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Dutch cannabis cafes in dock for selling drugs to tourists

Agence France-PresseJune 12, 2013 13:45
Dutch prosecutors on Wednesday sought up to one-month suspended jail terms for owners and staff of cannabis cafes in southern city Maastricht for selling pot to foreigners in defiance of a controversial law. "The public prosecution has asked for (sentences of) community service of 150 hours, fines of up to 5,000 euros ($6,600) and one month suspended prison sentences against sellers at three coffee shops in Maastricht," the public prosecutor's office said in a statement.

Restrictive drug laws censor science, researchers say

June 12, 2013 02:31
By Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) - The outlawing of drugs such as cannabis, magic mushrooms and other psychoactive substances amounts to scientific censorship and is hampering research into potentially important medicinal uses, leading scientists argued on Wednesday. Laws and international conventions dating back to the 1960s have set back research in key areas such as consciousness by decades, they argued in the journal Nature Reviews Neuroscience.

Growing crystal meth use blurs drug-hungry Afghanistan's future

May 29, 2013 12:03
By Amie Ferris-Rotman KABUL (Reuters) - Impoverished Afghanistan, already plagued by insurgency and struggling to contain crippling rates of opium addiction, faces another potential headache with spiraling usage of the synthetic drug crystal methamphetamine.

Hong Kong arrests in Australian drug bust

Agence France-PresseMay 17, 2013 01:15
Two men from Hong Kong were arrested Friday in Australia after methamphetamine with a street value of Aus$43 million (US$42 million) was found in a consignment of hairdressing products, police said. The 72 litres (19 US gallons) of the drug, in liquid form, was intercepted last weekend when officers examined a pallet of shampoo, conditioner and hair colouring products that arrived by sea in Sydney from China. Police then arrested the Hong Kong nationals, aged 35 and 43, after monitoring the delivery.

Myanmar delays 'drugs-free' target amid narcotics boom

Agence France-PresseMay 6, 2013 02:01
Myanmar has delayed by five years its deadline to eliminate drug production within its borders, a senior official said Monday, as the impoverished nation struggles to stem a growing narcotics crisis. Authorities are "very concerned" about a rebound in poppy cultivation over the last six years in Myanmar, the world's second-largest opium producer, while amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) are also surging, said deputy police chief Zaw Win.

Afghanistan blames opium surge on global demand

Agence France-PresseApril 30, 2013 14:46
Afghanistan, the world's largest grower of opium poppies, should not shoulder all the blame for its drug surge, its foreign minister said Tuesday while on a visit to Estonia. "It's not only Afghanistan but the global demand for drugs that should be blamed for illegal narcotics from Afghanistan," Zalmai Rassoul told reporters in Tallinn. Bringing that demand down "requires an international effort", he added, as Afghanistan struggles to eradicate its rapidly growing poppy industry.

Police detain two drug dealers with 45 grams of heroin

April 3, 2013 15:19
Last week, police officers detained two drug dealers in Riga, seizing 45 grams of heroin. The State Police was tipped off on March 28 and, on the basis of this information, detained a man, born in 1978, on Pernavas Street, with approximately four grams of heroin.On the same day, the State Police also detained another man, born 1957, with around five grams of heroin. A search was carried out at his place of residence, seizing 35 grams of heroin, money and 130 empty plastic bags.

Afghanistan to destroy 15,000 hectares of poppy: officials

March 31, 2013 06:45
Afghanistan plans to destroy 15,000 hectares (37,050 acres) of poppy fields this year in its latest efforts to control the heroin trade that fuels endemic violence and corruption, officials said Sunday. Poppy crops will be ploughed up by tractor or flattened by teams of men wielding sticks as part of the programme starting in the southern and western provinces of Kandahar, Helmand, Farah and Nimroz.

Australia takes down drug ring with ties to Spain

March 22, 2013 15:31
Sydney, Mar 22 (EFE).- Australian police dismantled a drug trafficking ring with ties to Spain and other European countries, while seizing 117 kilos (258 pounds) of MDMA, which is used to make ecstasy, authorities said Friday. The confiscated drug could have produced up to 1.37 ecstasy pills with a street value of $54 million (42 million euros), according to a communique from the Australian Federal Police.

Australian police smash Asian drug ring

March 22, 2013 01:15
Australian police said Friday they had smashed a crime syndicate operating across Asia, leading to 27 arrests and the seizure of drugs and assets worth millions of dollars. Authorities said the organised gang -- operating in China, including in Hong Kong and Macau, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Myanmar -- allegedly targeted Australia for its heroin and methamphetamine trade. "We know that ice (methamphetamine) availability has been increasing on our streets," Victoria state police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Fontana said.
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