The document discusses the long history of opium cultivation and trade, tracing it back thousands of years to ancient Mesopotamia. It describes how empires like Britain exploited opium production and trade to generate large profits, which contributed to conflicts with China in the 19th century. More recently, opium production in Afghanistan has skyrocketed due to wars and political instability, fueling terrorist groups and criminal networks. Today, Afghanistan supplies over 90% of the world's illegal opium, with the crop forming a major part of the country's economy.

1. The History of Opium and Its Role in Financing the
Terrorist Movements of Today
Victor Bradford Tshefu-Rollinger
Poli 449
November 18th
2012

2. The great poet of the Beat Generation, Allen Ginsberg, commences his epic poem, Howl, with
the line, “I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked.” No
substance more exemplifies the delirious madness Allen Ginsberg attempts to illustrate than opium.
Opium is a destroyer. It destroys the mind, body, and eventually the spirit, leaving the user a mere husk
of themselves. An addiction to opium can lead one to commit crimes they would never contemplate
against people they would never seek to harm. This plant can truly destroy a generation by converting
the population into opiate zombies, incapable of anything not related to finding the next fix.
The highly addictive nature of the plant has led to the demand for opium byproducts to
exponentially increase over thousands of years, with this comes a criminal element much more
destructive than the drug's corruptive societal properties. The true detestability of the opium plant is
only fully understandable when its connection to the funding of terrorism is exposed. Recognizing the
opium plant's role in the hateful violence and perpetuation of terrorist acts is as integral to the analysis
and ultimate termination of terrorism as an understanding of the United States' economy is integral to
an analysis of our military force.
The opium poppy plant, scientifically known as Papaver somniferumand, commonly referred to
simply as opium, is the source of the opium latex that is required for the production of heroin,
morphine and a variety of other opiates12
. As could be expected, this plant has a long, ancient history
of cultivation for its euphoric pain relieving properties. The longevity of opium's existence as a
recreational drug can be substantiated by the numerous historical civilizations that extensively indulged
in the plant.
The commonly acknowledged origin of opium cultivation is the ancient land area known as
Mesopotamia, corresponding to modern parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran1
. The Sumerians were the

3. first to formally cultivate opium around 3400 B.C, they referred to the plant as “Hul Gil”, or the “Joy
Plant”1
. The name choice for the plant supports its early history as a powerful recreational drug. The
Sumerians, keeping in vein with their historical reputation of culture spreading, taught the neighboring
Assyrians the art of opium cultivation, who taught it to the Babylonians who in turn taught it to the
Egyptians, essentially beginning the Middle-East's deleterious relationship with the plant1
. The
Egyptians enjoyed a strategic advantage in the opium trade by virtue of their coastal access to the
Mediterranean, this easy entrance to the European market allowed their trade to flourish under the
reigns of Thutmose IV, Akhenaton and King Tutankhamen1
.
As the plant became more and more engrained into the European societies of the antiquity, so
did the amount of false, mythically based medical attributes given to it, further increasing the already
high demand. The honored physician, Hippocrates, was one of the first to spurn these erroneous claims
while also recognizing the real beneficial properties of the plant, such as its usefulness as a pain
reliever or a styptic1
. Amidst a period of great conflict, the significance of opium militarily is obvious.
Being the tactical genius that he is, Alexander the Great understood this and while on his conquests,
opium was an essential medical supply. During his campaign to conquer Persia, Alexander's medics
frantically scampered around the battlefields administering opium to those that were injured.
This coupled with his propensity to assimilate defeated nations led to the introduction of opium to the
people of India and Persia. Around 400 A.D, the Arab traders of the Middle-East introduce the people
of China to opium, adding another citizenry into the conglomerate of opiate users 1
.
In 1200 A.D, the medical benefits of opium are given further prominence by its inclusion in the
Indian medical treatises, the Shodal Gadanigrah, the Sharangdhar Samahita, and the Dhanvantri
Nighantu, which describe the plant's uses in treating diarrhea and sexual dysfunction 1
. Although the
plant was only growing in popularity in the east, its reputation in Europe suffered immensely during the
period of the Holy Inquisition's reign, so much so that it is completely absent in European historical
records for 200 years. Behind the backdrop of Christian fervor, anything Eastern was viewed as Satanic

