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Letters Opium production in Afghanistan

Let’s re-examine buying the Afghan poppies that are left

BMJ 2008; 336 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39605.545544.3A (Published 12 June 2008) Cite this as: BMJ 2008;336:1325

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Control the Afghan Opium market.

Baroness Finlay's letter is very pertinent and timely. How can you gain the "hearts and minds" of a country if you destroy its livelihood? There should be no thought of Agent Orange and defoliation.

No more of our soldiers should be expended in Afghanistan. As Bismarck said of his Pomeranian Grenadiers he was not going to "waste any of their bones" in the Balkan conflict of the time. Our army is finite. The enemy is infinite and can call up hordes for evermore as our men, and women now, get slaughtered while those of other European colleagues sit aside and polish their shoes. We are not winning the battle, never mind those "hearts and minds" of the people. We must then waste no more of our troops.

As has been pointed out by Baroness Finlay, Lord Mancroft and Frank Field, the growing of Opium is almost the only worthwhile economy for an Afghan. We really are not going to taint our delicate hands if we cooperate with its growers and market what is produced.

If we then control and process this opium locally that benighted country will gain an income. We can offer the warlords and the growers themselves a price just above the market one which their middle-men offer.

Keep a stockpile too and our Military can guard that. How is it that much more Opium is now being produced than when the Taliban were in control? Even more than when the Americans were again in charge before that. What association with this increase is there here? Is there some easy answer? Someone will know.

So get the warlords on our side. At one time we spoke with the Taliban. Let us again talk to them and the killing can stop. As was said in the Navy, "if you can't beat it, join it!"

With some decent revenue accruing to the Afghan Government, and under our supervision too, then small irrigation schemes can be afforded throughout the country enabling that poor land to produce other worthwhile crops.

Malloch-Brown states wrongly that there are enough analgesics available in the Third World. Has he looked? Has he been round Africa and the Americas, Central and South? Has he seen the numbers of AIDS cases dying with no comfort whatsoever? It is evident that there are not enough pain-killers there.

There is then no reason today for a terminal illness to be one of pain when there is Opium available, cheaply. The Paracetamols are just as poisonous and as harmful as the Phenacetin they replaced. Tell the nurses that terminally ill patients need comfort and care and Acetaminophens are insufficient. The dying are never going to become addicts.

With control then of 90% of the world's production of Opium the refined form can be made available both to hospitals and cleanly to addicts through specified clinics or named Coffee Shops thoughout the world, and our various Social Services and Ladies Bountiful can then discover and wean those addicts off their drugs.

Competing interests: None declared

Competing interests: No competing interests

01 July 2008
GEORGE Y CALDWELL
GENERAL PRACTITIONER
SINGAPORE 259858
31 BALMORAL PARK, #18-33

Yes, buy the Afghan Poppies

For years I have been perplexed because this option never seems to be considered by Drug Control Agencies. It would seem sensible to at least explore or develop a pilot program especially as destroying people's livelihood isn't normally conducive to getting them on side.

We are told that unemployment is a significant driver for terroism.

It's too easy to tell the farmers in Afghanistan to grow food crops, but this ignores some of the benefits and rationale for growing drug crops. Food crops need good infrastructure to grow, store and transport. Eg Wheat needs fertiliser, granaries for storage and because of its bulk, good road transport.

Drugs are easier to grow, can be stored easily and then transported without advanced infrastructure because of the high value to weight ratio.

We are also told that farmers receive very little for the drugs they grow which might be another reason to simply buy them.

Competing interests: None declared

Competing interests: No competing interests

17 June 2008
Peter Nelson
Medical Practitioner
Next Step Drug and Alcohol WA6162
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