Myanmar to Stop More Opium Growth

By Associated Press

May 20, 2002, 6:08 PM EDT

WASHINGTON -- Myanmar, believed to be the world's top producer of opium, announced Monday it will expand a project encouraging farmers to plant alternative crops.

The announcement, made by the country's embassy in Washington, comes a week after Myanmar officials met with State Department counternarcotics officials in Washington.

Myanmar is one of three countries that the State Department says has "failed demonstrably" to cooperate in fighting drugs. It is the only one whose designation makes it ineligible for most types of U.S. assistance. The penalties were waived for the other two nations, Haiti and Afghanistan, because of U.S. national interests.

The new anti-drug program encourages farmers to exchange opium seeds for seeds of other crops, such as rice, wheat and corn. In the pilot phase of the program, more than 141 tons of opium seeds have been turned in by farmers, Myanmar said in a statement.

Col. Hla Min, a Myanmar spokesman, said the government is trying "to bring these farmers out of poppy cultivation in a more humanitarian way than resorting to sending in troops to destroy their sole livelihood."

The State Department said it was unaware of the program and had no comment.
On May 13, a Myanmar anti-drug official, Col. Kyaw Thein, met with the State Department's top counternarcotics official, Assistant Secretary Rand Beers. The State Department said it discussed the steps Myanmar needs to take to fight drugs.

The United States has provided little assistance to the southeast Asian country since 1988, when a group of generals took power after crushing a pro-democracy movement. U.S. officials have said relations won't improve until Myanmar makes democratic reforms and does more to fight drugs.
Myanmar was the world's top opium producer in 2001, even though its production has fallen sharply since 1996, according to State Department figures. Opium production in Afghanistan, the top producer in 2000, was almost wiped out in 2001 because of a ban by the Taliban militia, which ruled the country then.

Most heroin sold in the United States is made from opium produced in Latin America.

This month, Myanmar took a step toward addressing U.S. concerns about democracy by releasing opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who had been under house arrest since September 2000.

Suu Kyi traveled outside Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, last week for the first time since her release. The State Department said it was encouraged the government was living up to its commitment to allow her freedom of movement.

Copyright © 2002, The Associated Press