(SeaPRwire) –   By: Julian Holbrooke

Burma’s military government lit a fire this week. It burned $600 million worth of seized drugs—50 tons of heroin, meth, opium, ketamine, and marijuana. The event marked the UN’s International Day Against Drug Abuse. But this isn’t a victory. It’s a distraction from a worsening crisis.

The official story is clear. Police Lt. Col. Aung Myat Soe of Yangon’s Anti-Narcotics Police Force told the Associated Press the street value of destroyed drugs this year was more than double last year’s total. In Yangon alone, 31 different types of drugs worth $321 million were set ablaze. Footage from the city showed rows of seized drugs engulfed in flames, thick black smoke rising into the sky. The military government wants the world to see this as a bold step against the drug trade. But the numbers don’t add up to progress. A doubling in the value of seized drugs doesn’t mean enforcement is working better. It means there’s more product on the market to seize. Production is outpacing even the military’s ability to take it off the streets.

Burma has been a major source of illegal drugs for East and Southeast Asia for decades. It’s one of the world’s largest producers of heroin and methamphetamine. But experts told the AP that the 2021 military takeover changed everything. The coup sparked violent political unrest, leading to a civil war between the military government and pro-democracy opponents, plus ethnic armed groups. The military’s focus shifted to crushing dissent. It left drug networks largely unchallenged. In January, the government claimed it seized its largest-ever haul of illicit drugs and manufacturing equipment from 12 sites in northern Shan state. But those raids were a drop in the bucket. The chaos of the civil war has created a perfect environment for drug production to boom. Ethnic armed groups in Shan state—some of which are fighting the military—may be using drug profits to fund their operations. This creates a vicious cycle: more unrest leads to more drugs, which in turn fuels more unrest.

The drug trade in Burma is a regional threat. Neighbors like Thailand and China will face more cross-border flows of heroin and meth. The military’s inability to control the country will only grow as drug networks gain power and influence. The fire this week was a show of force. But the real problem is burning beneath the surface, unaddressed and growing stronger every day.

Author bio: Julian Holbrooke, an international relations analyst contributing to major European dailies, specializes in Southeast Asian geopolitical dynamics.