The 2013 UN Opium Risk Assessment report on Afghanistan has revealed that the menace of poppy production has not decreased in Afghanistan; it has been on record high in third consecutive year. The report is really concerning and Afghan authorities need to concentrate on the issue in order to curb the situation, which already seems to have gone out of control.

The report also revealed that there has been increase in the production in the areas that were previously free of poppy cultivation. Such a scenario is really alarming; Afghanistan instead of making efforts to come out of this menace is being tangled in it to a further extent. It has turned into a quagmire and the prospects show that even the coming generations will not be able to come out of it, if the scenario remains the same.

The report has also mentioned that the all the measures that are being adopted do not seem to achieve acquired results and the concerned authorities are really not sure how to tackle the issue properly.

It should not go unmentioned that Afghanistan is not only among the leading countries in producing drugs but also using it. There are thousands of youngsters addicted to different types of drugs and their number is increasing with each passing day. It is now another threatening reality that children and women are also caught in drug addiction and they do not find any way of countering this menace. They, in fact, use it as medicine to fights against cold weather and also as tranquilizers to fight against pains that are caused by different diseases.  

Now, the concerns about the drug production and trafficking are bothering not only the Afghan authorities who are interested in getting rid of this evil but also drug-haters in international community. Though there have been different sorts of commitments, promises and suggestions to deal with this issues, no tangible outcome has been achieved yet. It is really pathetic to note that even a decade of reestablishment has not acquired something worthwhile in this regard.

It is now an open secret that the poppy cultivation and its smuggling are linked with the networks of organized crime in the country that further extends to international mafia and drug dealing and they have their strong backers in the international drug market and national authorities who appear to be guardians of the nation. But one of the most alarming and unfortunate facts is that they have their links with the terrorist networks in the country.

The growing insurgency and expanding networks of terrorism suggest that the terrorists have strong financial support and currently there are many reports that disclose the fact that the terrorist networks receive most of their funding from the same source. This scenario is really very much threatening.

This is going to ruin the lives of the people of Afghanistan in various ways and unfortunately no break in it seems very much likely – at least not in near future as the statistics show that there has been and there will be increase in the opium production in the country if not handled properly.

The situation would not be difficult to handle if it was limited only to farmers but the fact is that the farmers are not alone to benefit from the rising prices and the rise in production; rather farmers take a negligible part of it while most of the income goes to the networks that manage its filthy business.

And it is not concealed from knowing minds that the terrorist networks have a lion’s share in such income. So, it means that with the growth in the production of opium, there will be considerable increase in insurgency from the terrorist networks that are already in the process of gaining strength. Moreover, it has also been observed that the cultivations mostly take place in the areas where Taliban seem to have more control. It is believed that most of the cultivation is concentrated in southern Afghan provinces, and heartland of the Taliban-led insurgency, where the government does not seem to have much control.

This clearly suggests that there is connection between the poppy business and the growing insurgency. Definitely, the poppy business in Afghanistan is well knit in the larger network of organized crime. But unfortunately, the measures that have been carried out to counter the growth of this menace have not been comprehensive and serious.

It is even believed that the important figures are involved in backing this business that should, otherwise, have the responsibility to counter them. And the growing corruption and negligence of responsibility in the country does not let the government notice such realities. Though Afghanistan has been under international pressure to take notice of growing poppy cultivation, it is yet to hit the bull’s eye in this regard. Moreover, there have been technical and financial assistance from the international community to help Afghanistan eradicate this evil, but most of it goes to the pockets of rampant corruption.

So, the menace of poppy cultivation is determined to influence the country in various ways. It, on one side, is making drugs available to a large number of people, who are both intentionally and unintentionally becoming addict to it and becoming responsible for giving birth to different social problems. On the other hand, it is providing the fuel for insurgency as it is bound to benefit the terrorist networks in the country that largely depend on such sources of income after losing support from elsewhere.

Government authorities in this regard have to get very much serious and try to take concrete steps to make sure that the production is reduced to a considerable extent. Destroying the crops (as suggested by SCO) is one of the most practical steps at the present scenario and can to a very great extent discourage the poppy cultivation but it has certain complexities with itself. For the long-lasting solution it is preferable that the government must try to facilitate the farmers and landowners the opportunity of growing alternate crops. Moreover, corruption, in this regard, must not be tolerated in any condition.