Pubdate: Tue, 23 Jul 2002
Source: Japan Today (Japan)
Copyright: 2002, Japan Today
Contact:  http://www.japantoday.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2264

668 KG OF POPPIES, HEROIN BURNED IN KABUL

KABUL - The Afghan government on Monday destroyed 668 kilograms of poppies 
and heroin the authorities seized in Kangarhar Province, a major opium 
growing center in eastern Afghanistan.

The poppies and heroin were burned in Kabul in what appears to be a public 
government gesture to underscore its determination to crack down on the 
production of narcotics in Afghanistan. Interior Minister Mohammad Khan 
Wardak, who ordered the narcotics destroyed, said Afghan farmers have been 
forced to grow opium because of poverty. (Kyodo News)
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