1. NAME: NANYUNJA VIVIAN
MODULE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INSTITUTE: AMITY UNIVERSITY MAURITIUS
TOPIC AREA: STUDY OF DRUG TRAFFICKING AND ABUSE TRENDS IN
MAURITIUS
CONCERN: POSSIBLE WAYS IN WHICH MASS DRUG PROLIFERATION IN
MAURITIUS CAN BE ERADICATED

2. Introduction
In Mauritius, abuse of drugs is not new, although, in recent times drug abuse and illicit trafficking
have become a matter of serious concern throughout the world. Drug use has been closely
associated with Mauritian immigration history. Illicit rum produced by the slaves under the French
colonization (1715-1810) was a common characteristic.
After the abolition of slavery in 1834, the British Administrators brought Indian indentured laborers
who came with their culture and traditions. They introduced cannabis, known as gandia, while the
Chinese immigrants who came during the same period introduced opium to the colony.
However, these drugs that is; gandia and opium and illicit rum, were occasionally used in a
regulated socio-cultural context in certain localized areas. They were mostly consumed by adults
without much serious public concern. In the mid-sixties, the craze for drugs as highlighted by the
popular music and the Hip-hop culture reached the shores of Mauritius. New addictive drugs such
as Mandrax and other hallucinogens hooked some young Mauritians, including women.
Mauritius has been habituated to illicit drugs. Cannabis as the most famous because the weather
supports its easy cultivation; heroin and opium on the other hand are presumed to be imported
on a large scale yet it is seemingly the less expensive drug in Mauritius. To worsen the already
serious practices in Mauritius, new drugs have become accessible to the public. The drug
tendencies in Mauritius are on a high rampage. Access to subutex, heroin, marijuana, along with
other illegal drugs is well known and easy to the public.
The island state is progressively perceived as a channel for heroin distribution, often intended for
onward movement into Europe and even the United States.
Cannabis is the only illicit drug that is locally cultivated in large quantities, primarily by small
groups of individuals for local consumption and is not exported. Other illicit drugs, such as heroin
and Subutex, are brought into Mauritius for consumption with a small amount exported to other
markets.
The strategic location of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean boosts drug trafficking. The increasing
number of shipping containers arriving in Mauritius, introduction of new synthetic drugs and lack
of shared intelligence with other countries has crippled enforcement efforts. Mauritius has limited
resources to patrol its shores and territorial waterways.
This study has four major objectives;
a) To measure the depth of drug trafficking and abuse in Mauritius based on the current data.
b) To find a mechanism that can help in eradicating drug trafficking, abuse and addiction in
Mauritius in the most convenient way possible.
c) To provide a thorough comparison of successes and failures of drug trafficking and abuse
eradication strategies of other countries.
d) To review the previous laws and policies of the Mauritian law so as to minimize all existent
loopholes.

