If the government ever gets around to claiming the achievements of its first few months in office, one hopes that the war on drugs is part of the announcement.
Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej kicked off a new phase in this so-called war last March 6. It may be the quietest 100-day campaign in the country's history. In fact, though, use of illicit and dangerous drugs has risen since the government took office in February.
More dangerously, however, there have been changes at the top of the Burmese drug cartels. New and aggressive gang leaders have made it clear that they see Thailand, and particularly Thai young people, as targets of sales pitches for both narcotics and huge new stockpiles of methamphetamines, or ya ba.
Whether by plan or good fortune, the new battle against drugs has come at the right time. There is good reason to note just how quietly it has proceeded. The shamefully violent war on drugs by the former Thaksin Shinawatra government in 2003 was little more than a police slaughter of hundreds of petty drug dealers and innocent bystanders. Most, perhaps all of the major drug peddlers, were able to lay low and await the inevitable end of the crackdown.
The current campaign must be lawful, but it must also be more efficient. Getting small-time dealers off village and city streets is fine, but any effective attack on drug-dealers must take aim at the major suppliers.
Unfortunately, there is little doubt who sits at the very top of the drug supply chains. The odious leaders of the United Wa State Army have returned to their dirty business. The death last August of long-time Wa leader, Pao Yu-Hua, cleared the path for other methamphetamine merchants within the UWSA.
The UWSA warlords, Pao Yu-Hsiang and Wei Hsueh-kang, charged by a New York State court with operating a heroin production network and trafficking outlets in the Golden Triangle, are suspected to be in charge of drug peddling for this enterprise. They have, however, defiantly increased their stockpiles of illicit drugs. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said that the Wa increased opium cultivation by 20% in Burma last year. In one of their rare public discussions of intelligence information, Thai anti-narcotics officials said the Wa had stockpiled millions of the addictive methamphetamine pills along the Thai border. The drug peddlers foresaw higher holiday sales.
The Burmese regime, as always, remains unpredictable at best. It has staged drug crackdowns, but never has taken action against major peddlers in their midst. Thailand and the US, among others, have indicted Mr Bigs such as Pao and Wei, but the Rangoon authorities protect them - so long as they remain in Burma.
But the good news is they are unprotected outside the reach of the military junta. Ho Chun T'ing, a Wa mafia chief near the top of the UWSA narco-trafficking empire, was arrested by Hong Kong authorities last year. He still is in jail in the Chinese special region. His detention presents an excellent chance for Thai anti-narcotics officers to obtain a treasure trove of information on the inner workings of the drug cartels on our western border.
The goals of the war on drugs are simple enough: Clear the drug peddlers from school yards and community streets, and take away the freedom and profits of organisers. A long conversation with the only high-ranking Wa drug gang member in custody is a good opportunity to advance. Then the government could start presenting news of its achievements in this important area.