Table of contents




Abbreviations 1



Background and Rationale 3




Chapter 1


Introduction 9

Section 1 Sustained growth of supply and demand 11
Section 2 Ineffective drug policies 13
Section 3 Consequences of excessive imprisonment and overcrowded prisons 14
Section 4 The scope for drug policy reform in East and Southeast Asia 15



Chapter 2


Latest drug situation in Southeast Asia 19

Section 1 Overview of the situation 21
Section 2 The methamphetamine market in East and Southeast Asia 27
Section 3 Transnational organized crime (TOC) shifting their trafficking routes 32
Section 4 Precursor chemicals 37
Section 5 Assessing demand for drugs in Southeast Asia 40



Chapter 3


Impact on public health and criminal justice systems in Southeast Asia 43

Section 1 Importance of reexamining drug policy in Southeast Asia 45
Section 2 Overview of prison populations in ASEAN 46
Section 3 Threshold amounts and mandatory minimum sentencing in ASEAN 49
Section 4 Overburdened correctional and criminal justice systems 52
Section 5 Abuse of the criminal justice system, recidivism and stigmatized drug offenders 54
Section 6 Compulsory drug treatment in Southeast Asia 55



Chapter 4


COUNTRY CHAPTERS 59

Section 1 BRUNEI DARUSSALAM 61
1. Drug prisoners 61
2. Threshold amounts and mandatory sentencing 62
3. Drug policies 62
Section 2 INDONESIA 66
1. Drug prisoners 66
2. Threshold amounts and mandatory sentencing 67
3. Drug policies 67
Section 3 MALAYSIA 70
1. Drug prisoners 70
2. Threshold amounts and mandatory sentencing 71
3. Drug policies 72
Section 4 MYANMAR 77
1. Drug prisoners 77
2. Threshold amounts and mandatory sentencing 78
3. Drug policies 78
Section 5 THAILAND 80
1. Drug prisoners 80
2. Threshold amounts and mandatory sentencing 81
3. Drug policies 82



Chapter 5


Drug crime trends and laws in Korea 85

1. Growing volumes of crystalline and tablet methamphetamine trafficked from Southeast Asia 92
2. Drug policies 96
3. Drug offenders in prisons 98



Chapter 6


Ways forward 103

1. Prioritize control of precursors and chemicals used in the illicit manufacture of drugs in Southeast Asia 106
2. The Republic of Korea and ASEAN cooperation 107
3. Make better use of existing regional and global mechanisms designed to help Member States more effectively address and counter the drug problem 108
4. UNODC and the Mekong Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Drug Control 109
5. Promote alternatives to imprisonment for people with drug use disorders 111



References 113