4-Latin America Current Event

While I was searching for a current event I ran into a very interesting article. This article can be found on the following site, http://xrl.us/beg3c6. I found this article interesting, because it deals with the drug usage that is occurring all over Latin America. In this article, Bolivia and Peru are defending their use of the coca plants, which are a source for cocaine. Since, cocaine gets distributed to the U.S; these coca plants serve multiple purposes. The people of Peru and Bolivia use the coca plants for both medical and religious reasons. The coca plants supposedly prevent hunger and tiredness, which is why the people take this plant seriously. The plants were first used by Indigenous people and are still being used by these people today. The main situation regarding this plant is that the UN has listed the coca plant as a dangerous controlled substance as well as the cocaine that comes from it. One interesting fact I found, was that Peru and Bolivia are the second highest producers of cocaine after Columbia.