Human security in Southeast Asia: A case study of illicit drug trafficking as a transnational threat in Myanmar (Burma)

Despite many efforts to counter it, illicit drug trafficking has become a transnational threat to national, regional and international security. In fighting the threat, the emphasis has been mainly on reducing the supply of drugs, as opposed to reducing demand, and more attention has been given to Latin America and the Caribbean countries than to the problem in Southeast Asia, one of the world's largest suppliers of heroin. Although in 1998 the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) officially declared illicit drug trafficking to be a threat to that region's stability, scholarly literature on the national security of developing countries, and even on the broadened concept of "comprehensive security" as it is applied in SE Asia, had minimally addressed the problem.; This study has explored the factors related to why SE Asia is especially vulnerable to illicit drug trafficking. A case study approach was used, focusing on the problem that has developed in Burma/Myanmar since 1962---when military rule there began. To examine the root causes of the illicit drug trafficking problem, approximately 40 interviews were conducted, with two groups: "primary key informants," persons who have lived in or visited Myanmar; and "experts" on the issues. Other information was gathered from government and UN documents and publications, and from scholarly writing.; The findings suggest that the dynamics of the problem of illicit drug trafficking in SE Asia cannot be fully understood without examining how it is involved in threats to human security, or "threats to the survival of the people." In the case of Myanmar, the problem is closely related to two important factors---basic human needs not being met, and human rights violations. These conclusions challenge the concept of comprehensive security in SE Asia, which has continued to focus on the state as the important entity to be protected rather than the people within the state. The study suggests that the solutions to illicit drug trafficking are beyond the scope of law enforcement, that they must include a "human security approach," and that they cannot be accomplished by Myanmar acting alone.