PESHAWAR, April 25: NWFP Governor Khalilur Rehman on Monday said that the government was fully committed to ending poppy cultivation in the country. “Pakistan is determined to destroy poppy cultivation and combat drug trafficking despite financial constraints,” the governor said at the inaugural session of a two-day workshop on “The role of women in drug abuse prevention”.

The workshop has been organized by the anti-narcotics force in collaboration with the Narcotics Affairs Section (NAS) of the US Embassy.

Mr Rehman said that the government was coming very hard on the poppy growers in tribal areas and had directed the political administration to destroy poppy crops at all cost.

The governor said that women role as mother can help prevent children from becoming victim of drug abuse and help the treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts.

Involving women in drug abuse prevention was a good step that could go a long way in preventing youths from indulging in intoxication, he said.

He said that media could play a powerful role in combating narcotics and called upon media people to play their role in the war against narcotics.

He said Pakistan had been severely hit by drug menace and presently there were four million drug addicts in the country out of which 43 per cent were between the 16 years and 20 years of age.

This menace is destroying the future of the country which must be controlled, he said. He said that the drug abuse destroyed economies and social fabric and diverted money from positive activities towards unhealthy acts.

Mr Rehman said that the extensive cultivation of poppy in Afghanistan and the increase of heroin laboratories there were badly affecting people on this side of the border.

“Pakistan is being used as transit route for smuggling of narcotics cultivated in Afghanistan an if effective measures were not taken then money generating through this trade will produce a thriving mafia”, he said.

He said Afghan refugees were another problem and strict monitoring was needed as these people come and go on both sides of the border unrestrictedly. Many of the refugees were involved in drug trafficking.

“UN is neither providing funds for refugees neither we can sent them back to their home country”, he said.

Later talking to reporters, the governor said that the government of Pakistan had discussed extensive poppy cultivation in Afghanistan with the concerned international agencies and now these agencies should take action.

We know that Hamid Karzai’s government is against poppy cultivation but the present circumstances have helped in the unprecedented growth in poppy crop”, he said.

Mary Elizabeth of NAS said the issue of drug abuse among women had always been put under the rug. “Drug abuse is a global menace and should be combated with joint collaboration and in this connection the US is working together with Pakistan”, she said.