Opium as a source of insecurity in Afghanistan

Abstract

Opium is an alkaloid that comes from the Papaver Somniferum or opium poppy with a poppy-like appearance, whose origin has not been fully specified, although the first references are found in Babylonians, Assyrians, and Egyptians, being the latter those who used it as an analgesic, to extend later through Central Asia. For most of its history, Afghanistan has played a relatively minor role in global opium production, which focused mainly on the triangle of Thailand, Laos, and Burma. The growth of opium production from the 1980s is due to three main reasons: (a) the need for funding to combat the invasion of the Soviets; (b) restrictions on this kind of crop in Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan; and (c) the failure of eradication policies that have resulted in greater poverty and insecurity.