking and distributing opium in the east. The persons who brought poppy seeds from the Mediterranean region to the east in 18th and 19th centuries and made oriental people opium-addicts were the Dutch traders. In the following years, the British were more active than the Dutch in opium business, and afterwards manipulated the whole poppy cultivation and opium business. A war broke out between the British, who imported the largest amount of opium to China under the plan to make Chinese people drug-addicts, and China in 1839. It is called the Opium War. The British pocketed large amounts of profits from selling drugs in China. The British plan was to turn Chinese into opium-addicts and then invade and occupy China when her defence power weakened. The British used opium as a means to corrupt morals of others, to enjoy economic gain, and to practise the colonialism smoothly and easily on political terms. It was very clear. As they gained various kinds of benefits from the opium business, the British colonialists began to create many poppy fields in Asia. It was the act of the British capitalists who made poppy fields appear in the Golden Triangle region at the border of three nations=C2=A0 Myanmar, Thailand and Laos; Golden Crescent region where the borders of the three Islamic countries=C2=A0 Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan meet, and border areas of Chi= na. As the British won the Opium War, the British applied pressures on and bullied China in 1860 to get permission to trade opium legally in the nation. In this way the number of poppy fields increased. In 1900, China could produce six times the amount of opium smuggled into her from the Golden Crescent region via India. The poor people used opium as the drug to relieve strains or for recreation and the rich used it to find pleasure. In 1906, there were 40 million opium-addicts in China. Another opium war broke out in 1937 as the Chinese government tried to prohibit opium in 1934. After the end of the war, China had to permit poppy cultivation and opening of opium dens in her territory again. There was not a single opium-addict or opium abuser in Myanmar during the times of Myanmar monarchs. As foreigners smuggled in opium, decrees prohibiting opium smuggling were issued during the periods of King Bodaw Phaya and King Mindon. As these events have already been written for many times, I am not going into detail. After the First Anglo-Myanmar War, the British annexed Taninthayi Division and Rakhine State. The British permitted opening of opium dens in Rakhine in 1924. Five years after annexing Myanmar in 1885, the British permitted opening 67 opium dens and 175 liquor shops in Myanmar. Not only did the British colonialists turn many Myanmars into opium-addicts and alcoholics, but the British colonialist government was also receiving an annual tax revenue of over K 700,000 from opium and alcohol businesses. While the British colonialist government was gaining benefits on all fronts of the political, economic and social sectors, Myanmar nationals became addicted to liquor and drugs. Twenty-eight opium dens were opened in Bago alone. In this way, the border areas of Myanmar were occupied by a large number of poppy fields and the inner parts of the nation were filled with opium dens. It was just an evil legacy of the colonialists. The opium business came to a halt during the World War II. When the British and allied forces re-entered Myanmar via India, and arrived at Myitkyina, the intelligence officers of the allied troops gave opium as awards to the persons who gave them information about the enemy. During that time some persons wanted opium more than money as a fee for giving information to the allied forces. The British then governed Myanmar under CASB government after the end of WW II and reopened opium dens in the country. After the nation regained independence, the government laid down a policy to wipe out opium from Myanmar within five years. Programmes to cultivate poppy substitute crops and to open drug rehabilitation centres at every hospital were laid down. The programmes were laid down at the government meeting which was held on 11 February 1948. A drug rehabilitation centre was opened at Psychiatric Hospital (it was called Tadalay during the time) on 6 August 1949. All the opium dens in Yangon were closed with effect from that date. Author : Tekkatho Myat Thu ------------------------ <A HREF="http://www.myanmar.com/nlm/article/March23.htm"> http://www.myanmar.com/nlm/article/March23.htm</A> ------------------------ Yahoo! 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