Officials clear a field of opium poppies in Xieng Khuang province.

Xieng Khuang police wipe out opium poppy crop

Xieng Khuang authorities last week destroyed over 14,100 square metres of opium poppies in Phoukoud district, cut down opium poppy, smashing the plants with wooden sticks and uprooting them to prevent regrowth.
Authorities warned the field owners not to repeat the offence and reminded them of the damaging effects of poppy cultivation, according to the Public Security Office of Xieng Khuang.
Meanwhile, authorities in Viengphoukha district, Luang Namtha province, cut down 15 hectares of opium poppies found growing on 33 plots of land.
Officials from the province’s Narcotics Inspection and Control Department, together with soldiers from the National Defence and Security Force in Viengphoukha district, wiped out the crop, which had been planted by people living in Namvang, Namon and Namkheuang villages.
The owner of the land was brought before the police, who made a written record of the incident and warned the man not to replant the crop.
Also last month, officials from the Luang Namtha Police Department cut down opium poppy plants found growing on 2,950 square metres of land in Namkhoun village, Luang Namtha district.
Armed with scythes, members of the provincial Department of Narcotics Inspection and Control slashed the poppy plants and placed wooden planks on the ground so that more could not be planted.
Last year, 15 hectares of opium poppies found growing on 47 plots of land were cleared.
Opium is a stimulant that has a strong effect on the nervous system. It is used in the production of heroin and is banned in Laos.
The government has made clear its intention to wipe out the cultivation of opium poppies, but the crop continues to be planted covertly, especially in the north of Laos.
In other attempts to curb the production of opium, officers from the Department of Drug Inspection and Control under the command of the Xieng Khuang provincial police, together with police in Phoukoud district, last year cut down poppies growing on an 11,000-square metre plot in the district.
Local authorities are encouraging villagers to grow other crops instead, so they can earn money through legal farming activities and also take up livestock farming to augment their income.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest Update January 22, 2025)