Cambodia

Cambodia is a Southeast Asian nation bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. Drug control efforts in Cambodia are reportedly hampered by narcotics-related corruption [Page 123]that allegedly involves government agents, military personnel, and police officers. Cambodia is a limited methamphetamine-producing nation and is vulnerable to money laundering activities. Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in Cambodia, with approximately 3.5 percent of the adult population using, but methamphetamine use is reportedly increasing.

Cambodia is a major center for the illicit drug trade in Asia. In addition, it has a reputation as a marijuana smokers' paradise, and is a major supplier of cannabis to countries in east and southeast Asia and around the world. In order to counteract these problems, the Cambodian government has established a drug policy that tries to prevent and eliminate both trafficking and abuse. Besides law enforcement, Cambodia has built rehabilitation centers throughout the country to assist addicts.

According to the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD), Cambodia's anti-drug bureau, abuse and trafficking within the country are growing. Although Cambodia differs from neighboring countries like Myanmar, a major drug producer, Cambodia serves as the primary transit route for smuggling heroin, amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), and methamphetamine to markets in the Asia-Pacific region as well as in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere.

Based on information released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), approximately 10 to 20 kilograms of heroin leave Cambodia for the international market each day, as do roughly 100,000 methamphetamine tablets. Cambodia produces approximately 1,000 tons of marijuana annually with most of it eventually reaching Europe.

Social problems related to drug trafficking have mushroomed throughout Cambodia. Like other countries in the region, Cambodia is unafraid to inflict harsh punishment on anyone caught bringing drugs inside its borders. Although Cambodia never declared a “war on drugs,” as did its neighbors (such as Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos), its policies toward drug users and drug traffickers have been criticized by a number of human rights groups, such as Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Anyone convicted of a drug-related offense in Cambodia can expect to receive a sentence ranging from five years to life imprisonment; however, Cambodian law enforcement is inconsistent regarding the arrests of drug criminals. One primary reason is that many police officers are thought to be participants in the illicit drug trade themselves.

A 2010 HRW report alleges that residents within rehabilitation centers have been illegally detained and tortured. The article goes on to claim that the centers are akin to jails and drug users are held without due process. In addition, no judicial authorization for detention is needed, nor can inmates appeal the detention.

Based on Cambodia's 2008 NACD report, 2,832 individuals were held within the detention centers, an increase of 40 percent over 2007. The majority of detainees were age 18 or younger, with only one percent claiming that their admissions were voluntary, 61 percent via family members, and 38 percent “judicial.” It should be noted, however, that those held through the “judicial” process were actually there as a result of illegal arrests by police officers.

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