NCJ Number
152936
Journal
Criminal Organizations Volume: 8 Issue: 3 and 4 Dated: (Spring 1994) Pages: 13-15
Date Published
1994
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article describes the geography of the drug trafficking route known as "China Trail," the trafficking methods, and policy implications.
Abstract
China Trail refers to a new drug trafficking route that connects the "Golden Triangle" with Hong Kong and the west. The "Golden Triangle" is an area bordering Burma, Laos, and Thailand. Since the late 1980's the southern route that connects the Golden Triangle with Europe and the U.S. through Bangkok and Singapore has been interrupted. The China Trail stretches from the border cities through Kunming to Guangzhou, then to Macao and Hong Kong. The key point on the China Trail is Kunming, which is the capital of Yunnan Province and usually serves as a negotiation place and transit point for drug dealers. Opium bricks or heroin powder are usually hidden in small goods by Burmese farmers on their bikes, or concealed in human bodies or some larger goods. The China Trail has turned southern China into a busy conduit between the world's most prolific opium fields in neighboring Southeast Asia and the huge heroin markets abroad. More and tougher legislation is needed to provide the legal basis to combat the new drug crime within China. Also, massive law enforcement operations are essential to deter and crack down on the current wave of drug trafficking on China Trail. Drug crimes have become transnational crimes, and therefore, it is important to seek international cooperation to deal with organized criminal activities by international drug trafficking groups. 1 table and 12 references