An Akha mother and her children in their house in a hill village in northwestern Laos. At the bottom of the opium supply chain, the Akha gain little from it. Photo: Andrew Chant
An Akha mother and her children in their house in a hill village in northwestern Laos. At the bottom of the opium supply chain, the Akha gain little from it. Photo: Andrew Chant
Smugglers paddle across the Mekong near the Laotian port of Xieng Kok. Opium is taken to Myanmar for refining. Photo: Andrew Chant
Smugglers paddle across the Mekong near the Laotian port of Xieng Kok. Opium is taken to Myanmar for refining. Photo: Andrew Chant
Opium poppies are grown in fields like these throughout the mountains of northern Laos. Photo: UNODC
Opium poppies are grown in fields like these throughout the mountains of northern Laos. Photo: UNODC
Opium poppies. Photo: UNODC
Opium poppies. Photo: UNODC
Focus
Asia

It's happy hour for the heroin traffickers of the Golden Triangle

With demand from China's heroin addicts outstripping supply, the trafficking business is booming, but little changes for the poor farmers

David Eimer

Updated: 3:47am, 26 Sep, 2013

Why you can trust SCMP
An Akha mother and her children in their house in a hill village in northwestern Laos. At the bottom of the opium supply chain, the Akha gain little from it. Photo: Andrew Chant
An Akha mother and her children in their house in a hill village in northwestern Laos. At the bottom of the opium supply chain, the Akha gain little from it. Photo: Andrew Chant
Smugglers paddle across the Mekong near the Laotian port of Xieng Kok. Opium is taken to Myanmar for refining. Photo: Andrew Chant
Smugglers paddle across the Mekong near the Laotian port of Xieng Kok. Opium is taken to Myanmar for refining. Photo: Andrew Chant
Opium poppies are grown in fields like these throughout the mountains of northern Laos. Photo: UNODC
Opium poppies are grown in fields like these throughout the mountains of northern Laos. Photo: UNODC
Opium poppies. Photo: UNODC
Opium poppies. Photo: UNODC
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