Shabu trade thrives amid pandemic — report

MANILA, Philippines — While the world has shifted its attention to the coronavirus pandemic, a new United Nations report shows continued growth in the supply of methamphetamine (shabu) in East and Southeast Asia.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has warned that the synthetic drug market in East and Southeast Asia continues to expand and diversify as the price of methamphetamine has dropped to its lowest level due to a surge in supply.

The report, titled “Synthetic Drugs in East and Southeast Asia: Latest Developments and Challenges,” confirmed that the variety and volume of synthetic drugs have increased in the past year. 

“It is hard to imagine that organized crime has again managed to expand the drug market,” Jeremy Douglas, UNODC Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said. 

Douglas noted that “production and trafficking of synthetic drugs and chemicals continue at record levels in the region.”  

UNODC said seizures of methamphetamine in East and Southeast Asia have increased year-on-year over the last decade, something not observed in any other part of the world.

Countries in the region have already confirmed seizures of 115 tons of methamphetamine in 2019, but the figure does not yet include data from China which has seized an average of 30 tons a year for the last five years.

The report highlighted that intensified supply has resulted in methamphetamine becoming cheaper, reaching its lowest price in the last decade in East and Southeast Asia.
Decreases in prices of the drug were also observed in the high-profit markets of Australia, New Zealand and South Korea last year.

Despite declining prices, the purity of Southeast Asian methamphetamine remains high and has increased in some countries, the UN report said. 

“In short, organized crime groups are in a position to provide better quality methamphetamine at much cheaper prices compared to a decade ago, increasing affordability and harm at the same time,” Inshik Sim, UNODC illicit drugs analyst said.

East and Southeast Asia, according to the UNODC, are also witnessing the steady rise of dangerous synthetic opioids. 

While there were only three opioids identified in the illicit drug supply of the region in 2014, the number increased to 28 in 2019, and seizures are being made in new locations as organized crime continues to push the limits of the business, it said. 

“Synthetic opioids like fentanyl and even more potent variations deserve much more attention than they receive in the region,” Douglas said.

“Production is known to migrate into places with deep governance problems like the Golden Triangle, and we are concerned that Southeast Asia could become a source for other parts of the world while these substances get mixed into the regional heroin supply.” 

Beyond methamphetamine and synthetic opioids, the report confirmed a wide range of synthetic drugs that include ecstasy, ketamine and cannabinoids are found across the region.