Poppy fields found in the Algerian Sahara
2008-04-02
The discovery of poppy plantations in a south-western Algerian province has officials responsible for fighting drug trafficking concerned.
Mohand Ouali in Algiers contributed to this report – 02/04/08
 [Getty Images] Algerian gendarmes display seized poppy bulbs after raiding a drugs plantation. Officials have expressed concern at Algeria's role as a producer of narcotics. |
Algerian national police discovered 25 poppy plantations on Tuesday (April 1st) while conducting their biggest-ever operation against opium and hashish farms in the Saharan wilaya of Adrar. Some 58,780 opium shrubs (used as the raw material for morphine and heroin), 6,020 hemp plants and 15 kg of opium seeds were destroyed and five people were arrested during the raid 124 km west of Timimoune, El Khabar reported. According to the paper, the quantity of drugs is equal to 83% of all narcotics seized in 2007, indicating that poppy cultivation is hitting an alarming level.
National Office against Drugs and Drug Addiction (ONLDT) Director Abdelmalek Sayeh described this new phenomenon as "worrying" in a statement yesterday to the APS press agency, although he was keen to say that – for now – it was still "limited" in size.
He noted that the total area of the poppy and cannabis plantations discovered is still modest: only between four and five hectares. "Algeria is not a growing country" for drugs, he said.
Monday's find may be troublesome, Sayeh conceded, but he noted that according to the United Nations, it is worse elsewhere in the Maghreb. Algeria's "crops are not as widespread as in Morocco, where the assigned acreage is up to 125,000 hectares," APS quoted him as saying.
In April 2007, the gendarmerie destroyed 16,000 cannabis stalks in Adrar. Also last year, several cannabis fields were discovered in the mountain community of Toudja. The contamination spread as well to the wilayas of Boumerdès and Batna.
Drug traffickers prefer the Sahara and the mountainous regions in the north of the country. In these desert or difficult-to-reach areas, it is harder for authorities to find opium and cannabis plantations.
Because of the difficult terrain and impediments to random searches, security forces have used tips from Algerian citizens. "Without the help of the public, we would never be able to discover all the places where drugs are grown," Sayeh declared.
Last February, authorities were already worried that Algeria was changing from a transit country to a consumer country for drugs. According to figures from the ONLDT, 16.5 tonnes of cannabis were seized in Algeria in 2007, compared with just 5 tonnes in 2005.
The number of drug addicts admitted by specialist hospitals rose as well, increasing from 4,306 in 2006 to 5,554 in 2007.
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gol Posted 2008-04-03
After telling us that drugs come from Morocco alone, we learn in Algeria they grow drugs even in the desert!!!
ramdani Posted 2008-04-04
I think that in the same regions there remains to be discovered vast fields of cannabis (kif). We can only congratulate our detectives for concluding the results of their work. At the same time, this prohibited cultivation is not unique to this country, as is imagined, but, given its profitability, it is practiced everywhere, especially in the mountains. This leads us acknowledge that our friend to the West is not to be accused every time a large batch of chira (cannabis resin) is seized. If nothing is done to stop this scourge, then, in the near future, Algeria will not only be a big consumer of this drug but also a big exporter.
slim16 Posted 2008-04-05
It is pointless to mention that the few acres that are cultivated only a needle in a haystack in comparison to our neighbour, about whom you seem to minimize its age-old harmful acts. This is a new phenomenon in Algeria, but it needs to be said that it is on the rise, given that the godless and lawless troublemakers have taken to organising its production. I think that we need to act very severely towards these outlaws and make examples of them. Bye from Algiers.
Mohammed Posted 2008-04-08
I'm far more concerned about the terrorists who are based in the Algerian sahara and how they are using Algeria as North Africa's Al Qaida base. The security forces need to crack down on these bandits but having said that history has shown Algerian security forces have also commited attrocities against their own civilians! T The Algerian military junta who still run the country have made political capital out of these terrorist outrages and continue to do so. The biggest step forward for Algeria would be to remove this gang of military generals who wield far too much power.
MANSEUR Posted 2008-04-08
Drugs of all kinds are a devastating product, especially harmful to our children. Combating this scourge necessitates the collaboration of all countries; blaming this or that country will not solve the problem. Take, for example, certain Asian countries where capital punishment is pronounced for the producers, traders, dealers and consumers. I hope that our Maghreb will combat this scourge relentlessly. Long live Algeria and the Grand Maghreb!
Brian O'Blivian Posted 2008-04-14
For goodness sake, if there wasn't a sizeable number of people wanting to smoke hashish no one would grow it. There is nothing wrong with smoking it in moderation. There are far more serious issues to deal with than people smoking kif. I really do feel that people at the highest plitical/ruling levels are profiting from it whilst making a token gesture in ripping up a few plants. Why not just legalise it and regulate it. Live and let live.
tequil Posted 2008-04-28
Hi Everybody, So, I am a consumer of an amazing amount of hashish. I have smoked almost all of the hallucinogenic plants in the world. And, believe me, unlike coke, there is no risk of becoming dependent on this drug. Okay, I hope that one day they will adopt less strict measures against consumers. It would be even better if they would just legalise it.
slim16 Posted 2008-04-30
To Tequil: If I understand properly, to you both hard and soft drugs are just a game. However you like! But, you should not forget all the dangers they represent with regards to peoples' health. This leads to billions in expenditures to an area we could just as well pass up. We could also just as well pass up the thousands of human train-wrecks, who are suffering and who are causing their pocketbooks to suffer. As for legalising it: this will just push the young people to debauchery—something, I think, that not a single father hopes for his offspring!!! Drugs are an escape, giving up in advance. They provide a semblance of well being that then becomes addictive to the consumer. This is a trap that we should absolutely not overlook. This is why I am one of those people who think that this scourge should be eradicated. It is up to the politicians to find a solution… the best solution.
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