Afghanistan's Drug Problem

[davidbfpo]

A few days ago a KoW post appeared 'Setting the Record Straight on Eradication in Helmand' by Ryan Evans is a devasting critique of what happened recently. A taster:

This is the ultimate irony: In a campaign premised (rightly or wrongly) on the idea of alleviating the grievances of the population and winning its ‘hearts and minds,’ the single most damaging thing being done to Afghans is a Western and UN-funded crop eradication program.

Link:http://kingsofwar.org.uk/2012/05/set...on-in-helmand/

Ryan writes this very puzzling sentence, without a fuller explanation, with my emphasis:

Afghanistan produces an estimated three times the annual global poppy demand for heroin.

Why? Who is buying all the poppies and then producing heroin - which is placed in storage?

Ryan also points to the blogsite of a UK analyst:http://www.davidmansfield.org/all.php and a far wider Chatham House project on Drugs and Organized Crime:http://www.chathamhouse.org/research...rganized-crime