The shady players in Myanmar's drugs trade

September 26, 2012 4:19 PM

The shady players in Myanmar's drugs trade: Drug exports from Myanmar continue to escalate, as distinctions between the illicit trade and the 'legal' economy blur.
posted by Cloud King (3 comments total)

I think anyone who'd suggest that Burma -- and, let's be honest, the area with the lion's share of opium production in the country is as much a part of something called "Burma" as it is part of something called "Timbuktu" -- has ever had in the past thirty years a clear distinction between the licit and illicit economy doesn't really know what they're talking about.
posted by docgonzo at 6:05 PM on September 26, 2012

> let's be honest, the area with the lion's share of opium production in the country is as much a part of something called "Burma" as it is part of something called "Timbuktu"

Yeah except that the profits are shared with the government of Burma, not Timbuktu.

Snark aside, that's an interesting piece, and I'm glad the complicity of the government is being publicized—it's all too easy to take pious claims of eradication attempts at face value. Thanks for the post.
posted by languagehat at 8:24 AM on September 27, 2012

Interesting piece from the same author a few weeks ago:

Aung San Suu Kyi's shaky moral high ground: Suu Kyi's silence on the Rohingya does not necessarily reflect a cold heart, but shows that she has become a politician.
posted by homunculus at 7:07 PM on September 27, 2012