Pubdate: Thu, 27 Jun 2002
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  http://www.latimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248

EXECUTIONS MARK ANTI-DRUG RALLIES IN CHINA

SHANGHAI -- China marked International Day Against Drug Abuse by executing 
64 people accused of drug crimes, officials and state media said Wednesday. 
Other nations staged anti-drug rallies and burned piles of confiscated 
narcotics.

Many of the Chinese executions came immediately after public rallies at 
which thousands watched as judges condemned the accused and authorities 
burned piles of seized heroin, Ecstasy and other drugs.

China usually marks the day with a wave of publicized executions, 
underscoring authorities' belief that harsh punishments are an effective 
weapon against drugs. United Nations officials have said they do not 
condone the practice. Meanwhile, in Myanmar, the military government 
torched a pile of seized drugs and insisted that it was committed to 
fighting narcotics, despite international accusations that the junta 
profits from the drug trade. At a ceremony in Yangon, the capital, 
authorities set ablaze more than 3 tons of opium, 530 pounds of heroin and 
nearly 35 million stimulant tablets.

In Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai participated in an anti-drug rally 
at Kabul University.

"Will you fight against drugs." Karzai asked a group of girls, their heads 
covered in bright red scarves. "Yes!" they shouted.

"You are our future," Karzai said, speaking from a dais decorated with a 
map of Afghanistan emblazoned with the words "Wheat instead of drugs." 
Afghanistan has been a leading producer of opium poppies, which are used to 
make heroin, and authorities are trying to persuade farmers to plant other 
crops.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens