The ranking in drugs of use in Malaysia has been largely stable between 2004 and 2008 with a declining trend for all drugs with the exception of opium in 2007, the latest year for which trend data were reported. Heroin has been ranked number one for five consecutive years, but with a decreasing use trend in 2006 and 2007. Morphine was ranked second during the same period and also showed a decreasing trend, as did cannabis herb which was ranked third.

Crystalline methamphetamine has ranked fourth since 2004, while ecstasy moved up from eighth in rank in 2005 to sixth in 2006. The ecstasy ranking remained stable through till 2008. Psychotropic pills was ranked fifth as in 200. No data for methamphetamine pills or ketamine were reported during 2003-2008.

It should be noted that both rank and trend data reported to DAINAP are most likely based primarily on treatment admission data in Malaysia. As there are limited available resources for treatment of ATS, it also is likely that ATS use is underestimated (UNODC, 2009e).

Arrest, seizure and price data

Total drug-related arrests in Malaysia declined from 32,808 in 2005 to 14,489 in 2007, a 55.8% decline. The declining trend continued in 2008 with a further decrease of 14.7% to 12,354 arrests (Note that for 2008 only the disaggregated number was reported).

Malaysian drug-related arrest data were not disaggregated by drug type for 2008. While drug type was delineated in 2007, there was a substantial percent for which the drug was not specified, comprising more than a quarter (26.2%) of all drug-related arrests. Among the drugs which were specified in 2007, arrests primarily involved heroin (25.1%), morphine (23.1%) and cannabis (16.6%). ATS-related offences in 2007 accounted for 7% of total drug related arrests.

In terms of gender, the overwhelming majority (98%) of drug-related arrestees in Malaysia were male. Although drug-related arrests are not reported by nationality, several noteworthy cases involving nonnationals have been reported over the 2007 to 2009 period, both for trafficking and manufacturing of illicit drugs. Some prominent cases in 2007 and 2008 involved Chinese (including Hong Kong SAR), Canadian, Japanese, Taiwanese, Thai and Singaporean nationals (UNODC, 2008). In June 2009, Iranian nationals were arrested for the first time for trafficking crystalline methamphetamine into the country, arriving at Kuala Lumpur International Airport from Dubai with 20.4 kg of the drug hidden in suitcases.