My new love....drugs, crime and terrorism

One issue that I’m becoming more and more interested in is drug trafficking and terrorism – specifically the link between drug cultivation/production./trafficking and terrorism. Afghanistan is one such example. In 2007, Afghanistan alone accounted for 92% of global opium production, producing 8,200 mt of opium at an average yield of 42.5 kg/ha. In Myanmar, opium production increased by 46% from 315 mt to 460 mt due to the combined effects of cultivation increases and higher yields. However, opium production in Myanmar represented only 5% of global production in 2007.




According to the recently released (26 August 2008) UNODC’s Afghanistan Opium Survey 2008, 98% of the opium cultivated in Afghanistan is grown in just 7 provinces in the south-west (Hilmand, Kandahar, Uruzgan, Farah, Nimroz, and Daykundi and Zabul). These provinces are permanent Taliban settlements and imbedded with organized crime groups benefiting from economic and judicial insecurity. Interesting….. And in the graph above – if you pay particular attention to what happened in 2001 in Afghanistan – you’ll notice that global opium production pretty much came to a stand still – reason: orders by the Taliban to stop production.

So everyday I’ve been reading various news reports, articles and other information on drugs, crime and terrorism. My new plan is to apply to Johns Hopkins School of International Studies, this fall – focus on South Asian studies with a concentration on drugs, crime and terrorism.
Right now all I know is that this subject totally captures my interest and passion. The other day we had a meeting with the US Dept. of Defense and State Dept. – discussing Afghanistan’s impact on the SAARC region – and I felt so elated – so excited – exactly where I should be!!