AP: Afghan govt. won't spray poppy crops

[Eugene]

Posted on Thu, Jan. 25, 2007

Afghan govt. won't spray poppy crops
JASON STRAZIUSO
Associated Press

KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghanistan's heroin-producing poppies will not be sprayed
with herbicide this year despite a record crop in 2006 and U.S. pressure for
President Hamid Karzai to allow the drug-fighting tactic, a spokesman said Thursday.

However, Karzai told foreign and Afghan officials this week that if Afghanistan's
poppy crop isn't reduced this year he would allow spraying in 2008, according to a
Western official who requested anonymity because of the matter's sensitivity.

Karzai's Cabinet decided Sunday to hold off on using chemicals for now, according
to Said Mohammad Azam, spokesman for Afghanistan's Ministry of Counter Narcotics.

"There will be no ground spraying this year," Azam told The Associated Press.

He said there would be more pressure to destroy poppy crops with "traditional"
techniques - typically sending teams of laborers into fields to batter down or plow
in the plants before they can be harvested.

-snip-

Full article: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/16540081.htm

[acmavm]

1. The poppy is only good for drugs. And the government is not going to

destroy the bumper crop.

This is just weird. The American backed Afgan government is allowing the heroin poppy to be harvested.

Totally narcotics supported country.

[northofdenali]

2. Afghanistan is a poor country, and we didn't help it a lot

even by "ridding" it of the Taliban (they're baaaaaaaaack...) - what other cash crop have they got? Of course they're not going to destroy the only thing they can sell to provide food for their families!

[High Plains]

3. It's a real Catch-22 for Karzai and the West

Go after the poppy crops and push the farmers into the waiting arms of the Taliban, not to mention pissing off members of the government who are hip deep into the trade.

Ignore the poppy crops and watch the Taliban use its share of the profits to buy lots of shiny new weapons to shoot at the infidels and their local buddies.

There is growing support for a scheme to license the farmers and divert the opium to the legitimate global medicinal market. But the US is unalterably opposed.

[UnyieldingHierophant]

8. They are worried about cross-contamination of other crops*

NM

[kineneb]

4. what? no paraquot?

so it is ok to grow opium poppies that are processed into heroin, but we must eradicate the pot fields in northern California?

heroin kills, but has pot?

sorry, pissed off Californian here...can't stand the hypocrisy.

[maxsolomon]

5. good. chemicals are not going to solve this.

ficking BUY it from them.

offer TWICE what the drug dealers pay. its got to be cheaper than the societal cost in europe & n. america.

[tchunter]

6. why should they destroy the crops?

any substitute crop wouldn't bring in half the income of poppy.

[sofa king]

7. Yeah, I'm sure that "pressure" from the U.S. government is real strong.

"Let's see what's in the mailbox today here at the Afghani Presidential Palace. The Taliban is checking up on me to see if I have a handful's worth of beard... check. The Pakistanis want to know if I know they know that I know where Osama is... check. The CIA says they'll raise my cut of Afghan opium profits by two percent if I ignore the letter from the State Department... and here's the letter from the State Department. Okay, time to go home."