Colonel Hoang Anh Tuyen, deputy head of the Ministry of Public Security’s Office speaks at the press briefing (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – During the sixth ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Drug Matters (AMMD-6) inHanoi on October 18, ASEAN member countries re-affirmed the association’s stanceagainst legalizing drug use excepting for medical and scientific purposes
The information wasrevealed by Colonel Hoang Anh Tuyen, deputy head of the Ministry of PublicSecurity’s Office at a press briefing on the outcomes of the meetingi.
Colonel Tuyen said thatat the meeting, ASEAN members approved an ASEAN Declaration opposing thelegalization of controlled narcotic substances apart from medical andscientific purposes, and calling on the international community to abide by theSingle Convention on Narcotics Drugs which is considered as the foundation ofthe world drug control system.
They agreed on theneed to stay persistent to the goal of building a drug-free ASEAN Community.The joint statement will be tabled at the fifth inter-sessional meeting of theUN Commission on Narcotic Drugs slated for November 7-9 in Austria.
The AMMD-6participants concurred that the ASEAN has continued to face great difficultiesand challenges regarding drug matters. The use of drug in the world has shownno sign of recession, while narcotic drugs have become diverse with many newkinds.
Since 2009, the UNOffice on Drugs and Crime has reported 739 new kinds of narcotic substancesglobally, with Asia being the biggest market in the world for meths andnarcotics. Illegal drug production and trafficking methods have become morediverse and sophisticated.
The Golden Triangleremains the second largest hub of heroin production with about 650 tonnes ofheroin, 1 billion tablets of meths and 20 tonnes of crystal meths per year.
However, according tostatistics of the Mekong Sub-Region country, only 50 percent of the total wasbeen seized.
Colonel Tuyen saidthat the AMMD-6 completed all the agenda, adding that important documentsapproved at the event will play the guiding role for drug control activitiesand international cooperation of the region in the future, manifesting thevoice and solidarity as well as the standpoints of ASEAN regarding drug mattersin the world arena.-VNA
VNA
