HomeNewsBriefInternational Report Links Rising LatAm Drug Abuse to Violence
BRIEF

International Report Links Rising LatAm Drug Abuse to Violence

DRUG POLICY / 2 MAR 2016 BY MIKE LASUSA AND JAMES BARGENT EN

The latest report by the International Narcotics Control Board illustrates the region-wide correlation between developments in drug trafficking, drug use and criminal violence in Latin America.

According to the newly released 2015 report the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), the body responsible for overseeing implementation of United Nations drug accords, drug trafficking has not only become a major security threat in the Americas, it is also contributing to rising drug use in countries involved in drug production and transshipment. These local drug markets in turn are generating increases in violence as criminal groups fight over the right to control them.

The report describes “growing concern at the increasing levels of drug abuse” in South America, where conflicts between crime groups over local drug distribution have been tied to rising violence in parts of ColombiaBrazil and Argentina, among other countries.

In Central America and the Caribbean, meanwhile, the INCB linked rising violence in areas where criminals fight to control drug distribution to the increased availability of drugs for sale on local markets.

The rise in the importance of local drug markets and their position as a driver of violence is likely attributable to the fact that drug traffickers are frequently paid not in cash but in drugs, which they sell on in local markets, states the report. According to the INCB, this is not only limited to paying for services with the product being trafficking but sometimes also sees traffickers shipping marijuana with cocaine and using it to pay for transport, storage and distribution services. 

According to the most recent UN drug use statistics, since 2012 use of marijuana has increased from 5.2 to 8.4 percent of the population in the Americas, while cocaine use has increased from 0.8 to 1.4 and opiate use from 0.5 to 2.0.

Speaking at the press conference to present the report in Bogota, INCB's Francisco Thoumi said "It is very difficult for a drug transit or production zone not to end up consuming drugs."

InSight Crime Analysis

The latest INCB report confirms the regional spread of a trend long identified by InSight Crime (pdf); growing drug abuse along trafficking routes contributing to rising violence.

As noted by the INCB, a major factor in this is the increasingly common practice of international traffickers paying for local services with product, an arrangement that is easier for the traffickers and potentially more profitable for their local partners, who can move the drugs on at high margin street prices.

SEE ALSO: Coverage of Drug Policy

However, this is not the only factor behind the rise of local drug markets in Latin America. Organized crime networks in places like Colombia and Mexico have also realised the benefits of the small profit, large quantity model of microtrafficking, which may not bring in the astronomical returns of transnational trafficking but is considerably less risky and more reliable.

In addition, the breakup of some of the region's largest criminal organizations into smaller, more localized factions has seen these groups pay more attention to local criminal activities such as drug sales rather than rely exclusively on international drug trafficking. 

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

ARGENTINA / 12 SEP 2022

Synthetic drugs like methamphetamine, fentanyl, and ecstasy are reshaping Latin America's drug trade.

COLECTIVOS / 12 NOV 2021

Unsurprisingly, Caracas consumes more drugs than anywhere else in the country. And despite a catastrophic economic crisis, a handful of…

CHILE / 16 SEP 2022

Chile has recently seized several new psychoactive substances (NPS), highlighting the growing diversity of its drug markets.

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

All Eyes on Ecuador

2 JUN 2023

Our coverage of organized crime in Ecuador continues to be a valuable resource for international and local news outlets. Internationally, Reuters cited our 2022 Homicide Round-Up,…

WORK WITH US

Open Position: Social Media and Engagement Strategist

27 MAY 2023

InSight Crime is looking for a Social Media and Engagement Strategist who will be focused on maintaining and improving InSight Crime’s reputation and interaction with its audiences through publishing activities…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Receives Great Reception

27 MAY 2023

Several of InSight Crime’s most recent articles about Venezuela have been well received by regional media. Our article on Venezuela’s colectivos expanding beyond their political role to control access to…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report Continues

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.