Minister raises concern over poppy cultivation

A Pakistani minister has reiterated Islamabad's concern over the resurgence of poppy cultivation in neighbouring Afghanistan. "The whole US army is there, but now they are saying that production is increasing. If they cannot stop it with all the satellites and the latest equipment that they have in such a huge force, who can?" Health Minister Muhammad Nasir Khan told IRIN in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. Speaking at a conference to mark the International Day Against Drug and Illicit Trafficking, Khan maintained that while Washington remained in Afghanistan as part of the postwar coalition, it should use its technological capacity to keep the production of opiates in Afghanistan to the low levels seen under the Taliban rule. The cause for concern follows an increasing drug-addiction rate in Pakistan. With opium available at cheap rates, it has more than half a million heroin addicts, making it one of the world's countries hardest hit by narcotics abuse. Drawing attention to the problem, the government announced that five new drug-rehabilitation centres would be opened across Pakistan this year. During the conference, recovering drug addicts testified to the value of these centres, and Khan reiterated the government's commitment to the fight against illegal substance abuse. Jamil Hussain, a 28-year-old former heroin addict, told IRIN at the conference that he stopped taking the drug after admitting himself to a rehabilitation centre, where he was given group therapy, physical exercise and medical support. "After 45 days of a detoxifiation and rehabilitation programme, I am gradually getting my strength back, and now I am starting to enjoy my life again," Hussain said. Although he received help from his family, he said that previous attempts to stop taking heroin without professional help had been unsuccessful. This year's theme for International Day Against Drug Abuse was "Let's talk about drugs", attempting to bring families, friends and schools together in a joint effort with ministries and NGOs in the battle against drug dependence. In addition to the new rehabilitation centres, the Pakistani government is promising greater inter-ministerial cooperation in the fight against drug addiction and trafficking. But Khan warned that tackling the issue in Pakistan was part of a global problem of supply and demand. He called on Western governments to rein in the demand for drugs in their countries, emphasising that "the market creates production". "There is no point blaming each other all the time. The US blames us and we blame them. We have to complement and supplement each other. You know, they have to resolve their problems. We have to solve our problems here, and that is the only way to go forward," the minister added. The 2003 Global Illicit Drug Trends Report, launched by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Paris on Wednesday, states that although heroin production is down globally, a rapid increase in production in Afghanistan is fuelling the market. The UNODC report states that a resumption in poppy farming after the fall of the Taliban in November 2001 brought world market levels back up to those seen before major producers, such as Myanmar and Laos, cut production drastically in 2001. Afghanistan is currently the largest producer of opium in the world, feeding 70 percent of European markets for heroin and opium. The knock-on effects to recipient areas, such as in the Russian Federation, Central Asia and Eastern Europe, are proving serious. "Largely caused by the increase in intravenous heroin abuse [in the above regions], the HIV/AIDS epidemic has been expanding at an alarming rate," the report says. Events aimed at raising youth awareness about drugs took place across Pakistan to mark the day, including radio broadcasts and campaigns launched with NGOs.