[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index ][Thread Index ]

BKK Post- THAI-BURMA TALKS ON DRUGS



THAI-BURMA TALKS
Cooperation against drugs tops agenda, Joint interrogation and raids
proposed

Subin Khuenkaew Thirawat Kamthita
Mae Sai


Ajoint operation to suppress narcotics along the Thai-Burmese border will
top the agenda when Thailand and Burma kick off their two-day meeting on
Monday.

The meeting, which is to be held in Burma's Tachilek town, will be attended
by anti-narcotics officials from both countries, said Pornthep Iem-prapai,
chief of Chiang Rai's narcotics suppression office.

Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) Deputy Secretary-General
Sorasit Sangprasert and his delegation will represent Thailand in the talks
with their Burmese counterparts to be led by Pol Maj Hla Tun, deputy police
director-general.

According to Mr Pornthep, Thailand will propose that both countries launch a
joint operation to root out narcotics along the border areas. The proposed
joint operation will also cover the participation of Thai and Burmese
representatives in interrogating drug suspects.

"Illicit drugs have posed a threat to the national security of both
countries. To efficiently wipe out narcotics, Thailand and Burma must join
forces in tackling the problem. The proposed joint operation will cover all
procedures, including joint raids, exchange of information and joint
interrogation of drug suspects," said Mr Pornthep.

The proposal on the joint operation follows a recent successful raid by
local anti-narcotics suppression officials from Chiang Rai and Tachilek in
which large quantities of amphetamines and chemical substances used in the
manufacture of the drugs were seized.

A Taiwanese woman identified as Julie Ju Wao, holding both Thai and Burmese
national identity cards, was arrested in the raid on January 4 after police
found 400,000 amphetamine tablets, chemicals and a drug-making machine in
her factory located in Tachilek. Mrs Wao's husband, identified as Sengkhoo
Sae Jao, managed to flee.

The raid led to a search at Mrs Wao's house in Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district
where police found a large number of falsified passports and ID cards.

Mr Pornthep admitted that dual citizenship has opened the way for
traffickers to flee arrest, adding that anti-narcotics agents have been
keeping a close watch on suspected dual-citizenship traffickers in Mae Sai
district.

According to Thai officials, there were 11 drug-producing factories along
the border opposite Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son provinces. But
Burmese authorities said there were as many as 22 factories along the
border.

It was estimated that about one million amphetamine tablets were smuggled
from Burma into Thailand a month. Large quantities of heroin and opium also
flooded into northern provinces of Thailand.

Meanwhile, Pol Maj Issawan Khwanmuang, Chiang Rai superintendent, has vowed
to get tough with police found to be involved in the illicit drug business.

So far, about 200 local police have been blacklisted on alleged involvement
in narcotics trading, he disclosed. He said the use of drugs has also spread
among youths living along border provinces which are prone to narcotics.

To prevent teenagers from becoming slaves to drugs, police have joined hands
with schools and public health officials to launch an anti-drugs campaign
among young people, he added.