阿富汗鸦片生意泛滥成灾

As violence surges in Afghanistan, so too does the country's opium business.

随着暴力事件在阿富汗剧增，鸦片生意也在这个国家扶摇直上。

Last year was the deadliest year ever for non-combatants, with nearly 3,700 killed.

去年，在那些非战斗人员中，有近3700人因此丧生，死亡人数是历年来最高的。

In its latest World Drug Report, the UN says it was also a record year for the area of farmland used to grow opium: 224,000 hectares, which produced 85% of the world's opium and 77% of its heroin.

在最近的世界毒品报告中，联合国表示，用于种植鸦片的农田面积达到新高：224000公顷的。这些土地生产了世界上85%的鸦片和77%的海洛因。

When cocaine production was at its peak in Colombia in the 1980s, drugs produced 6% of that country's income. In Afghanistan, they generate at least 15%.

20世纪80年代，可卡因在哥伦比亚泛滥成灾，当时毒品竟然占到该国国民收入的6%。而在阿富汗，这一数字至少占到了15%。

The business thrives on the lawlessness of conflict, which has escalated in Afghanistan along with the withdrawal of a large part of the American-led international forces.

这项生意之所以红火是因为在打击中无法可依，加上美国主导的国际刑警组织撤退造成在阿富汗地区斗争不断升级。

Large-scale poppy-growers often use their connections to keep prying officials at bay.

大规模的罂粟种植者经常利用关系使卧底警察陷入困境。

Eradication efforts thus mainly target poorer farmers. That risks making the violence worse. Desperate farmers stripped of their livelihoods may turn to the Taliban.

这样一来，根除工作的主要打击对象就成了贫穷的农民。这种风险让暴力不断恶化。而被剥夺生计的绝望的农民，很有可能转而投身塔利班。