Drug trade in Daxia: Difference between revisions

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Opiod use in [[Daxia]] dates back to the 7th century, when it is believed to have been first introduced into the country through trading with merchants from the [[Arunid Empire]]. The poet Ye Chinchuan reported the use of opium as a sedative and and aphrodisiac in Shang noble circles and later among the urban middle classes. Opium was also received frequently from the Nasrad kingdom as part of the [[Tributary system of Imperial Daxia|tribute system]]. The surviving [[Imperial Tallies (Daxia)|imperial tallies]] record the annual receipt of fifty chests in 845, while during the late Qian period the figure was close to ten thousand chests or the equivalent to 650 tons of opium. The Zhong made important and succesful efforts to limit the consumption of opium by heavily increasing custom duties and taxation of opium itself in addition to a special tax on pipes and a steep increase in the price of licenses for purchasing agents. Consumption plateaued during this period and remained steady at around 120 tons per year.

Restrictions were loosened again with the arrival of the Qian dynasty, whose clan members had a long history of usage and even addiction before rising to imperial power. Use of recreative opioids became very common and legal during the entire Qian period, with the [[Hongli]] emperor reportedly consuming them to counteract his frequent bouts of anxiety and psychotic breakdowns during the [[Second Great War|war]]. The military governments that followed the monarchy tried very hard to tamp down on the use of drugs. They clamped down harshly on users, producers and traffickers when they could get their hands on them. Campaigns to burn opium poppy fields took place yearly, traffickers were hanged in public places in an effort to create fear, drug users were jailed, sent to mental asylums and their families ostracized. These draconian methods failed to make a dent, the astronomical profits meant that new criminal outfits such as the National Opium Syndicate were ~~undaunted~~. By the 1970's the war on drugs was quietly and reluctantly shelved, and from then on the problem was basically ignored.

Restrictions were loosened again with the arrival of the Qian dynasty, whose clan members had a long history of usage and even addiction before rising to imperial power; the secret history of the Qian mentions the deaths of at least three Qian emperors to drug abuse. Use of recreative opioids became very common and legal during the entire Qian period, with the [[Hongli]] emperor reportedly consuming them to counteract his frequent bouts of anxiety and psychotic breakdowns during the [[Second Great War|war]]; thousands of troops in the frontlines of [[Audonia]] also became addicted to the substance to calm their nerves during battle. The military governments that followed the monarchy tried very hard to tamp down on the use of drugs, especially in the armed forces that were the base of their power. They clamped down harshly on users, producers and traffickers when they could get their hands on them. Campaigns to burn opium poppy fields took place yearly, traffickers were hanged in public places in an effort to create fear, drug users were jailed, sent to mental asylums, exiled to camps and their families ostracized. These draconian methods failed to make a lasting dent, the astronomical profits meant that new criminal outfits such as the National Opium Syndicate were undeterred. By the 1970's the war on drugs was quietly and reluctantly shelved, and from then on the problem was basically ignored, leading to increased deaths from overdose and criminal infighting. The drug epidemic was one of the key ingredients of the erosion of authority of the [[National Reconstruction Front (Daxia)|NRF]] government known as the Slow Death.

The arrival of the [[Party of Daxian Democrats|PDD]] brought a change in the governmental approach to the drug problem. The new government saw drug use as an insidious tool to increase its grip on the population and as a revenue stream that could have explosive growth internationally. The new and now ideologically motivated intelligence apparatus infiltrated groups like the National Opium Syndicate, but instead of being destroyed, these criminal entities were coopted and directed to act in service of government aims. The crime bosses now had government minders, quotas to fill and very specific instructions of who and where to sell. Dissidents point to an entire superstructure organized from within the bowels of power to profit from the international drug trade. This network would include the largest pharmaceutical companies in [[Audonia]] such as [[Opdo Corporation]] and [[ToxiCor]], banks and credit institutions, government ministries and the ever present security services. The Daxian government has consistently denied these accusations.

