Mercille (2011) (Afghanistan) Flashcards
What does this text explore ?
The article discusses the War on Drugs in Afghanistan, emphasizing that it is not a real attempt at reducing drug production and consumption, but rather a pretext to suppress the insurgency. It argues that U.S. policies are often contrary to what a real war on drugs would entail.
What is the production like in Afghanistan ?
Afghanistan is highlighted as a major producer of opium, accounting for a significant portion of global production. It mentions that the raw opium and heroin are trafficked to various consumer markets, with Europe being the most lucrative one.
How does the article balance a conventional and critical interpretations ?
The article presents two contrasting interpretations of the war on drugs.
The conventional view, held by various U.S. officials and institutions, emphasizes the connection between drugs, insurgency, and the Taliban.
The critical interpretation, presented by the author, asserts that the U.S. government uses the war on drugs as a pretext for intervention against groups challenging American power.
What are some of the US foreign policy objectives concerning this crisis ?
The critical interpretation posits that U.S. foreign policy is primarily shaped by American elites’ global political and economic interests, including expanding markets, protecting friendly governments, and maintaining global economic and political stability.
This applies to the case of opium cultivation in Afghanistan as well.
How does the text view the role of Taliban and US allies in this issue ?
The article challenges the mainstream view by suggesting that U.S. allies involved in drugs are not targeted, while individuals and groups linked with the insurgency are. It argues that this selective targeting undermines the effectiveness of the war on drugs in addressing drug production and consumption.
What does Barnett Rubin state in Mercille’s text ?
Some Western officials imply that political elites in northern Afghanistan are engaging in successful counter-narcotics while the southern drug economy expands.
But the fact is that, although the commanders who control northern Afghanistan today may have eliminated cultivation, few if any have moved against trafficking. Most of them, it is widely believed, continue to profit from it.
How do cultivators transform opium into morphine and heroin ?
Precursors are the chemicals used to transform opium into morphine and heroin, the most important of which is acetic anhydride. Some commentators have pointed to the possible involvement of Taliban networks in the precursor trade, a claim reinforcing the view that insurgents dominate the drug industry.
Where does Afghanistan get this acetic anhydride ?
“Europe, China, and the Russian Federation” are “major acetic anhydride sources for Afghanistan.” As such, the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) stated in its 2009 report on pre-cursors that “control measures applied to internal trade in the European Union appear to be insufficient to prevent the diversion of the substance [acetic anhydride].”
What is the role of hawala in this drug trade ?
- The conventional view notes that the informal banking network operating in Afghanistan and neighboring countries, called hawala, makes it easy for insurgents to launder their criminal proceeds.
For example, Peters argues that we need to bring “transparency” to the unregulated hawala.
However, the need to regulate and clean up the formal Western banking system of drug money is much greater, at least for those truly concerned with reducing the size of the drug trade. Clearly, U.S. concern with drug money laundering is highly selective.
What is the author’s stance on the definition of drug ?
Drug warriors point to the fact that heroin is “the world’s deadliest drug,” causing up to 100,000 deaths per year. However, a real war on drugs should certainly target tobacco and alcohol, the record holders in terms of deaths.
How should we address this issue ?
- Mainstream authors emphasize drug control operations in supplier countries (and incarceration at home) as the way to tackle the narcotics problem. There are tactical debates, between proponents of eradication and alternative livelihoods, but the spotlight remains on overseas producers. The problem is that drug policy research has consistently found that to reduce drug consumption in the West, overseas intervention and incarceration/enforcement at home are the least effective methods
In fact, researchers widely agree that the four most popular methods to control drugs should be ranked as follows, from most to least effective:
(1) treatment of addicts (e.g., methadone, counseling)
(2) prevention (e.g., school-based campaigns)
(3) enforcement (e.g., incarceration)
(4) overseas operations in producer countries (e.g., eradication, crop substitution).
