Myanmar exposed 167 narcotic-drug- related cases in August, punishing 262 people including 50 women, according to the anti-drug authorities Thursday.
In connection with the cases, 0.56 kilogram (kg) heroin, 4.2 kg brown heroin, 107.43 kg opium, 70 kg ephedrine and 3.54 kg marijuana as well as 114,218 stimulant tablets were jointly seized by the armed forces, police force and the customs department during the month, the sources said.
During 2006, the authorities exposed a total of 2,848 drug- related cases, taking action against a total of 4,360 people including 801 women, according to official statistics.
That year's seizure included 192.33 kg heroin, 2,311.34 kg opium and 1,370.83 kg brown opium, 1,287.45 kg ephedrine and 72.73 kg marijuana as well as more than 19 million stimulant tablets.
Meanwhile, on June 26 this year, the Myanmar authorities burned nearly 1.5 tons of various seized narcotic drugs worth 272 million U.S. dollars in Lashio, northeastern border area in Shan state. The burned drugs included 74 kg heroin, 970 kg opium and 405 million tablets of stimulants.
Besides, 6,319 liters precursor chemicals were destroyed with over 500 kg poppy seeds separately burned.
Apart from this, 775.37 hectares of poppy plantations in the country have so far been destroyed in the 2006-07 poppy growing season.
An annual report of the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) for 2007 revealed that Myanmar's poppy cultivation fell 34 percent to 21,500 hectares in 2006, representing a dramatic 83 percent fall from 130,300 hectares in 1998.
The number of drug users in Myanmar has decreased from 63,615 in 2004 to 56,823 in 2007, according to the Home Ministry.
Myanmar has been implementing a 15-year plan (1999-2014) to totally eradicate poppy in three phases, each running for five years and it is now in the second five-year phase.
Myanmar declared three regions of Mongla, Kokang and Wa as poppy-free zones in 1997, 2003 and 2005 respectively.
Source: Xinhua
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