DRUG PRODUCTION CONTINUES DESPITE SUPPRESSION

but Manufacturers Changing Presentation and Formulation

Pittaya Jinawat, Narcotics Control Board northern office director,
said that after the government ordered strict suppression of drug
trafficking, everyone, including soldiers, police and narcotics
suppression officers, had been pursuing the manufacturers and dealers
so that traffickers in the North did not risk continuing.

They believed the officials' actions also caused drugs to gradually
fade away from the kingdom, especially trafficking in ya ba. They did
acknowledge that there were still many large amounts of drugs outside
Thailand's borders, waiting for the right time to be shipped in.

Director Pittaya said that some manufacturing groups were formulating
new ingredients of drugs to trick the officials and make their
suppression and arrest more difficult.

Recently, the officials confiscated new kinds of ecstasy which were
orange in colour and looked quite different from the usual
presentation. The new tablets were sold for 500 baht each, a much
higher price than the usual ya ba tablets.