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### Viewing cable 07PHNOMPENH767, THE FRONT LINE IN THE CAMBODIAN DRUG STRUGGLE

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
07PHNOMPENH767 | 2007-06-07 09:21 | 2011-07-11 00:00 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy Phnom Penh

`

    VZCZCXRO8252
    PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
    DE RUEHPF #0767/01 1580921
    ZNR UUUUU ZZH
    P 070921Z JUN 07
    FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8523
    INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
    RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI PRIORITY

` `

    UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 PHNOM PENH 000767

    SIPDIS

    SENSITIVE
    SIPDIS

    STATE FOR EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, INL/AAE--CHARLES BOULDIN AND
    KISHA TOWN
    BANGKOK FOR NAS--TERRY DARU, DEA--SCOTT SEELEY-HACKER, PAT
    CHAGNON, AND JOHN SWAIN
    HANOI FOR DEA--JEFFREY WANNER AND POL--PETER ECKSTROM
    VIENTIANE FOR NAS--CLIFF HEINZER
    PACOM FOR JIATF-WEST--DAVID KILBOURN

    E.O. 12958: N/A
    TAGS: SNAR PGOV KCRM CB
    SUBJECT: THE FRONT LINE IN THE CAMBODIAN DRUG STRUGGLE

    ¶1.  (SBU)  Summary:  A remote location, geography conducive
    to evasion, and a long and poorly patrolled border with Laos
    make Stung Treng province Cambodia's drug smuggling hot spot,
    with the value of drugs smuggled estimated in the "dozens of
    millions" of dollars.  During a May 17-19 visit to this
    northern region, INL Program Analyst, Poleconoff, and Polecon
    Assistant learned that the recent renovation of a national
    highway has dramatically facilitated transportation of licit
    and illicit goods between Laos and Cambodia, although the
    highway's growing reputation as a drug trafficking route has
    caused some smugglers to evade police by using smaller roads
    in neighboring provinces.  Law enforcement capacity is weak,
    with local officials lacking the will and the equipment to
    patrol effectively.  Rumors of police and military
    involvement in drug trafficking are widespread in Stung Treng
    but officials are reluctant to confront the issue and civil
    society has little specific information to confirm these
    suspicions.  End Summary.

    Stung Treng:  A Drug Trafficker's Dream
    ---------------------------------------

    ¶2.  (SBU) Stung Treng, a remote and sparsely populated
    province in northern Cambodia, has long been a transit point
    for illicit drugs coming from Laos, leading provincial Deputy
    Police Commissioner On Saron to describe it as the "front
    line" in Cambodia's struggle against drugs.  Governor Loy
    Sopath described drug trafficking as the province's most
    serious problem, estimating the value of the drugs smuggled
    through the province to be in the "dozens of millions" of US
    dollars.  Stung Treng province shares a 160-mile-long border
    with Laos, and much of that area is sparsely forested and
    mountainous, making it relatively easy for would-be
    traffickers to pass through on foot, bicycle, or motorbike
    and offering many opportunities for hiding from or evading
    law enforcement.  The Mekong River, which travels north to
    south across the east-west border, is filled with small
    islands and parallel channels, making it equally easy for
    traffickers to hide their movements there.

    ¶3.  (SBU) Government officials, NGO workers, and local
    business owners told the State Department team that local
    villagers bring drugs across the border in small quantities
    by foot, boat, motorcycle, or bicycle, often concealed in
    piles of fruit or vegetables, wrapped in waterproof packets
    and placed within containers of liquid resin, or hidden in
    car tires or car frames.  Once across the border, these drugs
    are trafficked--either in small quantities or after being
    consolidated into larger loads--through Cambodia into Vietnam
    or Thailand.

    ¶4.  (SBU) Drugs--first heroin and now predominantly ATS--have
    historically traveled through Cambodia down the Mekong River
    and Highway 7, often stopping in Phnom Penh before being
    routed to Thailand or Vietnam.  The recent Chinese-funded
    renovation of Highway 7 has transformed the section of road
    between Kratie (a provincial capital five hours from Phnom
    Penh) from a one-lane pot-holed dirt track into a smoothly
    paved, lightly trafficked two-lane highway which one resident
    expat described as "the best road in the country."  The new
    road cuts travel time from Kratie to Stung Treng from 12-14
    hours to 3 hours, making it possible to travel from Phnom
    Penh to Stung Treng in one day.  At present, the improved
    road stops at Stung Treng town and anyone wanting to travel
    further north to the Lao border must take a ferry across the
    Sekong River.  However, construction of a Chinese-funded
    bridge will be completed in July 2008, and the Chinese also
    plan to improve and pave the dirt road leading from Stung
    Treng town to the Lao border within the next year.  The
    province is currently undertaking its own project of
    constructing gravel feeder roads to connect to remote
    communities, an effort the governor said he hoped would be
    finished by 2008.

