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WORLD NEWS Saturday 14 december 2019
Another opioid crisis is raging through the developing world

By EMILY SCHMALL start to feel hungry. Similar
CLAIRE GALOFARO is the case with not taking
Associated Press it,” said auto shop welder
KAPURTHALA, India (AP) — Deepak Arora, a gaunt
Reports rolled in with esca- 30-year-old who took 15
lating urgency — pills seized tablets day, so much he
by the truckload, pills swal- had to steal from his family
lowed by schoolchildren, to pay for pills. “You are like
pills in the pockets of dead a dead person.”
terrorists. Jeffery Bawa, an officer
These pills, the world has with the United Nations Of-
been told, are safer than fice on Drugs and Crime,
the OxyContins, the Vico- realized what was happen-
dins, the fentanyls that have ing in 2016.
wreaked so much devasta- Police began finding pills
tion. But now they are the on terrorists, who traffic it
root of what the United Na- to fund their networks and
tions named “the other opi- take it to bolster their ca-
oid crisis” — an epidemic pacity for violence, Bawa
featured in fewer headlines said.
than the American one, as Most of it was coming from
it rages through the most India. The country’s sprawl-
vulnerable countries on the ing pharmaceutical in-
planet. dustry is fueled by cheap
Mass abuse of the opioid In this Oct. 31, 2019, photo, an Indian drug user lies unconscious by the side of a road in Kapurthala, generics. Pill factories pro-
in the northern Indian state of Punjab.
tramadol spans continents, Associated Press duce knock-offs and ship
from India to Africa to the them in bulk around the
Middle East, creating in- is campaigning for the a really very complicated street vendors. world, in doses far exceed-
ternational havoc some status quo, arguing inter- balance to strike.” Tra- This year, authorities seized ing medical limits.
experts blame on a loop- national regulations make madol is not as deadly as hundreds of thousands of In 2017, law enforcement
hole in narcotics regulation narcotics difficult to get in other opioids and the crisis tablets, banned most phar- reported that $75 million
and a miscalculation of the countries with disorganized isn’t killing with the ferocity macy sales and shut down worth of tramadol from In-
drug’s danger. The man- health systems, and adding of America’s struggle withe counterfeit pill factories, dia was confiscated en
made opioid was touted as tramadol to the list would the drugs. Still, individual pushing the price from 35 route to the Islamic State
able to relieve pain with lit- deprive patients in pain ac- governments from the U.S. cents for a 10-pack to $14. terror group. Authorities in-
tle risk of abuse. Unlike oth- cess to any opioid at all. to Egypt to Ukraine have The government opened a tercepted 600,000 tablets
er opioids, tramadol flowed “This is a huge public health realized the drug’s dangers network of treatment cen- headed for Boko Haram.
freely around the world, un- dilemma,” said Dr. Gilles are not as limited as be- ters, fearing those who had Another 3 million were
burdened by international Forte, the secretary of the lieved and worked to rein become opioid addicted found in a pickup truck in
controls that track most World Health Organiza- in the tramadol trade. The would resort to heroin out Niger, in boxes disguised
dangerous drugs. tion’s committee that rec- north Indian state of Pun- of desperation. Hordes of with U.N. logos. The agency
But abuse is now so ram- ommends how drugs should jab, the center of India’s people rushed in to seek warned that tramadol was
pant some countries con- be regulated. Tramadol is opioid epidemic, was the help in dealing with excru- playing “a direct role in the
sumed by it are asking in- available in war zones and latest to crack down. The ciating withdrawal. destabilization of the re-
ternational authorities to impoverished nations be- pills were everywhere, as For some, tramadol had gion.” “We cannot let the
intervene. Grunenthal, the cause it is unregulated. But legitimate medication sold become as essential as situation get any further
German company that it is widely abused for the in pharmacies, but also il- food. out of control,” that alert
originally made the drug, same exact reason. “It’s licit counterfeits hawked by “Like if you don’t eat, you read.q
Afghan presidential candidate to allow ballot recount

Associated Press tion result until all fake bal- Rivals Ghani and Abdullah,
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) lots are removed. are the top candidates.
— Afghanistan presiden- The Afghan Election Com- It wasn’t immediately clear
tial candidate Abdullah mission tried to launch a if Abdullah would send any
Abdullah announced ballot recount in Novem- of his observers to take part
Friday he has agreed to ber but Abdullah halted in the recount process.
allow a ballot recount the attempt, saying he A date to announce pre-
in provinces where his wouldn’t let his observers liminary election results
supporters had stopped participate. was still not clear on Friday
the process for almost a Afghanistan’s election and but if no candidate obtains
month. election complaint com- more than 50% of the vote,
Abdullah, who serves as missions had repeatedly a second round of voting
the country’s chief exec- requested that Abdullah’s will be held.
utive in a fragile national supporters allow the ballot Ghani and Abdullah head
unity government with recount process to move a fragile national unity gov-
President Ashraf Ghani, forward and promised to ernment that was put to- Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah, center,
addressed the media fol- release results based on gether under U.S. pressure addresses the media following a conference with his party
lowing a conference with valid ballots. after both leaders claimed members and few candidates in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday,
supporters. He said he The Sept. 28 election has victory in Afghanistan’s last Dec. 13, 2019. Associated Press
won’t accept any elec- been mired in controversy. elections in 2014.q