3. Literature review
Available documents on drug abuse and trafficking from the US embassy of Mauritius, Rotary
clubs and Media Companies in Mauritius are not up to date. Reports of international agencies are
outdated particularly in the current trend of events regarding the numbers of drug traffickers, the
rate at which drugs are smuggled into the country and the drug abusers (addicts).
According to history, the economy’s backbone was mainly sugarcane production and some other
agricultural products. With time, an increase in population and improvement of the economy was
witnessed and communication with the outer world likewise expanded, both by air and sea.
Internally, the road network was improved and extended to cover the whole island. At this time,
the only drugs that is; cannabis and opium touched a very limited sections of the population and
the ill-effects were largely unknown.
In the 80’s an aggressive and determined economic policy emphasizing on Free open trade,
opening of Freeport and Financial Services led the country to more prosperity. Simultaneously,
the Tourism Industry went through numerous changes for example the construction of high class
hotels, which brought in substantial increase of visitors. Consequently, the standard of living got
better, sanctioning the population to spend lavishly.
These conditions set fertile grounds for the entry of the drug traffickers to spread their criminal
acts and exploit the situation to their benefits hence, the introduction of "Brown Sugar", a copied
element of opium together with all its devastating effects on the individuals that used it, families,
the society plus the economy.
In a short period of time, the traffickers were getting huge profits from this illicit trade, taking
advantage of loopholes in the law and the fact that everybody was caught unaware. On the other
hand, lots of youngsters got hooked and became addicted to this highly defective drug.
Given the wide variety of drugs in the market, the ability of Police Authorities to stop this threat
is overwhelmingly impossible. Statistics from “the Statistics Mauritius” show that there are more
than 20,000 drug addicts in Mauritius, excluding those who use drugs casually.
Information gathered from social workers in the field reveal that these new drugs are mostly being
experimented by the young, in towns and villages. In addition, the internet provides another
avenue for many different kinds of drugs or chemical concoctions that are dangerous to health.
For example in the case of Emmanuel Labour who apparently learnt how to grow marijuana from
specific websites available on the internet.
In an article “war on drugs” written by Yousouf Buglow of Defi media- News on Sunday issue in
2012, stressed the idea of Methadone as a narcotic pain killer similar to morphine which
reduces withdrawal symptoms in people addicted to heroin or other narcotic drugs. It can also
be used for other purposes however like other narcotic medicines, methadone has side effects
for example it can slow down ones breathing, even long after the pain-relieving effects of the
medication wear off. Death may occur if breathing becomes too weak. Simultaneously,
methadone has several other effects such as tightness in the chest, swelling of the mouth, face,
lips, or tongue, confusion, decreased sexual desire or ability, excessive sleepiness; irregular
heartbeat, hallucinations, loss of appetite, menstrual changes, seizures, persistent dizziness or
nausea, trouble urinating, unusual bruising or bleeding and many more. Now this being a
medicine introduced to cut down number of addicts in Mauritius is nearly unattainable because it
has side effects that are even more dangerous to human life, therefore this has left a lot to be
desired which this study will help to answer.

4. Besides drug addicts are so mischievous that they developed new ways to fool dispensaries by
placing cotton wool and sponges in their throats before drinking the substance. The cotton wool
therefore absorbs the liquid before the latter squirts the substance and then selling it in the black
market at 100% profit to people that were never exposed to heroin.
The same article introduces us to Ally Lazer one of the country’s most respected activist and
combatant against drug trafficking and peddlers of all times. In the article he says; “the initiative
taken by the government to introduce methadone was a good move but the formation process of
professionals was a little rash. I spent 6 months in a methadone clinic in London observing how
the treatment of methadone is carried out and the procedures. I have to say there is a big
difference with Mauritius. We have to train our staff on how to carry out the right procedure and
then maybe we can get a hold on the situation. People who receive methadone treatment should
be under observation and dispensaries shouldn’t be allowed to deal with methadone freely unless
proper specialist training is given”
He also states that the dispensaries are not to be blamed. “We could eventually give everyone
the necessary training needed, but with the number of addicts flooding our dispensaries it is
hard to keep Control at times,” said Ally Lazer
Veronique Leclezio a prominent campaigner against tobacco believes that the fight against drugs
in Mauritius is a useless battle unless the government gets to the root of the problem. “I have
conducted numerous surveys. Many drug addicts whom I have encountered started by smoking
cigarettes. I strongly believe that the fight against drugs can be won if we find a way to completely
eradicate cigarettes in Mauritius. Tobacco smoke has no positive effect on an individual
whatsoever, yet cigarettes remain perfectly legal,” regrets Veronique Leclezio.
According to several news bulletin I have read, people enter the country in disguise of being
tourists and smuggle in dangerous drugs. This is seen from the many cases of tourists caught
with drugs by the Mauritius's Anti-Drug Smuggling Unit (ADSU) and the Mauritius Police Force.
The two recent cases, one involves a French woman Aurore Gros-Coissy who smuggled in 1,680
tablets of Subutex, a heroin substitute, which was packed in a biscuit box, it was found in her
luggage at the port of the capital, Port-Louis. Her case was heard and she was sentenced to 20
years in prison on the 30th
/Jan/2015.
The other case reported by Le Express newspaper about two Nigerian students and one Indian
national who were caught with heroin worth 30 million rupees recently on the 14th
/Feb/2015, their
case is still under court investigations.
Several blogs on the internet promote consumption of these drugs other than condemning it, for
example http://www.islandcrisis.net/legalization-of-marijuana-in-mauritius/
The article strongly stresses the importance of Marijuana and its supposed legalization.
Surprisingly, out of 100 comments on this blog post, 2 only are not in support of the legalization
of the drug. What does this show us?
With drug smuggling and trafficking rising, local social centers noted that there is a huge rise in
the number of children and teenage addicts. Drug addiction in Mauritius has led to the proliferation
of so many heinous crimes and evils for example, prostitution, thefts and armed attacks among
others.
The Government of Mauritius has clearly specified that drug traffickers and those involved in drug
trafficking at all levels will not be tolerated. The present policies have not completely stopped the
flow of illegal drugs, but the forfeiture of assets applied to narcotics offenders is put under control.
The U.S. government offers training services to Mauritian law enforcement agencies, including
the ADSU, through the International Law Enforcement Academies in Botswana, New Mexico, and
Africa Command (AFRICOM) efforts, including the efforts of NCIS. It is U.S. policy to help

