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Past but still Policy
- Subject: Past but still Policy
- From: moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 05 May 1998 14:21:00
To those who missed it, the following is a pivotal document.
Sincerely,
Julien Moe
-------------------
U.S. Department of State
Office of the Spokesman
Press Statement
Notice to the Press
April 3, 1998
U.S. Pledge to UNDCP for Burma
In 1997, the US pledged $9.7 million overall to the United Nations Drug
Control Program (UNDCP), and $3.3 million from prior year funding for an
alternative development program in Burma. UNDCP has experience in areas
of the world where US access is limited and we often support programs in
those areas.
The aim of the program in Burma is to drastically reduce opium
cultivation in the Wa ethnic area of northern Burma. The US and other
donors worked with UNDCP over a long period to develop a program with
reasonable benchmarks and effective oversight. US funding is distributed
to the UNDCP and the project in the affected area, not to the Government
of Burma. The US believes alternative development has the potential to
reduce drug cultivation and trafficking in the Golden Triangle region, a
leading source of illegal opiates the United States.
In developing a counternarcotics policy for Burma, the US takes into
account the overall political situation. The US provides no
counternarcotics assistance to the Government of Burma. We remain
concerned about the lack of democracy and human rights in Burma, and
concerned as well about the commitment of the Burmese to fight
narcotics. Nevertheless, the US wishes to limit the damage narcotics
produced in Burma can inflict on the US and the rest of the world and
UNDCP is one answer to the problem.
[end of document]