4. in nature, opium included 1
. It is not until 1527, the peak of the Reformation, that Opium re-enters the
European markets, thanks to the medical writings of the German-Swiss physician, Paracelsus. His
writing doesn't explicitly describe opium but instead an amalgamation of opium, citrus juice, and the
pure essence of gold which he dubbed as laudanum1
. Laudanum was frequently prescribed as a pain
killer and was dubiously known as, “Stones of Immortality” 1
.
The Portuguese, who have been trading along the East China Sea for hundreds of years, begin
to use the Chinese port city of Macao to pump in large quantities of Indian opium into China (cite). In
1601, Queen Elizabeth I, seeing the profitability of the opium trade in their ally Portugal, begins
commanding her chartered ships to purchase Indian opium and transport it back to England,
presumably to satiate the population's now ravenous addictions1
. This is the start of England's
authoritarian relationship with the two major opium producing countries of the 1600's, India and China.
As the profits from opium continued to increase, so did England's desire to dominate the now
lucrative industry. In 1750, the British East India Company takes control of the major opium growing
districts of India, Bengal and Bihar, this decision proves to be a wise one as their production increases
so much that by 1793 Britain has a monopoly on the opium trade 1
. In order to insure their continued
monopoly, it is made illegal for any opium farmer in India to sell their good to any trading company
other than the British East India Company1
.
While England is increasing their opium production and trade levels, Chinese emperors are
concurrently attempting to quell the rampant opium addictions of their subjects. Ironically, Chinese
measures to stop the opium addictions, such as completely banning the plant, only strengthen England's
monopoly. Without the permission to domestically produce their own opium, China's large population
of opium addicts had no choice but pay the exorbitant prices of the Indian import.
The tumultuous relationship between Britain and China reaches a precipice in 1830 when
Britain is importing a record 11 tons from India and Turkey while China, by far the largest consumer of
Britain's opium, has approximately 3 million opium addicts1
. On March 18th
1839, an imperial Chinese

5. commissioner, Lin Tse-Hsu, begins a crusade to stop opium importation on orders by the Daoguang
Emperor. He made great progress towards his goal early on, and in a few months he had destroyed
200,000 pounds of opium4
. These actions, coupled with a condescending memorial to Queen Victoria
urging her to halt the opium trade, incite the British to send an expeditionary fleet of warships to China
in the fall of 1839, thus beginning the First Opium War1
.
Through the use of their far superior naval forces, the British were able to end the war in 1842
marked by the signing of the Treaty of Nanking on August 29th
1842. The treaty's purpose was to foster
a more conducive environment in China for Britain's opium trade, this is made apparent by the
inclusion of provisions that created more ports, allowed British free trade, implemented fixed tariffs,
and lastly ceded Hong Kong Island to the British6
. Adding insult to injury the Chinese were also
forced to pay 21 million silver dollars to the British government in reparations5
. This treaty was one of
the first “Unequal Treaties” in the history of China, in which they are forced to concede territory and
sovereignty to the often European victor of a war7
. The Chinese displeasure with the treaty as well as
its general brevity and ambiguity eventually led to the breakdown of Anglo-Chinese relations,
culminating in the outbreak of the Second Opium War in 18561
. This war played out the same for all
belligerents involved and the signing of the similarly unfair Treaty of Tientsin finally legalized the
importation and cultivation of opium in China1
.
In 1858 the amount of opium imported from India to China was 4,819 metric tons, an all-time
high1
. Unfortunately for the British, as opium production in their territories increased so did opium
consumption. To combat this, Britain passes the Opium Act of 1878 which amends the laws relating to
opium cultivation and possession in their provincial governments, namely India, China, and Burma8
.
These laws have very little effect on slowing opium consumption because of the other forms of the
plant that have been created such as heroin and morphine, therefore the actual smoking of opium is no
longer needed.
As the global opium market was increasing exponentially, the United States began to see the

6. potential negative societal effects of the plant and in 1890 Congress imposes a tax on opium and
morphine10
. Although a relatively small action in regards to slowing opium use, it is nonetheless one of
the earliest forms of US narcotic legislation. Things begin to change by the early 20th
century when
China, having an estimated 13.5 million addicts consuming 39,000 metric tons of opium per year,
begins producing historical amounts of opium1
. In 1906 China produced 35,000 metric tons of opium,
accounting for 85 percent of the world's supply1
. In reaction to these startling numbers and also in
anticipation for the 1909 International Opium Commission, the United States Congress passes the
Opium Exclusion Act on February 9th
1909, which banned the importation of opium for recreational
smoking1
.
The International Opium Commission was one of the first international meetings to address the
growing opium problem and was successful in uniting the countries that attended under one ideal,
opium prohibition. This commission's success led to the creation of the 1912 International Opium
Convention that was signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, China, France, Germany, Italy,
Japan, the Netherlands, Persia, Portugal, Russia, and Siam9
. This international treaty essentially stated
that the signees would do the best of their abilities to control the manufacture, importion, sale,
distribution, and exportion of opium, cocaine, and other narcotics. For the first time in history, the
global community, was in agreement concerning the legality of opium thus it's eradication seemed
imminent.
Unfortunately this wasn't the case. The events of WWII left many parts of the world
destabilized and the imperial powers of the time were far too occupied fighting to govern their, often
opium rich, territories effectively. The area known as “Golden Triangle” consisting of Burma, Laos,
and Thailand, were all under the control of the imperial countries, Britain, France, and Japan
respectively. After the war ended, these countries all became independent and started producing even
more opium than prior to the war and with the rise of the communism party in China, in which opium
dealers were executed, plants destroyed, and addicts were forced to rehabilitate, the main competitor to

