Cocaine Dilemma in South America (From Latin America Narcotics Trade and U.S. National Security, P 59-72, 1989, Donald J Mabry, ed. -- See NCJ-127031)

• NCJ Number: 127036
• Author(s): R W Lee III
• Date Published: 1989
• Length: 14 pages
• Sale Source: Greenwood Publishing Group
• Publication Type: Survey (Cross-Cultural)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This analysis of the main economic and political aspects of the cocaine industry in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru emphasizes that each country's cocaine problem is different and that the prospects of controlling cocaine trafficking within the source countries are not particularly promising.

Abstract

The cocaine industry is well entrenched in South America. The industry's broad constituencies include corrupt officials, people who sell goods and services to traffickers, and beneficiaries of drug traffickers' welfare programs, as well as the people who are directly involved in some phase of the trafficing cycle. In addition, although concern about cocaine is growing in South America, governments and publics still do not see drug trafficking as a survival issue comparable in importance to unemployment, inflation, the general economy, and subversion. In fact, political elites often view antidrug campaigns with apprehension, because these campaigns can cause economic hardship and create new challenges to government authority. Therefore, the emphasis of United States drug enforcement policy must be on reducing demand and focusing especially on education, prevention, and treatment programs.