The Fight against Narcotics Is On and
Will Continue Unabated Until a Narcotics-Free Afghanistan
Released by the Office of the Spokesman to the President Islamic
Republic of Afghanistan
03/02/2005
Presidential Palace, Kabul - In the light
of a new report released today by the International Narcotics
Control Board, the following statement is issued by the Office
of the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan:
The Government of Afghanistan, within the help
of the international community, is firmly pursuing the fight
against narcotics on all fronts, including eradication of poppy
fields, curtailing of drug production, interdiction and punishing
of trafficking, and, above all, the provision of alternative
livelihoods to farmers and affected communities. This campaign
will continue unabated until Afghanistan becomes a narcotics-free
country.
The Government of Afghanistan has adopted the
2005 Counter-Narcotics Implementation Plan to tackle the cultivation,
production and trafficking of drugs in Afghanistan. There are
eight Pillars in the Afghan Government's new implementation
plan, which includes building institutions, alternative livelihood,
interdiction and law enforcement, criminal justice, poppy eradication,
demand reduction and treatment of addicts and regional cooperation.
The Government is working to close drug markets,
seize narcotics, which are being smuggled all over Afghanistan,
and to arrest those involved in drug smuggling and are reforming
the judicial systems in order to be able to bring drug smugglers
to justice.
In 2004, Afghanistan Special Narcotics Force (ASNF)
has seized over 80 tonnes of narcotics, destroyed over 75 drug
laboratories, and closed drug markets, including 2 major opium
bazaars. The Counter Narcotics Police have expanded to over
750 officers, and will increase further. And a National Interdiction
Unit will be established soon, there will be 9 more mobile detection
teams (over 100 officers).
15 teams (over 120 people) are to be deployed
in a targeted way across Afghanistan from mid-February to verify
the eradication already taken place. The result will be internationally-endorsed
verification of Afghan Government efforts.
Extensive operations by security forces, in cooperation
with the people of Afghanistan, to eradicate poppy cultivation
all over Afghanistan have already begun and have been very successful.
As a result of eradication efforts, as well as widespread voluntary
restraints by farmers, poppy cultivation during this planting
season has decreased. There is, however, need for provision
of alternative livelihoods in order to sustain the success in
reducing cultivation.
The President met this afternoon with H.E.
Gareth Thomas, British Minister for International Development
and Head of D.F.I.D. and emphasized on the need for the provision
of alternative livelihoods to the affected farmers.
