Golden Triangle to Bangladesh: Regional Analysis of ATS Sources, Trafficking Routes and Kingpin Involved, and Role of Regional Organizations

Abstract

Background: Beyond traditional routes to East and Southeast Asia, Excessive ceaseless flow of ATS (yaba/crystal meth) and synthetic drugs in South Asia especially Bangladesh are the new dimension of drugs which have little study of its sources, routes, prices and the kingpin involved to ATS trafficking and production. Security forces have been taking stringent action for the non-conventional security threats including ‘war on drug’. Large information and reasoning gaps are seen which influenced to find the source of ATS, its trafficking routes, its prices and role played in Bangladesh and the region. The research aimed to identify the major sources, trafficking routes of ATS, prices level & economic impact, Kingpin involved and to explore its different regional implications for national and regional level decisions.

Methods: A long array of national and international reports, publications etc. reviewed and analyzed. 300 face to face interview survey to drug law enforcement officers, drug dealers and drug consumers with many more qualitative & quantitative interviews.

Results: ATS (yaba/crystal meth) problem for Bangladesh and most South Asian countries are intertwined with Golden Triangle drug problems. Potential new drug production & trafficking prone regions such as ‘Black Triangle’ have been becoming sources of ATS for South, East and Southeast Asia. Myanmar non-state ethnic actors, Myanmar military affiliated militias & BGFs, Chinese-Myanmar-India-Bangladesh etc. transnational syndicates involved  and per piece of yaba has become as minimum as less than USD $1 dollar.

Conclusion: Golden Triangle, especially Myanmar Shan State with expanding trafficking region, anarchic situations and military policies are continue breeding drugs that linked to different routes and actors, changing environment changes sources, routes and actors.