Pubdate: Sun, 24 Feb 2008
Source: Post, The (Pakistan)
Copyright: 2008 The Post
Contact:  http://thepost.com.pk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4587

DRUG MENACE

An encouraging report has come about the Anti-Narcotics  Force (ANF)
decision to take action against those  involved in supplying drugs to
students of some  well-reputed educational institutes of Islamabad.
The  organisation is monitoring these institutions and  seeking
support from civil society for complete  eradication of drugs from the
country. The organisation  has warned the government that many
foreigners residing  in Pakistan are involved in drug smuggling. They
could  become threat for the country as they have direct links  in
FATA and Afghanistan. The ANF claims that Pakistan  is still a
poppy-free country, but given the resurgence  of poppy cultivation in
Afghanistan, the country is  facing the problem of proliferation of
drugs from  Afghanistan. Drug abuse, particularly heroin addiction,
has been spreading at an alarming rate in Pakistan  since the late
70s. It has now become a serious social  problem, with no solution in
sight. The situation  becomes more serio! us when we see an increase
of 100,000  addicts per year. These drug addicts are affecting  nearly
20 million dependents and family members with  psychological, social
and economic repercussions.

There is no quick solution for the control of drug  addicts. Drug
addicts resort to crime for generating  income for the purchase of
narcotics. Pakistan is today  notorious for many things, but during
the last 20  years, drug production and addiction has increasingly
become one of them. The drug addiction issue is often  overshadowed by
many other human development problems  like poverty, illiteracy and
lack of basic healthcare.  The result is that drug abuse is rapidly
growing in  Pakistan in general, and South Asia in particular.  While
Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Maldives all suffer  from this, Pakistan
is the worst victim of the drug  trade in South Asia. It has the
largest heroin consumer  market. Pakistan became a major exporter of
heroin in  the 1980s, following the influx of Afghan refugees
escaping the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.  The major
consequence of this has been a significant  increase in domestic
consumption of heroin in Pakistan.  Heroin was ! a drug which was
virtually unknown in the  country until the late 1970s. It is
estimated that  about 50 tonnes of opium are smuggled into Pakistan
for  processing heroin for domestic use. Almost 80 percent  of the
opium processed in Pakistan comes from  neighbouring countries.
Widespread drug abuse may be  indicated by the fact that almost five
percent of the  adult population is using drugs in Pakistan. Europe
and  the US are destinations for the higher grade of heroin  exported
from Afghanistan. During the Afghan jihad the  drug business
flourished and it was reported on  numerous occasions that drug barons
were involved in  the funding of the Afghan jihad from its cultivation
to  its final destination. The drug trade is still  continuing in
Afghanistan under the present set-up and  there are also reports of
some Karzai officials'  involvement in this business.

The most common drug taken by students is hashish.  Highly significant
positive correlations existed  between drug abuse with parents'
marital status as  divorced or separated. It requires concerted and
continuous efforts by the government, NGOs and  political and
religious leaders. There is a need for a  population-based survey to
determine drug abuse among  the youth. Parents, teachers and public
health agencies  should be mobilised against this epidemic among the
youth. The ANF decision is, no doubt, a welcome step  and its
jurisdiction should be expanded to all over the  country. Students of
some other noted educational  institutions are also involved in this
slow poisoning  business. Similar action should also be taken across
the board in order to rid our new generation of this  menace.
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MAP posted-by: Derek