Cambodia v. China

Cambodia today faces many of the same problems as China did in the opium wars. In Cambodia there are two different problems with drugs that each reflect a different part of the opium problem in China. First, drug makes in Cambodia go into the forrest to cut down trees where oil that is used for ecstasy can be found. Though it is illegal to do this in Cambodia, criminal loggers have gone in and set up little camps in the forrest that their oil can be sold on the black market. This is similar to the problem in China because there, though it was illegal to trade opium, it was still smuggled into the country on the black market and sold everywhere. In both Cambodia and China, though the trade and making respectively of each drug was illegal, it still goes on through the black market. This black market problem is so large that even though the government is aware of what is happening, they cant stop all of it. Second, Cambodia is also dealing with a meth problem. Meth is an extremely addictive drug that has circulated within the youth generation of Cambodia. Many people do it just to fit in, and for some it leads to a serious addiction, while others have worked it into their daily lives (this is still an addiction but they don't view it as one). A large percent of the population of Cambodia is addicted to meth, just like almost everyone in China was addicted to opium. In Cambodia, there are many rehab centers set up so that people with addictions can be helped, but these centers can only help people who ask for it. Like in China, this meth problem is so vast that it is almost impossible to stop.