Drug Trafficking in China - Essay Example

September 8, Area Studies 2: Drug Trafficking in China Introduction Drug trafficking has been acknowledged as a global dilemma. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), “drug trafficking is a global illicit trade involving the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws” (UNODC par. 1). The problem of enforcing legal regulations regarding drug trafficking is the disparities in recognizing the legality of the trade. The International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy has revealed that “drug trafficking is not, by legal definition, an ‘international crime’, and is not subject to universal jurisdiction” (International Criminal Law par. 3). As such, different countries impose disparate legal ramifications for people caught in drug trafficking. For a lot of countries in the Asian pacific region, the ultimate sanction of imposing the death penalty for drug-related crimes has been revealed. Amnesty International reported that capital punishment is the legal recourse for drug-trafficking and drug-related crimes, in sixteen Asian Pacific countries, to wit: “Bangladesh, Brunei, China, India, Indonesia, North Korea, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, and Viet Nam” (Asia-Pacific: Death sentences for drug-related crimes rise in region 1). The current discourse aims to explore drug trafficking in China, by examining relevant statistics, its impact on the people, and any further proposed recommendations resulting from the findings. Statistics In the report written by Yong-An, the author clearly exposed that the source for drugs trafficked in China is in Myanmar (Yong-An). As disclosed, “the Myanmar-Yunnan-Guangdong route is a traditional and preferred drug trafficking route. Some of the drugs that come into Southern China are consumed directly there, or may be trafficked onward to interior provinces” (Yong-An 4). The alarming fact is that despite the wide-known fact that drug-related crimes would be punishable by death in the country, statistics still revealed rampant increases in abusers as reported by the National Narcotics Control Commission, from 150,000 in 1991 to 1,545,000 in 2010, or a 930% increase (Yong-An). Likewise, the number of deaths or executions in China could not be effectively monitored or accurately determined due to the secrecy stance maintained by the state (Gallahue, Gunawan and Rahman). The authors revealed that “China continues to execute more people than any other country. According to the China Law Yearbook, as reported by the Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN), China has a nearly 100 per cent conviction rate. This suggests that if someone is indicted with a death penalty crime, he or she is very likely to be sentenced to death” (Gallahue, Gunawan and Rahman 26). Thus, it could just be inferred that since the number of abusers in China have significantly increased, the enforcement of capital punishment through number of executions could presumably exhibit similar patterns. From the report written by En, Lim and Qing, it was disclosed that in 2009, there were a total of 5,000 executed in China (En, Lim and Qing). The detailed offenses that could put violators to death are cited below: “China: Charges (1) persons who smuggle, traffic in, transport or manufacture opium of not less than 1,000 grams, heroin or methylaniline of not less than 50 grams or other narcotic drugs of large quantities; (2) ringleaders of gangs engaged in smuggling, trafficking in, transporting or manufacturing narcotic drugs; (3) persons who shield with arms the smuggling, trafficking in, transporting or manufacturing of narcotic drugs; (4) persons who violently resist inspection, detention or arrest to a serious extent; or (5) persons involved in organized international drug trafficking” (Different penalties used in countries for drug trafficking). Effects of Drugs Trafficking in China The closed-door policy or secrecy of disclosing information pertaining to executions for drug-related crime exposes China to different international criticism. The lack of transparency could contribute to vast amounts of controversial issues that emerge related to imposing the death penalty, as abovementioned. The following concerns were actually revealed by En, Lim and Qing: (1) violations of human rights, particularly in terms of allegedly using torture to extract confessions; (2) rampant subjection to use the organs of those convicted to the death penalty for transplantation, without voluntary permission; (3) high incidences of wrongful conviction due to the inability to determine whether the justice system enforced was legally and internationally justified. For instance, it was noted that “in 2009, government officials publicly acknowledged that executed prisoners provided over 65 percent of organ transplants. They acknowledged that two-thirds of organ transplants in the country could be traced back to executed prisoners” (En, Lim and Qing: Criticism par. 10). Likewise, there were accurate documents that attested the number of wrongful convictions: “at least four people have been considered wrongfully executed by PRC courts. This plants a seed of suspicion and doubt into the legal system of China and whether their courts and trials are justified and suitable to determine if some one’s life is worthy to be taken” (En, Lim and Qing par. 14). Recommendations and Conclusion From the information, statistics, and authoritative sources that discussed drug trafficking in China, it could be deduced that despite the imposition of the death penalty, it could be seen that the pattern and trend for drug use, abuse, and continued trafficking continue to exist. This is just indicative that the death penalty for drug trafficking does not apparently seem to be the most effective method to prevent this dilemma. Furthermore, since the sources of the problem could actually come from different international routes, there are virtually diverse opportunities and techniques being tried to ensure that drug trade within China continues at an unprecedented pace. As emphasized by the United Nations General Assembly, “success in the global fight against trafficking in drugs and humans, as well as the associated problems of transnational organized crime and money-laundering, required interlocking national, regional and international strategies rooted in global cooperation” (SUCCESSFUL FIGHT par. 1). The secrecy stance and apparent non-cooperation, transparency, and disclosure of pertinent facts relative to drug-trafficking in China would prevent any potentials in the move towards global cooperation; and thus, would be detrimental in finding a most effective solution to the drug trafficking problem in the country. Works Cited "Asia-Pacific: Death sentences for drug-related crimes rise in region." n.d. Amnesty International. 16 April 2013 . "Different penalties used in countries for drug trafficking." 2012. hci.edu.sg. 16 April 2013 . En, Leow Li, Jerrick Lim and Bryan Chia Jun Qing. "Crimes resulting in capital punishment in China." 2012. hci.edu.sg. 16 April 2013 . Gallahue, Patrick, et al. "The Death Penalty for Drug Offences: Global Overview 2012." 2012. Tipping the Scales for Abolition Harm Reduction International. 16 April 2013 . "International Criminal Law." 2013. humanrightsanddrugs.org. 16 April 2013 . "SUCCESSFUL FIGHT AGAINST DRUG TRAFFICKING, TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME REQUIRES INTERLOCKING NATIONAL, REGIONAL, INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIES, THIRD COMMITTEE TOLD." 8 October 2009. United Nations. 16 April 2013 . UNODC. "Drug Trafficking." 2013. unodc.org. 16 April 2013 . Yong-An, Zhang. "ASIA, INTERNATIONAL DRUG TRAFFICKING, AND U.S.-CHINA COUNTERNARCOTICS COOPERATION." February 2012. The Brookings Institution. 15 April 2013 . Read More