According to the Shan Drug Watch 2012, if political settlement of long-standing ethnic dissatisfaction is not reached, the armed conflict that fuel Burma's drug epidemic will never end. The Shan Drug Watch 2012 newsletter -- "New Shan Drug Watch report: political solution needed to end drug scourge in Burma' -- released on International Day Against Drug Abuse and Trafficking (26 June 2012).
To stop growing poppy, an alternative cash crop must be provided. According to some political analysts, poppy growing and opium production in Shan State have increased over the past two years due to political volatility and growing economic despondency caused by cronyism, corruption and unprofessional conduct of the government.
As said by Khuensai Jaiyen, author of Shan Drug Watch, Burma Army controlled "People's Militia Forces' (PMF), set up by the government supporting its operations against rebel forces, have become key players in the drug trade, both heroin and ATS. However, government authorities' involvement in the drug problem is being easily ignored by the international community since it embraces Burma's President Thein Sein administration which acts as a reformist.
According to the Shan Drug Watch report, at least six well-known drug lords represented the ruling party. They are now taking parliament seats along with other members of parliament since the 7 November 2010 elections,
Unless the strategies of the government's peace deals are truthful, drug trade will go on by far, as the drug is a kind of weapon for the armed forces to grab supreme power. Thus, a negotiated resolution of the basis cause of civil war in the country is needed to address immediately.
The drug problem has intertwined with the country's long-lasting political challenges since Burma/Myanmar gained independence in 1948. Underestimation of the impact of drug-trafficking throughout the country may severely damage the designated reform task supported by the western democracies.
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