MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Morales asks US to “reduce” demand for coke leaves

Bolivia called on United States to “reduce” demand for cocaine thus helping put a cap on coke leaves production. The request follows a US complaint about the increase in the illegal acreage of coke in Bolivia.

"We fully understand the concern, but I would also like to ask United States to reduce its cocaine consumption if they don't want to promote excess coke leaves", said Morales when asked about US ambassador Philip Goldberg's request for more control over coke plantations.

President Morales has rejected the previous policy of "zero coke" (total destruction) and instead has suggested "rationalizing" coke plantations by limiting the area to a "cato" (forty by forty meters plot) for each peasant with the purpose of complying with its traditional religious and medicinal use in the Andes highlands.

"Even if my colleague peasants make an effort in a voluntary concerted reduction, if they (US) don't contain demand, there will be coke that finds its way illegally" underlined the Bolivian president.

"I think it's time they are not only concerned about excess coke leaves, but also about excess demand and the market. They are market experts".

Ambassador Goldberg in a long interview with La Paz main daily "La Razon" expressed concern over the increase in coke plantations, main input for cocaine.

"There's no way you can have an effective policy against narcotics unless you keep track of coke plantations and surplus production".

He added that to fight the illegal drugs trade "something must be done about crops and for us one coke leaf that turns into cocaine is unacceptable and it's a world problem, not only our problem".

"I've said it many times, and I believe it's a shared argument here in Bolivia, that any excess leaves production becomes cocaine", said the ambassador adding that "I propose both countries work jointly on the issue", and pointed out that while drugs consumption in the US tends to fall, "it's growing in the rest of the world.

According to Bolivian legislation a total of 12.000 hectares can be planted with coke every year, mainly in Los Yungas next to the capital La Paz, to supply traditional consumption. Any excess plantation should be eradicated.

However the Morales administration, who started his political career as a leader of the coke planting peasants, insists on voluntary reduction and eradication programs in coordination with the federation of coke planters and farmers.

A recent report from United Nations revealed that in 2005, in tropical Bolivia 7.000 hectares of coke had been planted plus an estimated 18.000 in Yungas. Eradication target this year is 5.000 hectares.

La Razon reveals that the Bolivian office in charge of controlling and monitoring coke crops no longer receives financial or logistics support from the US embassy, which amounted to an estimated half a million US dollars annually.