American influence on the British decision to end opium smoking and its Asian monopolies, 1939-1943.

Breaking the Monopoly System. In 1943 the American Federal Bureau of Narcotics began a campaign to force a change in British and Dutch colonial opium policies. The British, although reluctant to pursue prohibitionist policies which they feared would be difficult to implement, eventually acquiesced. Here John Collins examines the broader historical background of the 'Colonial Issue' and why it was perhaps the most significant obstacle to international drug control efforts over the previous four decades. He explains how the understanding of 'legitimate' drug use had evolved over this time and why the resolution of this issue fundamentally reshaped the international drug control system.