What is happening, Charles says, is the transformation of a poor, war torn country struggling with democracy into a narco state where power emanates from a group of drug kingpins far more powerful than the new government.
The process began in 2001 when the United States forged military alliances with powerful warlords and used their private armies to drive al Qaeda and the Taliban out of the country.
But some of Afghanistan’s biggest warlords also happen to be some of the country’s biggest drug lords. Now that they are part of the government, often in high places, a few are even charged with eradicating the drug traffic that many people believe they’re still involved in.
One former warlord suspected of being involved in the opium trade is Hazrat Ali, whose private army fought against al Qaeda at the battle of Tora Bora. In appreciation of his efforts, he was placed in charge of security for Nangahar province until he resigned recently to run for parliament. (CBS News)
Afghanistan: Burgeoning Narco-State
Afghanistan now takes care of 87 percent of the global heroin demand. Opium poppies are the country's primary cash crop, occupying 206,000 hectares of land. By contrast, in 2001, before the mercenary bargains of the US/Allied invasion, the amount of production was so small - owing to the Taliban's curiously-timed crackdown on poppy farmers - that poppy fields added up to less than 8000 hectares and the heroin trade was nearly stamped out.
