State Fragility and Drug Trafficking in the Peshawar Region: A Criminological Analysis

Abstract

The problems of state fragility and drug trafficking are related and pose great dangers to governance, security and social order. This research will examine that how the drug trafficking and state fragility are related in the Peshawar area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa through the lens of criminology. The research will explore how such issues like weak governance, corruption, ineffective law enforcement, bad border management, political instability, poverty and unemployment create conditions that are conducive to the growth of drug trafficking syndicates. Being close to the border of Afghanistan–Pakistan, Peshawar has always been known to be a significant transit point for all kinds of drugs including heroin, opium, and methamphetamine. Qualitative research design was used in this study with purposeful sampling and 20-25 participants including police officers, officials from Anti-Narcotics Force, criminologists, lawyers and community leaders were selected for interview. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and the results were analyzed with the help of thematic analysis. The study revealed that state fragility is a factor that greatly enables drug trafficking because of the presence of governance vacuum and reduction of effective institutional control. The main facilitators that were mentioned were weak border management, corruption, lack of institutional capacity and ineffective law enforcement. Moreover, the socioeconomic factors, like poverty and unemployment, increase vulnerability of communities and make them prone to engage in trafficking. In addition to the impact on the region's security, drug trafficking also plays a role in organized crime and in the undermining of the legitimacy of state institutions.