The Opium War

The number of deaths, both military and civilian, in the ongoing war in Afghanistan is a substantially lesser total than the war in Iraq. But that casualty rate doesn't factor into account the lives lost due to the increased production of opium in the form of poppy cultivation. The deadly effects of heroin use span a battlefield across the world from the rugged and hostile land where the deceptively beautiful flowers are grown.

The opium poppy fields are hypnotically beautiful, undulating in slow ripples with the hot wind. But while the farmers view this spectacle with eyes filled with profits, the rest of the world sees a white ocean of death, waiting to be harvested and smuggled into their neighborhoods.

The country of Afghanistan has been battered by various wars for decades. The destruction of the economy has driven desperate farmers back to the age-old occupation of poppy production. The white flower is far easier to grow than the farmer's normal crops and the market value is astronomically higher than any grain or fruit they could otherwise plant there. The opium poppy has become the main crop of Afghanistan.

In the year 2000 and before, when the Taliban controlled the Afghan government, opium production was almost nonexistent. Unfortunately, after the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, poppy production began increasing again. There are numerous contributing factors at work and blame can be attributed to several areas. Lack of post-war economic rebound and job growth, cultural acceptance of the drug, and ironically the Taliban resurgence in southern provinces of Afghanistan have fueled the increase in opium trade.

The Taliban insurgency against the current Afghan government now profits from poppy production. The commanders provide protection for the farmers in exchange for a 30 to 40 percent tax which in turn is used to train and recruit new fighters and strengthen the circle.

From 2004 to 2005 there was a decrease of 48 percent in production of the crop, but this year has shown a sharp increase of 50 to 59 percent higher than last year's totals. This year, it is estimated that Afghanistan will account for 82 percent of the world's opium, which translates to 90 percent of the world's heroin. A stunning 6,700 tons grown this year was sold for about $750 million dollars in profit for farmers and another $50 billion in street value.
Most of the heroin ends up in European countries, although a portion makes its way to the U.S. The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime has issued a warning to 90 countries about the potential for a dramatic increase in the number of deaths from overdoses of the drug. Having such a large supply of opium results in less of a need to cut or weaken the heroin. Drug users aren't accustomed to the more potent or pure heroin and it is much easier to inject a lethal amount.

Realizing that the millions of dollars spent by the U.S. and Britain to educate farmers and create markets for legitimate crops is largely failing, suggestions have been made to use herbicide spraying to destroy the massive crops. Afghan President Hamid Karzai and much of the country's population are strongly opposed to that plan, mostly due to fears of military chemical weapons being dropped from planes. It is yet another deeply rooted cultural barrier that separates the Eastern world from the Western.

In the end, no one may ever know the true cost in lives from the Afghan war. It goes beyond soldiers or farmers or even oceans. The next casualty may even be as close as across the street from where you live.