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 Opiod use in [[Daxia]] dates back to the 7th century, when it is believed to have been first introduced into the country through trading with merchants from the [[Arunid Empire]]. The poet Ye Chinchuan reported the use of opium as a sedative and and aphrodisiac in Shang noble circles and later among the urban middle classes. Opium was also received frequently from the Nasrad kingdom as part of the [[Tributary system of Imperial Daxia|tribute system]]. The surviving [[Imperial Tallies (Daxia)|imperial tallies]] record the annual receipt of fifty chests in 845, while during the late Qian period the figure was close to ten thousand chests or the equivalent to 650 tons of opium. The Zhong made important and succesful efforts to limit the consumption of opium by heavily increasing custom duties and taxation of opium itself in addition to a special tax on pipes and a steep increase in the price of licenses for purchasing agents. Consumption plateaued during this period and remained steady at around 120 tons per year.
-Restrictions were loosened again with the arrival of the Qian dynasty, whose clan members had a long history of usage and even addiction before rising to imperial power. Use of recreative opioids became very common and legal during the entire Qian period, with the [[Hongli]] emperor reportedly consuming them to counteract his frequent bouts of anxiety and psychotic breakdowns during the [[Second Great War|war]]. The military governments that followed the monarchy tried very hard to tamp down on the use of drugs. They clamped down harshly on users, producers and traffickers when they could get their hands on them. Campaigns to burn opium poppy fields took place yearly, traffickers were hanged in public places in an effort to create fear, drug users were jailed, sent to mental asylums and their families ostracized. These draconian methods failed to make a dent, the astronomical profits meant that new criminal outfits such as the National Opium Syndicate were undaunted. By the 1970's the war on drugs was quietly and reluctantly shelved, and from then on the problem was basically ignored.
+Restrictions were loosened again with the arrival of the Qian dynasty, whose clan members had a long history of usage and even addiction before rising to imperial power; the secret history of the Qian mentions the deaths of at least three Qian emperors to drug abuse. Use of recreative opioids became very common and legal during the entire Qian period, with the [[Hongli]] emperor reportedly consuming them to counteract his frequent bouts of anxiety and psychotic breakdowns during the [[Second Great War|war]]; thousands of troops in the frontlines of [[Audonia]] also became addicted to the substance to calm their nerves during battle. The military governments that followed the monarchy tried very hard to tamp down on the use of drugs, especially in the armed forces that were the base of their power. They clamped down harshly on users, producers and traffickers when they could get their hands on them. Campaigns to burn opium poppy fields took place yearly, traffickers were hanged in public places in an effort to create fear, drug users were jailed, sent to mental asylums, exiled to camps and their families ostracized. These draconian methods failed to make a lasting dent, the astronomical profits meant that new criminal outfits such as the National Opium Syndicate were undeterred. By the 1970's the war on drugs was quietly and reluctantly shelved, and from then on the problem was basically ignored, leading to increased deaths from overdose and criminal infighting. The drug epidemic was one of the key ingredients of the erosion of authority of the [[National Reconstruction Front (Daxia)|NRF]] government known as the Slow Death.
 The arrival of the [[Party of Daxian Democrats|PDD]] brought a change in the governmental approach to the drug problem. The new government saw drug use as an insidious tool to increase its grip on the population and as a revenue stream that could have explosive growth internationally. The new and now ideologically motivated intelligence apparatus infiltrated groups like the National Opium Syndicate, but instead of being destroyed, these criminal entities were coopted and directed to act in service of government aims. The crime bosses now had government minders, quotas to fill and very specific instructions of who and where to sell. Dissidents point to an entire superstructure organized from within the bowels of power to profit from the international drug trade. This network would include the largest pharmaceutical companies in [[Audonia]] such as [[Opdo Corporation]] and [[ToxiCor]], banks and credit institutions, government ministries and the ever present security services. The Daxian government has consistently denied these accusations.

Drug trade in Daxia: Difference between revisions

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