Britain Warns of Opium Scourge in Afghanistan

 

By Michael Drudge¹

Britain says a surge in opium² production is one of the key challenges to the stability of Afghanistan. British Foreign Secretary Jack³ Straw has highlighted the issue in a speech in London.

Experts say there has been a major increase in opium production in Afghanistan since the U.S.-led invasion toppled the Taleban regime there in 2001.

The Central Intelligence Agency estimates poppy cultivation⁴ in Afghanistan this year will probably surpass the record 90,000 hectares that were harvested in 1999, when the Taleban were in power.

Against that backdrop, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw laid out some of the major challenges of curbing⁶ Afghanistan's production of the opium poppy, the raw ingredient of heroin⁷.

"Opium is leaving Afghanistan's economy, and with it Afghanistan's poorest people, increasingly in hock to exploitative and wealthy traders and warlords," said Jack Straw. "It thrives on chaos⁸ and lawlessness, and those who profit from it have every interest in undermining the rule of law and the authority of government. Opium is the greatest threat to the modern and successful state and better future, which the Afghan government  and people are striving to build."

Mr. Straw said Afghanistan's drug trade also affects its neighbors, with both Iran and Pakistan experiencing a sharp rise in heroin addiction⁹.

"Afghanistan's opium poisons the whole region," he said. "One of the main trafficking routes to Europe, for example, passes through next-door Iran. And there are an estimated one in 35 adults addicted¹⁰ to drugs, and drug traffickers have killed some 3,000 law enforcement and army officers over the last 10 years."

Mr. Straw said British-led efforts to curb⁵ Afghanistan's drug trade have been hampered¹¹ by a weak government in Kabul and the decision of farmers to plant more poppies. He said an ironic¹² side-effect of post-war reconstruction¹³ is that better roads and irrigation have made it easier to grow and transport opium poppies.

The foreign secretary outlined a five-point counter-narcotics plan that includes eradication¹⁴ of opium, provision of alternative livelihoods¹⁵ for farmers, improved law enforcement and criminal justice, and a public awareness¹⁶ campaign about the dangers of addiction.

A paper issued by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, which hosted the Straw address, says a typical Afghan farmer can earn nearly $4,000 a year planting poppies, 10 times more than a wheat or cotton farmer can make.

Michael Drudge, VOA news, London.
注释：
surge 猛增
opium 鸦片
highlight 强调
topple 颠覆
poppy （植）罂粟
hectare 公顷
ingredient 成分
heroin 海洛因
in hock 负债
exploitative 剥削的
undermine 破坏
addiction 上瘾
reconstruction 重建
narcotic 致幻毒品
eradication 根除

1 drudge   

n.劳碌的人；v.做苦工，操劳

参考例句：

• I feel like a real drudge--I've done nothing but clean all day!我觉得自己像个做苦工的--整天都在做清洁工作！
• I'm a poor,miserable,forlorn drudge;I shall only drag you down with me.我是一个贫穷，倒运，走投无路的苦力，只会拖累你。

2 opium   

n.鸦片；adj.鸦片的

参考例句：

• That man gave her a dose of opium.那男人给了她一剂鸦片。
• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。

3 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

4 cultivation   

n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成

参考例句：

• The cultivation in good taste is our main objective.培养高雅情趣是我们的主要目标。
• The land is not fertile enough to repay cultivation.这块土地不够肥沃，不值得耕种。

5 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

6 curbing   

n.边石，边石的材料v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Progress has been made in curbing inflation. 在控制通货膨胀方面已取得了进展。
• A range of policies have been introduced aimed at curbing inflation. 为了抑制通货膨胀实施了一系列的政策。

7 heroin   

n.海洛因

参考例句：

• Customs have made their biggest ever seizure of heroin.海关查获了有史以来最大的一批海洛因。
• Heroin has been smuggled out by sea.海洛因已从海上偷运出境。

8 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

9 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

10 addicted   

adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的

参考例句：

• He was addicted to heroin at the age of 17.他17岁的时候对海洛因上了瘾。
• She's become addicted to love stories.她迷上了爱情小说。

11 hampered   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions. 恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• So thought every harassed, hampered, respectable boy in St. Petersburg. 圣彼德堡镇的那些受折磨、受拘束的体面孩子们个个都是这么想的。

12 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。

13 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

14 eradication   

n.根除

参考例句：

• The eradication of an established infestation is not easy. 根除昆虫蔓延是不容易的。
• This is often required for intelligent control and eradication. 这经常需要灵巧的控制与消除。

15 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。

16 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。