BlindLoop

Most Cocaine Users In The World

January 23, 2011 Uncategorized

Obtained from the coca plant, cocaine is a powerful nervous system stimulant. Its possession, cultivation, and distribution are illegal for non-medicinal and non-government sanctioned purposes in virtually all parts of the world. Although its free commercialization is illegal and has been severely penalized in virtually all countries, its use worldwide remains widespread in many social, cultural, and personal settings. Statistics show that Spain is the world’s largest consumer of cocaine and hashish.

With so many consumers of the drug (more and more get addicted to the drug each day), the country’s air gets thicker and thicker with the smoke. A study carried out by The Superior Council of Scientific Investigations, a government institute, shows that “the air in Madrid and Barcelona is also laced with at least five drugs — most prominently cocaine.” Interestingly, the levels of cocaine in the air increased over the weekend, and on college campuses. “Air pollution has long been a fact of life in Spanish cities, but scientists now say it is not just smog that chokes people as they walk to work or stroll through the park.”

A gram of coke is casually sold for 50 euros – about present day U.S.$ 79. When bought, it is quickly consumed in nearby alleys and parking lots. “It’s easier to get cocaine than to get a library card,” said Gustavo Rodriguez, a 31-year-old business student, recalling his nocturnal carousing before he went into rehab.” – those who want to quit the drug, go into rehabilitation.
“3% of Spain’s adult population consumes cocaine; that’s a bigger percentage than the erstwhile leader, the United States, at 2.3%.”
At dawn, “packs of young people are huddled at stoplights – the day isn’t just beginning for them. Like thousands of young Spaniards, they are ending a long night of hard-core partying that very likely included the unbridled snorting of cocaine.”

Drug Trafficking in Spain

Perhaps because Spain has a very long coastline, North African, Latin American, Galician, and other European traffickers take advantage of it, and use it for their shipments of cocaine, and hashish. Africa is less than 10 mi (16 km) south at the Strait of Gibraltar, hence traffickers from Africa have a passage to Spain through this border.

These drugs are later distributed to other parts of Europe, which is full of consumers of these drugs. Law enforcement agencies have made rigorous efforts but the narcotics trafficking organizations find different methods to bypass the regulations.

From time to time, we hear about the cocaine smuggling operations which are exposed by the authorities. On March 13th, 2010, police in Columbia found 16kg (35lb) of cocaine inside replicas of three sculptures by artist Fernando Botero being shipped to Spain. The cocaine had been mixed into the clay being used for the sculptures, and police say that this method of concealing cocaine is extremely sophisticated. Cocaine is transported into the country in many different ways – hidden in machine parts, frozen octopus or in any possible way. Thus, thousands of tons of cocaine arrive at Spanish ports each year.

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