    ¶5.  (SBU) While the improvement of Highway 7 has facilitated
    the flow of licit and illicit goods from Laos into Cambodia,
    sources also report that the widespread recognition that
    Highway 7 and the Mekong are used for drug trafficking has
    pushed some traffickers to use alternate routes.  Sources
    speculated that smaller players in particular are using new
    routes, while large-scale traffickers have little fear of the
    police and can use the far more efficient Highway 7 with
    relative impunity.  Stung Treng Governor Loy Sopath reported

    PHNOM PENH 00000767  002 OF 004

    that Highway 78 in Ratanakiri is gaining popularity as a new
    route.  Several sources reported that drugs are often
    trafficked from Laos into the remote northeast Siem Pang
    district of Stung Treng province on foot, and then taken
    either south into Phnom Penh or west into Vietnam via
    Ratanakiri province.  Other reported routes include:
    --traveling south from Stung Treng and then cutting east
    through Kratie and Mondulkiri provinces to enter Vietnam
    --traveling west from Stung Treng into Preah Vihear province
    and then entering Thailand through Preah Vihear, Oddar
    Meanchey, or Banteay Meanchey provinces

    Narcotics Washing Up on the Mekong's Shores
    -------------------------------------------

    ¶6.  (SBU) While most of the drug busts in the province have
    been fairly small, two related and rather spectacular
    incidents illustrate that larger-scale illegal activity
    likely takes place.  Cambodian officials report that in
    August 2006, Lao law enforcement authorities seized USD
    $940,000 that Chea Eang, a Cambodian businessman, was
    carrying in cash from Cambodia to Laos.  Chea Heung claimed
    that he earned this money importing gasoline, but Cambodian
    authorities suspect it really came from drug smuggling.
    Despite these suspicions on the Cambodian side, the Lao
    authorities eventually returned the money to Chea Heung.  Two
    months later, a boat transporting Chea Heung and at least
    seven 30-liter jerry cans filled with ATS tablets and heroin
    sank in the Mekong River.  Chea Heung was arrested but later
    released by the Lao authorities; boat owner Peng Kao is
    reportedly in hiding.  The case was never reported in the
    newspapers, and local villagers were reportedly very confused
    to find containers full of tablets and powder washing up on
    shore.  Not realizing that they were illicit drugs, some
    tried to sell the contents to local pharmacies, while others
    turned them in to police.

    Law Enforcement Capability Low
    ------------------------------

    ¶7. (SBU) There are few drug busts in the province relative to
    the area's importance as a trafficking route, and most busts
    are made by provincial police based on tips from police
    informants.  According to provincial Deputy Police
    Commissioner On Saron, the provincial police were involved in
    15 drug cases in 2006, but only one so far in 2007--a decline
    he attributes to smugglers becoming more circumspect.
    Gendarmerie, military, border police, and border liaison
    officers all play some role in drug interdiction, but are
    responsible for far fewer drug busts.  The border police's
    only drug case was the September 2004 seizure of
    approximately 10,000 methamphetamine tablets, and the border
    liaison offices' only drug case was the October 2006 arrest
    of one individual with 17,000 methamphetamine tablets, On
    Saron stated.  He was unclear about the role of the
    gendarmerie and military in patrolling the border, but noted
    that they had been involved in only one drug case since 2004.

    ¶8.  (SBU) There are two official border crossings in Stung
    Treng province--a land crossing at Dong Krolor and a river
    crossing at Chhoeu Teal Thom Island (Koh Chhoeu Teal
    Thom)--plus eight unofficial but commonly used trails, and
    myriad places for a traveler to forge his/her own path.
    There are a total of four Border Liaison Offices (BLOs) in
    the area--one each on the Lao and Cambodian sides of each of
    the two official border crossings.  The Cambodian BLOs are
    each staffed by five to seven officials, including customs,
    border police, and immigration police.  BLO officials report
    that they can't carry out their main duty--patrolling the
    area--because each office has only one boat and one
    motorcycle and little or no money for gas.  In response to
    questions from Poleconoff, the officials indicated that they
    could patrol on foot and did so occasionally, but were
    unenthusiastic about the idea.

