195. Memorandum From the Chief Counsel of the Drug Enforcement Administration (Miller) to the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (Bensinger)1 2
SUBJECT:
- Drugs in developing countries.
The U.S. is a major manufacturer and exporter of psychotropic drugs, i.e., barbiturates and tranquilizers. We know from our own experiences of the potential harm of the drugs even in a so-called sophisticated society where all the dangers of drug abuse are frequently told through our educational and news media. We also know through our experiences during the “fold medicine” era, that thousands of people can be accidentally victimized through loose controls over dangerous drugs.
When Burma does not impose tight controls and opium leaks out to cause a bad problem in Hong Kong, we think that is a horrid situation and we rush and join the world community as a whole in condemning Burma for its lack of interest in mankind. Yet, we send drugs around the world, often without knowing whether they are causing harm to the users and their societies. With the knowledge we have learned in the United States regarding the high potential for abuse of certain psychotropic substances, we still rely exclusively on the medical and scientific facilities of developing countries to preclude our sending these drugs to their country.
It seems to me that if the U.S. wants to make money from the export of our drugs to developing countries, we have an obligation to help the countries watch what happens. I do not think it is enough for us to say “once the drugs are in another country, it is up to that country—not the U.S.—to make sure the drugs are not abused and to prevent harm to their society.” It is irresponsible for the U.S. to export drugs to a developing country when we know that the country has loose medical practices, few doctors, and with virtually no drug abuse prevention program.
Since we are the producers of psychotropic drugs, we must have humanitarian concerns—not just economic or financial. We have an obligation to make sure that our exports of drugs are not the cause of initiating drug abuse problems in other [Page 2] countries, and we should be in a position of evaluating our activities so as to make sure it does not happen.
For that reason, I vigorously supported the United Nations Fund for Drug Abuse Control project, whereby the World Health Organization would begin some epidemiological studies with UNFDAC money. I doubt seriously that WHO will be able to do much more than begin to look at the narcotic addict problem. So, there is still much slack in our knowledge as to what goes on in regard to psychotropic drugs, and especially those countries that import our drugs.
There is a lot to do in finding out whether the U.S. is at fault in not monitoring our exports to developing countries. There is also much we can do in the future to make sure we are not responsible for a drug problem in a developing country.
- Source: National Archives, RG 170, Acc. # 89–0024, Box 1, Outgoing Correspondence, 1970s. No classification marking. Copies were sent to Frank G. Pappas, Acting Chief, Office of Liaison (DEA), and John Gunn, Acting Director of the Office of Science and Technology (DEA).↩
- Miller advocated monitoring exports of U.S. pharmaceutical drugs for diversions into the illicit traffic.↩