speeches

Chargé Mary Grace McGeehan Remarks Commemorating Lao National Day Against Drugs

ITECC, Vientiane
October 12, 2006

Venerable Monks,
Your Excellency,

Chargé Mary Grace McGeehan

Mr. Bouasone Bouphavan Prime Minister of Laos; Your Excellency Mr. Soubanh Srithirath, Minister to the President's Office and Chairman of the Lao National Commission for Drug Control and Supervision; Your Excellency, Mr. Leik Boonwaat, UNODC Representative to Laos; Your Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am very pleased to join you today to mark Laos’ National Day against illicit drugs. Laos, in partnership with the United States, has fought a decades long struggle against opium, historically the greatest drug problem for the Lao people. In that battle, Laos has enjoyed considerable success, and, with continued efforts, poppies on the hillsides of the Northern provinces may soon be a thing of the past. Unfortunately, Laos must now confront a new and potentially more daunting threat, the explosive growth in the trafficking and abuse of methamphetamine, or yaa ba.

Amphetamines are not new to this region, nor are they a problem unique to Laos. The United States is also fighting this problem, and in meeting this challenge, both nations are part of a global effort to bring this highly addictive drug under control. No one nation can defeat methamphetamine alone. Close collaboration with neighboring countries and international partners is essential if the illicit trade is to be halted.

The geography of drug trafficking in Southeast Asia makes Laos’s position difficult, since it is located strategically between producers and their highly lucrative markets. Unchecked, this has the potential to turn Laos into a major drug transit country, particularly with regard to yaa ba, bringing the additional problems of corruption and increased amphetamine abuse. No nation can survive large quantities of illicit goods crossing its borders and remain untouched. Unfortunately, new transportation infrastructure rightly intended to assist in Laos’s development can be used equally well for illicit purposes. As it becomes easier to move goods through Laos, vigilance against illicit drug transit will have to increase in proportion.

Unlike opium, methamphetamine threatens primarily the young, for it is they who are most vulnerable to its appeal. Students experiment with it hoping to study harder, athletes try it in the belief that it will help them play better, and young workers may use it believing that they can labor without fatigue. The result of this experimentation is often disastrous—addiction to a drug that attacks their minds, threatens their health, and is far too expensive to afford. The consequences for families and communities are horrendous, as they must grapple with the violent behavior and crime that are the hallmarks of amphetamine abuse.

Treating, rehabilitating, and reintegrating addicts is critical to solving the problems posed by yaa ba. While treatment facilities can play a key role in assisting addicts through the first two steps, reintegration, the most difficult part of the process, cannot succeed without the active participation of the families, neighbors, and communities who are most burdened by this abuse. However, detoxification without effective rehabilitation and counseling, including skills training resulting in jobs for the former addicts, will have little meaning and may lead to greater social and criminal problems.

We consider addict treatment and effective rehabilitation, including for women, to be a priority part of our joint efforts this year. It requires placing trust again in young people whose past behavior merited little confidence, something extremely difficult to do. This is a factor that no facility or program can provide. Only the people of Laos themselves can do this, and the ultimate success or failure of addiction treatment lies in their hands.

Illicit drugs remain a major problem for Laos, but not one that is impossible to overcome. If Laos can create an effective barrier at its borders to the importation of narcotics and amphetamines, this menace can be brought under control. If the roads of Laos are made unfriendly for traffickers, the consequences of large scale illegal transit can be halted. If families and communities pull together, they can take on the challenges posed by amphetamine addiction. Fortunately, the people of Laos do not stand alone in this battle. The U.S. Government will continue to support the Lao people as they grapple with the peril of dangerous drugs, and we call upon other potential partners to do all that they can to help in this fight.

         Thank you.