7. the Golden Triangle's opium industry was gone, as well as the most dependent consumers of the plant1
.
This caused the Golden Triangle countries to not only gain a near monopoly on the industry but also
caused a global shift in opium demand to occur1
.
Amidst the shrouds of the subsequent Cold War, the United States became embroiled in a series
of proxy wars in which they formed questionable alliances with the warlords and tribes of the Golden
Triangle, often inadvertently supplying large-scale opium operations with the arms, ammunitions and
armaments needed to grow1
. The problem is only exasperated with the deployment of US troops into
Vietnam in 1966. During the war, the number of heroin addicts in the US climbs to 750,000 while an
approximate 34% of US soldier in Vietnam use heroin while on their tours of duty1
. When the capital
of South Vietnam, Saigon, is captured by the People's Army of Vietnam and the National Liberation
Front on April 30th
1975 it brings a decisive end to the Vietnam War, and with it a sharp reduction in
heroin levels1
.
Although a new source of raw opium would be discovered in Mexico's “Sierra Madre”, or
Mexican Mud, it was short lived1
. The rapid response to Mexico's burgeoning opium production
consisted of spraying Mexico's poppy fields with “Agent Orange”, the same herbicide and defoliant
used in Vietnam to defoliate the forested land in order to deprive guerillas of their cover1
. With the
Golden Triangle's return to “normalcy” and the short lived Mexican Mud's eradication it seemed that a
market had opened up. A market that would soon be filled by the “Golden Crescent” area, consisting of
Iran, Pakistan, and most importantly Afghanistan1
.
On December 24th
1979 the Soviet army begins its invasion of Afghanistan11
, and this
deployment, seen as another attempt to spread communism, is met with American contempt thus
bringing a start to another US-Soviet proxy war. And similarly to the Vietnam war, the United States
begins aiding the “freedom fighters” of the Mujahideen in their struggle to expel the Soviet forces. As
the war progresses and the Afghan government becomes incapable of defending or governing their
numerous districts, a number of warlords begin seizing power and implementing their own local

8. governments1
. The United States, attempting to hide their support of anti-Soviet forces, provide vast
amounts of resources and training to these warlords in order to help defeat the Soviets. American
funding could not offset the financial advantage the Soviets had over the Mujahideen, therefore
warlords utilized the opium trade extensively in order to fund their fighting. As the war of attrition
continued, the Mujahideen slowly started to gain success against the Soviets thanks to their
unconventional guerrilla tactics, US aid, and the funding opium provided. Facing economic ruin, the
Soviets withdraw their troops on February 15th
1989, bringing an end to what is now viewed as the
“Soviet Union's Vietnam”11.
With the departure of the Soviets and the virtual destruction of the Afghan government, a power
vacuum opens up that is eventually filled by the warlords and militias that were already in control of
many districts. These warlords continue using opium production and distribution as a financial export
for their pseudo governments. Afghani production continues to rise at such rates that in 1995 they
produce 3000 metric tons of opium, accounting for 52% of the global production, a stark increase from
1980 when they accounted for only 19%1
. This number only increases with the rise of the Taliban and
their seizure of the Afghan government in 1996.
Opium production under the Taliban's regime increases even more as they attempt to bring
“prosperity” to Afghanistan, while also combating the military forces that oppose their illegitimate
authority. In 1999, only 3 years into the Taliban rule, opium production is more than 4,00 metric tons1
.
Despite their history of reliance on the plant's cultivation for funding, the Taliban's leader, Mullah
Omar, issues a decree in 2000 banning the production of opium, citing it's unlawfulness according to
Islamic law.1
This decree is extremely effective in stopping opium production and the amount produced
falls to only 185 metric tons, a mere 6% of the previous year's amount1
. This decrease is short lived and
when the US begins its “War on Terrorism” in Afghanistan, ousting the Taliban from power, opium
production returns to its original levels. This invasion rallies a new generation of mujahideen who
continue to cultivate opium in order fund their new campaign against the United States.

