Head in the Sand over Cambodian Drug Use

The Phnom Penh Post recently ran a story about the increase of methamphetamine use by young Cambodians.

A number of university students told stories of meth-fueled parties;meth was now the drug of choice for many, they said.

Their claim is backed by the Australian National Council on Drugs who also claimed that there was a clear upward trend in the use of amphetamines among Cambodia's under-25s. The report also said that rather than smoking it, the injection of meth- with all its associated health risks, was also on the rise.

Keo Kim Dara, deputy secretary-general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, however is having none of it:

“It’s on a very small scale; not a lot,” he said. “More often it’s government workers, Vietnamese workers and some foreigners.”

Of course, it's those damn Yuon and immoral foreigners, not Cambodian youth that are the problem.

Hard to see how Keo Kim Dara is going to have any influence on tackling drug abuse when he cannot even bring himself to acknowledge the problem.

Useless UNICEF

'A LOCAL rights group [Human Rights Watch] says it has proof that UNICEF resources have been used to transport illegally detained children to a controversial drug rehabilitation centre accused of human rights abuses.'

~Phnom Penh Post 28 January 2010

That proof seems solid- the group has photos- but UNICEF is so far refusing to comment. Human Rights Watch also claim that they met with UNICEF in September 2009 to express concerns that the government run, so-called rehabilitation centre, that UNICEF supports, was beating and illegally detaining kids with drug addictions. UNICEF failed to act. The van used to transport the kids is sign written 'Provided with the support of UNICEF and the EC,' and 'Child-friendly justice system.'

The 'P' Police

 Municipal Police chief Touch Muysor is the man charged with stemming Phnom Penh's drug trade. He has recently been suspended for, you guessed it, drug trafficking. Touch was allegedly found with US$100,000- a large Cambodian fortune- of pills in his possession.

Bizarrely the chief has only been suspended from his drug duties- he will continue with his 'normal' policing tasks while he awaits the outcome of an inquiry. That gives him an ear-to-the-ground and allows hime to follow/intefere/obstruct/run from the investigation as he sees fit.