Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Public Security, Dang Van Hieu, has asked
law enforcement agencies to take strong, concerted actions against
drug-related crimes and to put a stop to the illegal trafficking of
drugs in Vietnam.
Hieu made the appeal at a meeting responding
to ‘International Day against Drug Abuse and Trafficking’ (June 26) in
the northern province of Ninh Binh on June 24.
When
addressing the event, which also marked the national ‘People’s Day
against Drugs, Deputy Minister Hieu proposed that the concerned
ministries, sectors and provinces step up anti-drug education campaigns
that focus on synthetic drugs and target young people.
Socio-political organisations at all levels need to become more involved
in joint efforts to combat this social evil and create a drug-free
community.
The senior security official called on the
international community and the United Nations (UN) to continue with
their financial and technical support for the fight against drugs in
Vietnam.
Zhuldyz Akisheva, country manager for the UN Office
on Drugs and Crime in Vietnam , praised the Vietnamese Government’s
efforts to deal with the issue.
The Ministry of Public Security
reports that the police uncovered more than 30,000 drug-related crimes
and made 40,000 drug-related arrests in 2011 and the first half of 2012,
breaking up hundreds of dangerous drug trafficking rings.
Vietnam has almost eradicated the cultivation of opium poppies but
at one point in the past the country had nearly 20,000 hectares of poppy
fields.-VNA