Thaksaporn Sirichanyaphong

(May) 11-01
10/03/2015

Drug Trafficking
Name of delegate: Thaksaporn May Sirichanyaphong
Issue: Combating drug trafficking through out Asia
Country assigned: Philippines
1.What is the current status of the 'issue' in your country?
Illicit drug trafficking was one of the biggest problems in Philippines so far.
Due to its countrys geography and the involvement of some authorities, this is a very
difficult obstacle to cope with. The statistics of measuring of illicit drug syndicates
indicate an awareness of this issue. Since Philippines is an island, which has a vast
shoreline so it is used as a transporting hub to import and export illegal drug easily by
ship, especially in the area of central and southern Philippines. Also, the Ninoy
Aquino International Airport (NAIA) was another way to transport a drug in a small
quantity. The drug would be concealed in the suitcase, shoes, books or clothes of the
drug carrier. In some case, they will keep the drugs in their body by surgery or insert
in their private part. This was a very serious issue, which emphasized the enactment
of R.A. 9165 to deal with the drug problem in the country. In 2012, 10,159 persons
were arrested; 5,724 of them were drug pushers, and 1,965 persons were users.
Marijuana and methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) are the crucial
problem in Philippines. They are the most popular drugs in the country, especially
shabu, which around 7 million people uses it in Philippines. It can be grown up fast
and is very addictive. According to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency
(PDEA), in 2012 the rate of transporting marijuana was increased. Then report
showed that the Northern Luzon, Eastern Visayas and Mindanao are the producing
area of marijuana, which then it is transported along the countries and also to other
countries. Since 2010, these drug syndicates are producing the illicit drugs in the
laboratories and the kitchen-type clandestine laboratories. They rent the warehouse,
an exclusive condominium or apartment, the private properties, to establish the lab in
order to decrease a risk of detection. Moreover, due to the problem of lacking officers
and the ineffective system, the law enforcement agencies (LEAs) could do nothing to
suppress these drug owners.
There were a lot of news and evidence indicating how intense a drug
trafficking issue in Philippines was. According to BBC news, a hundred and forty
kilograms of illegal drug was smuggled in tuna, sending from China to Manila by
ship. Moreover, according to the National Bureau of Investigation, 3 billion worth of
shabu was found in the laboratory in the plastics factory in Camiling Tarlac. The raw
materials and equipment for manufacturing drugs were confiscated, including six
Chinese men. Eric Isidoro, the head of the NBIs antidrug unit, mentioned that the
items used were large tubes and cooking equipment, which normally used in the
industry. The officers considered that this was the biggest production of shabu
laboratory in the country, based on the size of factory and the volume of chemicals. It
could manufacture about 100 kilograms per day.

2.What is your country's stand on the 'issue'?

Philippines government is now raising the awareness of illicit drug by
alarming the increasing rate of Oversea Filipino Workers (OFW) being jailed due to
the drug trafficking and pirated video materials. In accordance with Fair Shipping
Corporation, the government also states the PDOS Advisory No.2-3, which warns
against drug trafficking and the pirated video materials. In addition, according to
Channel News Asia, Philippines recently signed the anti-drug agreement with
Indonesia to combat the drug crime and prevent the execution of heroin smuggling.
However, the issue of drug trafficking is a last long problem in Philippines that still
happens almost everyday. The main reason of the issue is caused from an
uncontrollable of trading drugs along the vast shoreline of Philippines, both import
and export of drugs, and also the products that are produced in the laboratory in its
country so this makes Philippines being like a commercial hub of drug that circulates
a large number of illicit drug each day. To stop this circulated transportation,
Philippines needs to begin with the strictly controls of importing and exporting
products in all of its ports, especially the luggage, bag, shoes and also the passengers
bodies in order to block the way of trading drug. Then it should operate a crucial
combating of drug in its country, starting with the factories, which is a source of
production to produce a lot of amount of drugs.
3.Explain the reason for the stand.
Nowadays Philippines are like a commercial hub of transporting the illicit
drug, not only importing from another countries but also Philippines itself being like a
source of production exporting to the world. Therefore, in order to close this
commercial hub or at lease to demote its size, we need to control the amount of
trading the drugs along all of the ports in Philippines to block and reduce the amount
of drug being import and export. Then we can keep on the step of crucial combat in
the country by starting with the big factories in the country because the factory is the
source of production that has a power to produce a huge amount of drug to supply the
country. By this method, the rate of drug producing in Philippines and drug crime will
be reduce.