DRUG TRAFFICKING
Definitions and Drug Trafficking/ Illegal Drug Trade. A global black market activity consisting
of production, distribution, packaging psychoactive substances.
Drug Trafficking Activities
1. Discovery, plantation, cultivation and harvest
2. Preparation for distribution
3. Manufacture, synthesis and refinement
4. Marketing and distribution
Major Drug Traffic Routes
1. Drugs That Originates from the Golden Crescent:
Afghanistan; Pakistan; Iran & India
In Southeast Asia, the Golden Crescent is the major supplier of opium poppy, Marijuana and
heroin products in the Western part of Asia. It produces at least 85% to 90% of all heroin
channeled in the drug underworld market.
2. Golden Triangle: Myanmar (Burma), Laos and Thailand Approximately 60% of the world's
opium is produced, and 90% in the Eastern part of Asia.
3. The Silver Triangle: Peru; Bolivia and Colombia
Silver Triangle [Peru and Bolivia (70%) and Colombia (30%)], is the producer of the world's
coca leaves and cocaine based products.
Primary Means of Distribution
1. Hierarchical Arrangement. The manufacturer uses his own men to smuggle, wholesale, store,
and distributes the drugs.
2. Hub-and-Spoke-Layout. Taking advantage of local gangs and other localized criminal
organization. The Cartel is at the center with satellite organizations that may provide certain
services to the manufacturer, and then there is a plurality distinct groups, each with its own chain.
Techniques of Drug Traffickers when Crossing Borders
1. Avoiding border checks by small aircraft and through overload smuggling routes.
2. Submitting to border checks with the drugs hidden in a vehicle, between other merchandise, in
luggage, in or under clothes, inside the body, etc.
3. Buying off diplomats to smuggle drugs in diplomatic mail/luggage to avoid border checks
Note:
Mule
a lower criminal recruited by a smuggling organization to cross a border carrying drugs, or
sometimes unknowing person in whose bag or vehicle the drugs are planted, for the purpose of
retrieving them elsewhere.
Philippine Drug Enforcement System (RA 9165 The Comprehensive Drug Act of 2002)
Agencies Involved in Drug Enforcement The Dangerous Drug Board (Art. 9 (Sec. 71-81).
1. The Drug Enforcement The Dangerous Drug Board (DDB) which is under the Office of the
President, is the policy-making and strategy formulating body in the planning and formulation of
policies and programs on drug prevention and control.
2. The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (Art. 9 (Sec. 82-86) RA 9165]
An agency created by the virtue of RA 9165 which was enacted into law on June 7, 2002 and
signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. It is a part of Executive Order No. 61,
issued January 15, 1999, creating the National Drug Enforcement and Prevention Coordinating
Center which is tasked to orchestrate and consolidate all the government's anti-drug efforts.
PDEA serves as the Implementing arm of the DDB, and is responsible for the efficient and
effective law enforcement of all the provisions on any dangerous drug and/or controlled precursor
and essential chemical as provided by the comprehensive Drug Act of 2002.
National Campaign Strategy against Dangerous Drugs
1. Demand Reduction Refers to the implementation of preventive education and public
information campaigns to increase awareness of the ill effects of prohibited drugs. It also includes
treatment and rehabilitation of drug dependents.
2. Supply Reduction - Refers to the activities which endeavor to reduce the supply side/segment
of illegal drugs to the barest minimum level possible. Activities are centered to the arrest of drug
personalities and seizure of illegal drugs through intensified police operations. This is to
simultaneously drive the prices of drugs skyrocketing high and create acute shortage of the
contraband to death knell level. Intelligence workshops, neutralization of transnational and local
drug group, arrest of foreign and local drug group, filing cases in courts, seizures of dangerous
drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, and laboratory equipment, dismantling of
shabu laboratories and chemical warehouses, precursor control, support activities | operation
private group) gathering of information regarding illegal drug activities and personalities in the
neighborhood and community without disclosing the identity of the informants], monitoring of
drug cases, destruction of seized illegal drugs, and regulatory control.
3. Inter-Agency Cooperation - These are the activities that promote anti-drug related activities
among tasked government agencies in close coordination with the being mandated to lead the
drug enforcement and prevention efforts of the government.
4. International Cooperation-To run after the transnational drugs syndicates; and plug/minimize
the drug traffic to and from the Philippines. Exchange of information and relevant technologies
that could be used in the anti-drugs campaign are accessed through the PCTC, INTERPOL,
ASEANAPOL Defense/Military and Police attaches, embassies, consulates, international NGOs,
like the International Association of chiefs of Police (IACP). These are the avenues through
which international cooperation is tapped against transnational syndicates and sources of drugs.
This is the natural consequence of the "globalization of the world into a village".
Activities
a) International interdictions
b) Coordination with Interpol
c) Linkages with the ASEAN community
d) U.N. Anti-drug Convention
