Guinea Bissau Plagued by Cocaine Trafficking

June 28, 2009 | Pulitzer Center

Marco Vernaschi

Crack was an unknown drug in Bissau until 2007, when drug traffickers started their business in Guinea-Bissau. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

The drug situation in Bissau is particularly sad. There is no prevention, no rehabilitation. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Crack fed prostitution is just one of the consequence of drug trafficking in Bissau, and it's not for locals. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

The drug issue is so new that there is no data available, making it impossible to say how many people are lost in crack addiction. Worse, there is no consciousness among the people about the long-term effects of this plague. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

The locals can't afford to pay a prostitute. And, for the most part, sex among the local community isn’t something you need to buy since, for cultural reasons, women cannot refuse a man. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Life inside Bissau's makeshift prison. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

All the prostitute's clients are foreigners. Sometimes sailors, but mostly people who work for NGOs, the UN or Embassy employees. None of the prostitutes that I met use condoms. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

The lack of a penitentiary system is one of the reasons why drug trafficking proliferates in Guinea Bissau. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Prisoners are free to leave from 2-6 pm, but they usually return since they have at least a free daily meal. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Drug trafficking has destroyed the precarious political stability of Guinea Bissau and destroyed the lives of thousands of people. They are paying the price for Europe’s voracious appetite for cocaine. Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Image by Marco Vernaschi. Guinea Bissau, 2009.

Crack addiction was an unknown plague until 2007, when traffickers started to target the country. Since then, hundreds of people living in Bissau's slums have become addicts. Prostitution increased substantially, consequently generating a new wave of HIV. This is just another face of cocaine trafficking in Guinea Bissau.

Disclaimer: The following contains graphic imagery and content, and may not be suitable for all ages.

Photographed by: Marco Vernaschi / Pulitzer Center