Drugs in Pakistan

Pakistan's geographic location next to Afghanistan, the world's largest producer of illicit opium, places the country in a vulnerable position in terms of drug trafficking as well as drug abuse. Patterns of illicit drug production, distribution and abuse change as a result of social, economic and political developments. Narcotics have become a multiple challenge to law enforcement authorities. In the late 1980s, Pakistan and Afghanistan exported nearly half the world's heroin, and, although their relative share declined somewhat thereafter, they remain among the world's major producers. Pakistan, especially under United States prodding, has attempted to cut back the cultivation of poppies, but the government's influence has not extended effectively into tribal areas. In addition, various political and economic forces have been brought to bear to keep narcotics police from pursuing their work too assiduously. In 1991 the Pakistan Narcotics Control Board--an organization that was supposed to have close ties to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration--was so riddled with corruption that its new director had to fire a majority of the staff. The vast profits generated by the narcotics industry not only had corrupted the enforcement authorities, including, it was rumored, some military units, but also had funded many other related crimes. Pakistan's cultivation of opium poppy largely declined during the 1990's to near zero levels in 1999 and 2000. The commitment of the Government of Pakistan (GOP) to measures for eliminating opium poppy cultivation, together with alternative development projects funded by the international community, led to a decrease in poppy cultivation from approximately 9,441 ha. in 1992 to some 213 ha. in 2001. However, there was a reemergence of poppy cultivation, probably as a result of high opium prices following the Taliban's prohibition of poppy cultivation in Afghanistan in 2001. In 2003 poppy cultivation was reported at 6,703 ha., including for the first time cultivation in the Balochistan Province. The total area cultivated declined to 2,306 ha. by May 2007 as a result of concerted eradication efforts. Pakistan is one of the primary transit countries for drugs from Afghanistan and hence knowledge of new routes and evolving methods of drug trafficking is essential for successful interdiction. In 2007, law enforcement agencies seized 13,736 kg of heroin/morphine base, 101,069 kg of cannabis and 15,362 kg of opium (down from the 2006 seizures of 35,478 kg of heroin heroin/morphine base and 115,443 kg of cannabis and up from the 2006 opium seizures of 8,907 kg). Intelligence on groups involved in drug trafficking and their links to other crime groups is also key to controlling drug trafficking. While the area cultivated in Pakistan during 2007 was equivalent to only around 1.2 percent of the area cultivated in Afghanistan, there is a risk that cultivation in Pakistan could increase substantially unless there are sustained efforts to dissuade farmers from planting poppy and to destroy opium crops before they are harvested. The problematic areas in terms of poppy cultivation are largely concentrated in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Concerns about losing community acquiescence in counter terrorism operations and a lack of available security forces due

to ongoing counter terrorism operations in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas are factors that hamper the eradication efforts in FATA. Eradication efforts need to be improved, particularly in Khyber Agency where there is a trend towards cultivation within walled compounds to conceal the crop from the authorities.

Drug addiction in Pakistan

Pakistan is today notorious for many things, but in the last 20 years, drug production and addiction has increasingly become just one of them. The issue of drug addiction is often overshadowed by the many of the country's other human development problems, such as poverty, illiteracy and lack of basic health care. But the fact is, drug abuse is rapidly growing in Pakistan and in South Asia in general. While Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Maldives all suffer from this, Pakistan is the worst victim of the drug trade in South Asia. Today, the country has the largest heroin consumer market in the south-west Asia region. It wasn't always this way. Pakistan became a major exporter of heroin in the 1980s, following the influx of Afghan refugees escaping the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. The major consequence of this has been a significant increase in domestic consumption of heroin in Pakistan. Heroin was once upon a time a drug which was virtually unknown in the country until the late 1970s. Today, Pakistan is not only one of the main exporters of heroin, it has also become a net importer of drugs. It is estimated that about 50 tons of opium are smuggled into Pakistan for processing heroin for domestic use. Almost 80 percent of the opium processed in Pakistan comes from neighboring countries. Widespread drug abuse may be indicated by the fact that almost five percent of the adult population is using drugs in Pakistan. As a proportion of drug abusers, heroin users have

increased from 7.5 percent in 1983 to a shocking 51 percent a decade later in 1993. Drug production for Pakistan's domestic market is estimated at close to $1.5 billion. It appears that only three percent of the gross profits from the illegal opium industry remain within Pakistan. Like many of the country's other human development problems, the issue of drug abuse touches the most vulnerable: the majority of drug users in South Asia belong to the poorest strata of society. In addition, the presence of a large drug industry in Pakistan leads to a redistribution of income from the poor to a few rich individuals who control the drug trade. This not only makes the gap between the rich and the poor as well as income inequality even worse, it also erodes Pakistan's social cohesion and stability. Although almost all South Asian countries have enacted strict laws for fighting drug trafficking and drug use, these measures have produced very disappointing results. One problem is that corruption has also touched the fight against drug abuse in Pakistan and other South Asian countries, since drug traffickers often escape punishment by giving bribes to get out of being held accountable for their actions. But Pakistan is not alone in fighting this disease. With the globalization of the drug abuse problem in the last two decades, the situation has gone from bad to worse, so much so that the United Nations Commission on narcotic drugs no longer discusses individual situations. It has argued that the solution does not lie in the hands of individual countries. It has to be worked out through mutual efforts by South Asian countries

The Health Effects of Commonly Used Drugs

One of the myths floating around about drug abuse is if it can be or usually is used as a medication, it's not harmful. Contrary to what some believe, the abuse or nonmedical use of any drug can have long-lasting effects on your health.

