By Judy Aita
Washington File Staff Writer

United Nations -- Although only a relatively small group of drug abusers are serious and violent offenders, they account for a disproportionate amount of all serious crime, threatening neighborhoods and communities, according to a new report released March 3 by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB).
 
"The emergence of the abuse of crack cocaine has been associated with the rise in crime and violence in many cities in the world," wrote INCB President Philip O. Emafo in the "Report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2003." The report continues, "Economic opportunities provided by drug trafficking can lead to rivalry among drug gangs as they compete for a share of this illicit market. These rivalries frequently spill over into violence that harms local communities."
 
Drug related violence has a disproportionate impact on some segments of society -- such as women, the elderly and young children -- in drug-ridden communities where both fear of crime and actual crime are rampant. Children and female drug abusers are also at risk of increased violence being perpetrated against them, he said.
 
Each year in its annual report, the INCB studies one aspect of the impact of drugs on society, along with its usual analysis of the worldwide drug situation and compliance with international drug treaties. In its 2003 report, the INCB looked at the relationship between drug abuse, crime and violence in cities and communities around the world.
 
The INCB urged governments to pay special attention to so-called "micro-trafficking," that is, community level drug abuse and related crime. Leaving local drug trafficking unattended while focusing on national and international drug flows leaves societies vulnerable to a long-term decline in safety and living standards, it said.
 
Giving examples of the extent of drug related crime, the INCB said that drug-related violence is a particularly serious challenge in Brazil. Of almost 30,000 homicides annually, a high proportion are linked to drug abuse and illicit trafficking. Street children, acting as couriers for drug traffickers, are frequently killed because they know too much, steal too much, or are caught in the crossfire between gangs and dealers, it said.
 
Even in the developed world the extent of the problem is significant, the report said. "In the late 1990's, 69 percent of arrestees in five police areas in the United Kingdom tested positive for at least one illicit drug upon arrest and 61 percent of those arrested for assault tested positive for an illicit drug."
 
Paying special attention to drug abuse prevention combined with a range of social, economic and law enforcement actions is key in fighting the problem, the board said. "Only with the introduction of a comprehensive demand reduction program will we see real progress being made to address the multiple problems that illicit drugs inflict on their communities," it said.
 
The INCB recommended that communities create a local environment that is not conducive to drug dealing, support local employment efforts, and develop education programs for socially marginalized groups.
 
The INCB also reported an increase in trafficking of medicines containing narcotic or psychotropic substances over the Internet, said Vincent McClean, the INCB representative at U.N. headquarters, at a press conference releasing the report.
 
"In some recently seized Internet pharmacies in the U.S., nearly 90 percent of the orders were for internationally controlled substances, but it is not to say the problem is limited to the U.S. or North America," McClean said. "It's a problem found in a number of countries around the world."
 
The board said that the abuse of prescription drugs in the United States is exacerbated by the unlawful selling of narcotic drugs by online pharmacies from within and outside the United States. Between 1995 and 2002 there was a 163 percent increase in the number of emergency-room visits linked to the abuse of narcotic pain medication.
 
"To address this issue of Internet pharmacy abuse or trafficking, the board calls on governments to prohibit imports and exports of such prescription medicines through orders placed by e-mail," McClean said.
 
Reporting on illicit cultivation and trafficking of drugs, the INCB said that despite the political change in Afghanistan and the fight against terrorism, illicit cultivation and trafficking has expanded, resulting in more political instability. Opium poppy cultivation continued on an even larger scale in 2003 and seizures of opiates, mainly heroin and morphine, increased throughout West Asia. Facilities for processing opium continue to exist in Afghanistan and precursor chemicals used in the process continue to flow into the region along the same routes used for shipping drugs out of the region.
 
The board said that the fight against drugs must rank among the highest priorities of Afghan authorities.
 
"Unless the Transitional Authority of Afghanistan, with the full support of the international community -- which is indispensable -- makes progress in drug control efforts, any successes in the construction of the nation in the areas of peace and development, and in other areas, including the fight against terrorism, will not be sustainable," it said.
 
In Africa illicit drug trafficking remains a major problem. A worrisome new development in some areas appears to be an increasing shift from cultivation of food crops to cannabis, resulting in food shortages, the INCB said.
 
"Information gathered from war-torn countries in Western and Central Africa particularly the Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, and Liberia indicates that the arms and ammunition used by rebel groups and criminal organizations to destabilize the region may have been partly procured with the proceeds of illicit drug trafficking," the board also said.
 
Coca bush cultivation in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru continues to decrease, but the INCB said that whether the overall reduction is sustainable will, to a large extent, depend on the creation of alternative sources of income for coca bush growers.
 
The board also warned that the successful eradiation efforts in Colombia may lead to a shift in cultivation not only to the traditional coca-growing countries of Bolivia and Peru but also to countries such as Ecuador and Venezuela.