9. Afghanistan is now the world's largest producer of illegal opium, accounting for 90% of the
world's supply2
. Opium is by and large the life blood of the Afghan economy. In 2006, revenues for the
exportation of opium and its byproducts into the US were $3 billion, almost 35% of their gross
domestic product that year2
. The industry is also one of the largest employers in Afghanistan with
500,000 households farming opium, almost 14% of the population2
. The large amount of opium
producers can be attributed to the lucrative profitability of the plant in comparison to other more tame
ventures, such as wheat. In 2007, the gross income per hectare (10,000 square meters) of wheat was a
mere $546, while opium on the other had was $5,2002
, equaling a more than 950% increase in profits.
With such a disparity in profit levels, it becomes impractical for Afghanis, especially impoverished
villagers, to even attempt cultivating anything other than opium.
What are the other factors that make opium cultivation so alluring to the people of Afghanistan,
specifically her terrorist inhabitants? What makes opium the perfect product for financing and fueling
terrorism? In order to answer these questions, it is essential to analyze the issue beyond pure financial
reasonings because the factors go much deeper that.
The very nature of the illicit drug trade lends itself well to terrorist acts. According to the
foreign affairs author, Michael L. Ross, narcotics are like precious minerals, in that they have very high
monetary value while also being small and easy to discretely transport2
. Because of its international
notoriety and illegality, legitimate governing bodies often are unable to utilize opium production in
order to raise funds, thus giving an instant monopoly to terrorist movements that care little about laws
against the plant2
. In a country like Afghanistan, that suffers from a nearly failed government, the
wages for opium cultivation often dwarf wages from more legitimate governmental work. An article in
the Atlanta Journal reported that drug profits enabled the Taliban to pay cadres $200 a month while
police wages averaged $70 a month2
. Behind the backdrop of rampant poverty, this advantage in
revenue greatly aids the Taliban and other terrorist groups in recruiting tomorrow’s fighters.
The opium trade's inherent destabilizing effects make governments vulnerable to attack and as

10. the government proves itself to be less and less capable, the people will begin losing faith in their
current administration and will look for new guidance, often from the very movements that are to
blame for said destabilization2
. This can lead to a snowball effect in which the opium trade weakens a
country thus making the country more incapable of stopping the opium trade, while also giving the
people more reasons to join against the seemingly incompetent country.
When one views all these factors, it becomes easy to see how entwined the opium trade and
terrorism truly are, evident by correlation between a province's opium production levels and their levels
of terrorist activities. A NATO and United Nations analysis found that the provinces of Helmand,
Kandahar, Nimroz, Oruzgan, and Zabul all had the highest levels of opium production and terrorist
attacks2
. Also the providences that produced the lowest amount of opium, such as Bamiyan, Samangan,
and Panjshir, experienced significantly lower rates of terrorism.
In conclusion, opium production is one of the most meaningful, yet unknown, factors in the
spread and continuation of terrorism. Its role goes much deeper than merely providing financial
sustainability, as it also destabilizes a country, turning the people against the state and into the next
generation of terrorists. As the international community continues their battle against terrorism, it is
imperative that the opium trade be analyzed and dealt with lest we enable terrorist movements
worldwide to continue utilizing their greatest resource.

11. Citation #2

12. 1. http://www.irinnews.org/InDepthMain.aspx?InDepthId=21&ReportId=63040
2. http://www.personal.psu.edu/jap45/Piazza%20Drugs%20and%20Terrorism%20in%20Afghan%
20Provinces%20TPV.pdf
3. Martin, Robert Montgomery (1847). China: Political, Commercial, and Social; In an Official
Report to Her Majesty's Government. Volume 2. James Madden. pp. 81–82.
4. http://news.cultural-china.com/20090604103010.html
5. http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Treaty_of_Nanking.html
6. http://www.international.ucla.edu/asia/article.asp?parentid=18421
7. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/614398/Unequal-Treaty
8. http://www.sja.gos.pk/Statutes/Anti-Norcotics%20Laws/The%20Opium%20Act,%201878.html
9. http://www.worldlii.org/int/other/LNTSer/1922/29.html
10. http://www.naabt.org/laws.cfm
11. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7883532.stm
12. http://www.drugs.com/opium.html