PRIME MINISTER REQUIRES EFFECTIVE MEASURES AGAINST THE DRUG
TRADE








MOSCOW, 13 March.  (RIA "Nowosti" rIA-"Nowosti"-Korrespondent).  The
drug trade assumed enormous dimensions today in Russia and really
threatened the health of the citizens and the future of the country.
This avowed Prime Minister Mikhail Kasjanow on Tuesday in the
introductory words at in this year the first session of the government
commission3 for measures against the drug abuse and unlegitimen drug
trade.

According to Kasjanow one must make all resources, here not only the
legal protection organs, but also the society the fight of this
mischief altogether, mobile.

The " medicine-other " drug use verzwanzigfacht itself in Russia in
the last years more than.  By 1 January of this yearly officially
450,000 drug-dependent were registered.  This number does not
correspond however to the real status of the things.

Drug dependency provokes the accompanying illnesses of the type aids
and hepatitis.  According to the drawer prognoses the number of AIDS
carriers will increase up to the year 2005 to a 1 million, if the
situation does not change, said the Prime Minister.

The spreading of the drug craze among the young people is particularly
causing concern.  Thus the health of the future generation is
questioned, stressed the Prime Minister.  Here drug dependency from
the large cities shifts into the province.

According to estimations of the legal protection organs the illegal
drug trade amounts to related to value 70 billion rouble in the year,
" the criminal businessmen for the order is ".

" today Russia is not only a Durchleitungsland for the drugs, but also
an enormous drug market ", he stressed.

The legal protection organs took dimensioned measures according to the
Prime Minister for the fight of this mischief.  In the previous year
in particular more than 50 tons of drugs and psychotrope means were
seized.  This is however fewer than 50 per cent of the entire drug
trade.

The fight of the drug spreading is a fitting not only the right
protection organs, continued Mikhail Kasjanow.  It is in many respects
dependent on the one active social politics, precautions and
medical-social rehabilitation of the patients.  These measures require
however coordinated actions of the organs of the health and training
system, the social protection, the culture as well as the sport
organizations.

" one may not permit that the drug craze becomes an alternative of the
healthy way of life.  The state is to cause such conditions, on which
in all life phases of the young people prerequisites would exist
Mikhail Kasjanow for a healthy way of life ", said.  The Prime
Minister is convinced that the society is to support the
drug-dependent with the fight of this mischief.

At the session of the government commission3 in particular the
fulfilment of the Foederalprogramms of the measures was discussed
against the drug spreading and the unlegitimen drug trade.