    ¶9.  (SBU) The Cambodian border police have observation posts
    (remote one room wooden shacks without electricity, water, or
    inspection/law enforcement equipment) at the eight unofficial
    passages, but these are only sporadically staffed and are
    tasked with merely observing border crossers without
    inspecting or challenging them.  When the Deputy Police
    Commander led the State Department team on a boat trip from
    the provincial capital to the border, the island observation

    PHNOM PENH 00000767  003 OF 004

    post we visited was unstaffed and there were no signs of any
    people--law enforcement officers or civilians--within sight.

    ¶10.  (SBU) The governor and law enforcement officials readily
    admit that their law enforcement capability is low and are
    eager for international assistance.  The Deputy Police
    Commander was grateful for the 4Qoining police, military, and
    other officials received from military and DEA trainers last
    year during the JIATF-West sponsored training course, and
    would like to participate in more training.  He also outlined
    needs for additional equipment, specifically vehicles, boats,
    cameras, walkie-talkies, office stationary, and x-ray
    machines.  The BLOs appear to be slightly better equipped as
    the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has provided them
    with some equipment--including a boat and a motorcycle,
    walkie-talkies, a camera, and a few computers for computer
    based training (although one of the BLOs has no electricity),
    all housed in a a small wooden office/dormitory.  BLO
    officials at one BLO checkpoint presented the State
    Department team with their wish list:  corrugated metal
    (presumably to build additional facilities), a generator, a
    solar panel, a car, two motorcycles, six walkie talkies, two
    toilets, two boats, and a well.  Lars Pedersen, the newly
    arrived head of UNODC's Phnom Penh office, said that the BLOs
    had been successful in facilitating communication between the
    Lao and Cambodian authorities on the ground, but that there
    had not been the increase in drug seizures that the
    establishment of BLOs in other countries had spurred.

    Persistent Rumors of Local Corruption
    -------------------------------------

    ¶11.  (SBU) NGO and local business sources said they believed
    reports post has heard that military and police officers have
    a significant role in larger scale drug smuggling, but none
    had direct evidence nor detailed knowledge of these
    operations.  These sources said there were persistent rumors
    to this effect, and pointed to the unexplained wealth of some
    military and police officials as supporting evidence.  One
    local businessman said he had heard that the police were
    becoming more aggressive in catching small-scale drug
    traffickers, a move he suggested benefited the larger-scale
    operations with ties to police, military, or government
    officials.

    ¶12.  (SBU) Government officials admitted that there may be
    some corruption, but downplayed its importance and avoided
    discussing the topic at length.  The Deputy Police
    Commissioner described two recent cases involving local
    officials:  an outstanding arrest warrant for a police
    officer believed to have been smuggling more than 1700
    methamphetamine tablets, and one police officer and one
    military official who were jailed for two months for
    possessing 400 grams of crystal methamphetamine but were
    later released when the sample inexplicably tested negative
    for narcotics at the NACD drug laboratory.  The Governor
    suggested rotating border liaison officials frequently to
    discourage the development of criminal collaboration with
    local smugglers, and evaded a question about what should be
    done to target the big players controlling drug trafficking
    in the province.

    Comment
    -------

    ¶13.  (SBU) It's no wonder Stung Treng has long been a favored
    spot for drug trafficking:  its remote location, sparsely
    distributed and poor population, and maze-like forests and
    waterways make it a narcotics smuggler's dream.  While the
    governor and law enforcement officials rightly claimed that
    their operations are hampered by lack of equipment and
    funding, lack of political will and corruption are likely
    more fundamental problems.  The enthusiasm Border Liaison
    Officers displayed in discussing the need for equipment to
    conduct motorcycle and boat patrols dissipated once the
    conversation turned to their infrequent foot patrols, which
    could be done with equipment they possess now.  Similarly,
    government officials stuck strictly to talking about small
    time drug traffickers, ignoring the larger players that are
    likely carrying the majority of drugs and that some have
    suggested have connections to the local political and
    military elite.  With a small Pol/Econ section (which will
    lose an officer for 2007-8) and no INL budget, post's efforts

    PHNOM PENH 00000767  004 OF 004

    to encourage better law enforcement in the region are
    currently limited to annual JIATF-West training sessions.
    However, post is encouraged by INL's increasing engagement in
    Cambodia and believes that this will be a fertile area for
    work if INL's FY09 budget request for Cambodia can be
    supported within a larger foreign assistance envelope for
    FY09.
    MUSSOMELI

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