Some 100 new types of legal highs emerged in East and Southeast Asia in 2018: UN report
- The report also said the supply of methamphetamine and other designer drugs in the region has reached “unprecedented levels”
- A total of 434 new psychoactive substances were detected in East and Southeast Asia over the past decade, including potent synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl
About 100 new psychoactive substances – known as “legal highs” – emerged in East and Southeast Asia last year, as the production of methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs surged to “unprecedented levels”, a new report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has found.
According to the latest statistics released on Monday, more than 116 tonnes of methamphetamine were seized in the region in 2018, compared with 87 tonnes in 2017.
But the total amount seized last year – which already represents a three-fold increase from 2013 – may be even higher, as some countries have not confirmed their final numbers.
“Volumes of methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs originating from the Golden Triangle to Thailand have reached unprecedented levels,” said Niyom Termsrisuk, secretary general of the Office of Narcotics Control Board of Thailand.
“Large amounts of synthetic drugs have been trafficked to neighbouring countries in the region, but also further. The challenge is growing,” he said.
A glut in supply has made methamphetamine and synthetic drugs widely available despite a record number of seizures of the drug.
“Seizures of methamphetamine in 2018 were once again a record, yet street prices of the drug decreased in many parts of the region, indicating very high and increasing levels of availability,” said Tun Nay Soe, inter-regional programme coordinator with the UN anti-drugs agency.