5. Mauritius increase its capacity to enforce its narcotics laws and to work with Mauritian
enforcement to resolve cases where there is a U.S. link to drug trafficking.
With all this happening, two questions linger unanswered, why has drug trafficking and smuggling
continued to surface over the years amidst all necessary controls organized to combat it? What
can be done to cut down the numbers of drug abusers and addicts in Mauritius?
Proposed techniques, Data collection, Analysis and Interpretation plans.
The aim of the study is to see to it that the drug scourge is curbed and kept at low levels so that
the future generations live in a better environment. This research project will bridge the gap and
loopholes from previous studies conducted on the subject matter developing both theoretical and
applied models for Mauritius based on existing information on household surveys, field work data
as well as creating a new database based on new surveys of households, individuals, the state
and population studies across various regions of the country and in various age groups most
especially the Teens and the youth plus a small group of parents. It will assess impacts of current
cases and public policies on prospects of majority of people in Mauritius.
A comprehensive understanding of the issue requires new information regarding income
distribution and allocation of resources in terms of welfare of households in the country that is to
say; income, consumption, labor supply, education, occupation, employability, family and local or
regional backgrounds of households.
The study will cover the remote areas, villages and major towns such as Port Louis being the
Capital city of Mauritius and the city where most of the drug traffickers conduct their business.
It will consist of two exercises; an up to date survey based on the analysis of current trends of
drug trafficking and drug abusers and a proper research methodology to contain this evil.
I and my team will collect and process information on up to 5000 households, and do preliminary
literature review and analysis. Database will be created based on interviews. Statistical summary
of all variables will be prepared using standard statistical measures. The findings will be presented
in reports to be circulated to concerned public and private organizations in Mauritius and results
will also be used to write good up to date journal articles.
Expected outcomes
This research project is expected to have following outcomes in the end.
(a) Measurement of the impact of drug trafficking and drug abuse on the Mauritian economy.
(b) Analysis of the mechanism required for measuring the depth of drug abuse and strategies
for drug trafficking alleviation and strengthening of laws against drug traffickers and abusers in
Mauritius.
(c) An analysis of the causes, consequences of existing mass drug proliferation in Mauritius
and remedial measures completely eradicate this evil practice.
(d) International comparison of drug trafficking alleviation strategies.
(e) Publication of a research report for the research project.

6. Bibliography
1. www.defimedia.info newspaper article “war on drugs-2012” by Yousouf Buglow
2. www.mauritius.usembassy.gov The 2012 International Narcotics Control Strategy
Report (INCSR)
3. www.rotary.intnet.mu Mauritius Drug Profiles by M.O. Bakarkhan, Secretary
General-International Centre for Drug abuse prevention in schools (ICDAPS)
It depends a lot on contributions and support from the public at large. In a people to people
approach, we can be successful in achieving the goal of