http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/02/2643455.htm?section=justin
British given 'poison chalice' in Afghanistan
Posted 1 hour 21 minutes ago
Updated 46 minutes ago
The British Government has been strongly criticised by an all-party committee of MPs over the conduct of the British military mission in Afghanistan.
The House of Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee says troops are being given too many tasks and they lack the necessary resources to tackle the drug trade.
The report is also highly critical of the Government, saying the deployment has been undermined by unrealistic planning at senior levels and poor coordination between Whitehall departments.
It says Britain should give up its lead role in tackling the drugs trade which it says is a poisoned chalice, given the scale of the problem, its importance to the Afghan economy and links to corruption.
The chair of the Committee, Mike Gapes, says British troops should focus solely on ensuring security.
"We took on a lead role in counter-narcotics in partnership with the Afghan government," he said.
"We say that was a poison chalice, an impossible job for one country to do and we think it should be handed over to the international security assistance force, ISAF, as well as the work of the United Nations."
Mr Gapes says drugs trade is not the only issue in Afghanistan.
"This issue of counter-narcotics - the heroin poppies is a serious problem, but it is not the main issue we face in Afghanistan," he said.
"The main issue is the security and the threat coming from it once again becoming a terrorist place."
But Government sources say the Prime Minister had made clear the strategic focus of the mission to tackle the chain of terror stretching from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the streets of Britain.
- BBC
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_war
The Opium Wars (simplified Chinese: 鸦片战争; traditional Chinese: 鴉片戰爭; pinyin: Yāpiàn Zhànzhēng), also known as the Anglo-Chinese Wars, lasted from 1839 to 1842[1] and 1856 to 1860,[2] the climax of trade disputes and diplomatic difficulties between China under the Qing Dynasty and the British Empire.
Opium, which was not prohibited in the United Kingdom, was smuggled by merchants from British India into China in defiance of Chinese prohibition laws. A diplomatic solution may have been possible but communication problems and Chinese isolationism prevented a negociated outcome. Open warfare between Britain and China broke out in 1839. The war was controversial in the British parliament and attracted great criticism from William Gladstone.
Further disputes over the treatment of British merchants in Chinese ports resulted in the Second Opium War.
China was defeated in both wars leaving its government having to tolerate the opium trade. Britain forced the Chinese government into signing the Treaty of Nanjing and the Treaty of Tianjin, also known as the Unequal Treaties, which included provisions for the opening of additional ports to foreign trade, for fixed tariffs; for the recognition of both countries as equal in correspondence; and for the cession of Hong Kong to Britain. The British also gained extraterritorial rights. Several countries followed Britain and sought similar agreements with China. Many Chinese found these agreements humiliating and these sentiments are considered to have contributed to the Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864), the Boxer Rebellion (1899-1901), and the downfall of the Qing Dynasty in 1912, putting an end to dynastic China. The Opium Wars forcefully and suddenly opened China to the world.[3]
Background
Direct maritime trade between Europe and China started in the 16th century, after the Portuguese conquered the Indian settlement of Goa in the mid 16th century, and in 1557 settled Macau in southern China. After Spanish acquisition of the Philippines, exchange of goods between China and the West accelerated dramatically. The Manila Galleon brought in far more silver direct from South American mines to China than the overland Silk Road, or even Portuguese trade routes in the Indian and Pacific oceans could. Faced with a flood of trade, the Qing government attempted to limit contact with the outside world, only authorizing trade through the port of Canton (now Guangzhou). Severe red-tape and licensed monopolies were set up to restrict the flow of trade, resulting in high retail prices for imported goods and limited demand[citation needed].The Spanish Empire began to sell opium, along with New World products such as tobacco and corn, to the Chinese in order to prevent a trade deficit[clarification needed].
Low Chinese demand for European goods, and high European demand for Chinese goods, including tea, silk, and porcelain, forced European merchants to purchase these goods with silver, the only commodity the Chinese would accept. From the mid-17th century around 28 million kilograms of silver was imported to China.[4] This was not a viable long term trading dynamic. Britain had been using the gold standard from the mid 18th Century and therefore had to purchase silver from other European countries[citation needed].
In the 18th century, despite ardent protest from the Qing government, British traders began importing opium from India. Because of its strong mass appeal and addictive nature, opium was an effective solution to the trade problem. An instant consumer market for the drug was secured, and the flow of silver into China that had threatened to cripple British and other European economies was reversed[citation needed]. Recognizing the growing number of addicts, the Yongzheng Emperor prohibited the sale and smoking of opium in 1729, and only allowed a small amount of opium imports for medicinal purposes.[5]
Originally posted by zeeblebotEvery since reading The Davinci Code, the word chalice has had special meaning to me.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/02/2643455.htm?section=justin
British given 'poison chalice' in Afghanistan
Posted 1 hour 21 minutes ago
Updated 46 minutes ago
The British Government has been strongly criticised by an all-party committee of MPs over the conduct of the British military mission in Afghanistan.
The House of Commons ...[text shortened]... f terror stretching from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the streets of Britain.
- BBC