Pakistan on Wednesday called upon the Nato forces stationed in Afghanistan to curb a reported resurge of poppy cultivation in war-ravaged country to help Pakistan control drugs trafficking, one of the prime causes of HIV/AIDS.
Anti-Narcotics Minister Ghaus Bux Mehar and Health Minister Nasir Khan made the request while speaking at a joint news conference along with UN Resident Co-ordinator in Pakistan Jan Vandemoortele.
Nasir Khan said there are nearly 3,500 registered HIV/AIDS cases in the country but Pakistan was still not prone to fatal disease. He was of the view that youth was the most vulnerable segment of the society who can suffer from HIV/AIDS and stressed upon the need to inform young generations regarding awful results of the use of opium.
He said the government was designing a new strategy to get authentic data of HIV-affected persons in the country. The use of affected syringes, the minister continued, was one of the major sources of mounting number of HIV/AIDS cases in the country. Besides initiating mass awareness campaign, Nasir Khan said the government was also contemplating to develop a plan for treating affected persons of deadly disease.
Briefing the newsmen, Ghaus Bux Mehar endorsed the health minister and said there was dire need to control opium production. Speaking about the government's initiatives, Bux said the authorities were making all out efforts to curb the menace of drug trafficking. The narcotics control minister informed the newsmen that although poppy cultivation have sharply gone down in Pakistan, it is Afghanistan which is still a danger for neighbouring countries due to its failure to curb the menace of drug trafficking.
He reiterated that the government would continue its efforts to control the smuggling of opium both in and outside of the country. He called upon the Nato forces to fight against the poppy cultivation and help Islamabad in combating drugs trafficking. Moreover, Ghaus Bux Mehar said the government has set up two centres in Islamabad and Quetta for rehabilitation of drug abusers whereas a proposal was under consideration to establish more centres countrywide.
UN representative in Pakistan Jan Vandemoortele also expressed grave concerns over an increase of opium. He assured full support to Pakistan in combating drugs trafficking and to control HIV/AIDS.
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