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Web-only Exclusives
November 30, 2000

From Our Correspondent: Hirohito and the War
A conversation with biographer Herbert Bix

From Our Correspondent: A Rough Road Ahead
Bad news for the Philippines - and some others

From Our Correspondent: Making Enemies
Indonesia needs friends. So why is it picking fights?

Asiaweek Time Asia Now Asiaweek story

TARGET THE BIG FISH

Thailand needs to rethink its war on drugs


FOR DECADES, LAOTA SAENLEE was a respected figure in the hills overlooking the Thai-Myanmar border. He was twice recognized as best village headman of his province and even honored by royal visits to observe his efforts to develop his hamlet and keep it drug-free. Laota also lived a life of luxury. Income from his 200 acres of lychee and tea plantations, he implied, paid for his imported car, his large home and other houses in a nearby town and the provincial capital, plus a $2-million bank account. Anything wrong with this picture? The authorities now say there was - and arrested Laota as the alleged financial mastermind of drug warlord Wei Hsueh-kang's illegal yaba (amphetamine) trade. But what took them so long to catch on? Yes, it takes time to build up a criminal case. But the stream of development aid and accolades that flowed through Laota's doors showed that many people noticed nothing odd - or were paid not to notice.

For Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai, Thai Army chief Surayudh Chulanont and other law enforcers, the frontline of the war against amphetamines pouring into Thailand lies up in the forested hills of the Myanmar border. Over the last month, the authorities have turned up the heat on traffickers, closing frontier crossings and sending in troops and helicopter gunships to battle smugglers. By choking off the trafficking routes, they hope to bankrupt and tame Wei's United Wa State Army, which runs a semi-autonomous enclave on the Myanmar side, where they allegedly control yaba production and trade. However, government authorities should rethink their strategy. Tough action on the border will go some way toward stemming the yaba tide. But Thailand's lawmen need to focus their attention closer to home.

For decades, drugs have flowed because Bangkok took aim largely at the criminal foot soldiers. It tended to ignore the big-time drug lords, their middlemen and, especially, the "legitimate" businessmen, policemen, soldiers, bureaucrats and even elected politicians who smooth the way for the nefarious traffic. Anti-narcotics officials believe that some lawmakers could in fact be lawbreakers. If the enforcers want to save the nation from the scourge of yaba, they would have to take the battle into government offices, police stations and barracks, and sparkling company offices. Everyone, from rich parliamentarians declaring their assets when entering office to local officials with lifestyles seemingly at odds with their salaries, should be asked how they accumulated their wealth. The welcoming pool in which the narcotics tycoons swim must be drained dry.

Bangkok's latest campaign will no doubt close some drug routes in the frontier regions. But alternative supply lines will be found, and other smugglers will come forward to replace those arrested and killed. True, the battle on the border is important. But the tougher fight is to convince the kingpins, the middlemen and the thousands who turn a blind eye to the traffic - who value a few backhanded baht more than the lives of school children - that the authorities are serious about clamping down on drugs. Prime Minister Chuan and Gen. Surayudh must take the war to their own home turf. The health of Thai society depends on their resolution and skill in doing so.


This edition's table of contents | Asiaweek home

AsiaNow



WASHINGTON
U.S. secretary of state says China should be 'tolerant'

MANILA
Philippine government denies Estrada's claim to presidency

ALLAHABAD
Faith, madness, magic mix at sacred Hindu festival

COLOMBO
Land mine explosion kills 11 Sri Lankan soldiers

TOKYO
Japan claims StarLink found in U.S. corn sample

BANGKOK
Thai party announces first coalition partner



TIME:

COVER: President Joseph Estrada gives in to the chanting crowds on the streets of Manila and agrees to make room for his Vice President

THAILAND: Twin teenage warriors turn themselves in to Bangkok officials

CHINA: Despite official vilification, hip Chinese dig Lamaist culture

PHOTO ESSAY: Estrada Calls Snap Election

WEB-ONLY INTERVIEW: Jimmy Lai on feeling lucky -- and why he's committed to the island state



ASIAWEEK:

COVER: The DoCoMo generation - Japan's leading mobile phone company goes global

Bandwidth Boom: Racing to wire - how underseas cable systems may yet fall short

TAIWAN: Party intrigues add to Chen Shui-bian's woes

JAPAN: Japan's ruling party crushes a rebel ì at a cost

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans need to have more babies. But success breeds selfishness


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