The truth is even the "safest" drugs can have negative effects on your health and well-being if they are used too often or over too long a period of time. Besides alcohol (which has its own set of health effects), the following are the most commonly abused drugs in the United States, in order of popularity, and how they can effect your health.

Marijuana
Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States. When smoked, it begins to effect users almost immediately and can last for one to three hours. Users claim that smoking marijuana is not harmful, but scientific evidence proves otherwise.

Cocaine and Crack Cocaine

Approximately 2.1 million people in the U.S. use cocaine, making it the third most abused category of drug. Cocaine can be snorted, injected and even smoked in some forms of the drug. In all cases, cocaine is a strong central nervous system stimulant which affects the brain.

Hallucinogens
Each month, more than a million people in the U.S. use hallucinogens such as LSD, PCP, Katamine and DMX, according to NSDUH. Hallucinogens disrupt a person's ability to think and communicate rationally, or even to recognize reality, sometimes resulting in bizarre or dangerous behavior.

Heroin
Of all the illicit drugs available on the market today, heroin is the least commonly abused, with only an estimated 200,000 current users in the United States. That's probably because it is the most addictive of all the street drugs. Whether injected, snorted or smoked, heroin will begin to affect the body's central nervous system almost immediately after it is used.

Prescription Drugs
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), the second most popular drugs of abuse in the U.S. are psychotherapeutics including pain relievers, tranquilizers, stimulants, and sedatives. This involves the nonmedical use of prescription drugs, over-thecounter drugs and drugs that may be manufactured illegally, such as methamphetamine and ecstasy.

Has Your Health Been Affected?

If you believe that your health has been affected by your use of illicit drugs or nonmedical use of prescription or over-the-counter drugs, seek medical attention immediately. If you need help

trying to stop taking drugs there are many help and support resources available.

Addiction Recovery Retreat How we see Drug & Alcohol Addiction

The Bay Approach to drug and alcohol addiction sees destructive patterns of thought and behaviour, such as drug and other dependencies, as an individual's changeable creative adaptation for survival in the face of life events. The Bay holds the view that dependencies are not necessarily embedded for life and that these creative adaptations can change. We support you to explore and understand the underlying issues related to your addiction or dependency on drugs or alcohol or other behaviour patterns. We help you to come to terms with and integrate your past, as well as learning new strategies to deal with any current or future pain and stress. With this approach you can learn to live without dependence on drugs, alcohol or other addictions such as work, food, sex, gambling and so on.

The Search for Wholeness

We see drug or other addictions as a direct response to an unmet spiritual need: a misguided search for inner peace, for connection, for wholeness and as a diversion from pain. Dr Elliott S. Dacher, author of "Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing" writes that "Jung understood that the driving force and root cause of addictive behaviour was the addict's unrecognized and unmet spiritual need. In order to heal addiction at its source this natural and unmet spiritual need must be responded to and satisfied in an appropriate and authentic manner." (Jungian Theory, www.eliottdacher.org/addiction/theories/jung, retrieved 5th September 2008)

Drug & Alcohol Addiction Treatment at The Bay Retreat

The Bay Approach to healing and rehabilitation has been developed in order to meet the search for wholeness. Once an inner peace and sense of fulfilment become more accessible, drugs, alcohol or other dependencies, that once served a purpose, are no longer viable coping strategies. The Bay Approach is grounded in a deep understanding of the human psyche that integrates evidence-based western psychology with ancient eastern wisdom, the science of the soul and meditation.

Therapy in Addiction Treatment for Drugs & Alcohol

The role of therapy in the treatment of chemical or other dependencies is to explore, uncover and

integrate issues underlying your addiction. Addictive behaviours are often used to mask or avoid the experience of certain feelings such as loneliness, anxiety, depression, pain, traumatic memories and challenging situations. We do not see these issues or the resulting feelings as the original source of addiction, but as indicators that point to deeper, sometimes unconscious, wounds. Once these underlying issues are understood and new coping skills are adopted, you have the opportunity to choose alternative, less harmful means of dealing with internal conflict and pain. The aim is to effectively resolve unconscious wounds and make space for a meditative depth, where your authentic healing can occur.

Meditation in Addiction Treatment for Drugs & Alcohol

Meditation, or mindfulness, can develop your ability to be present with uncomfortable feelings and situations in your life, to be with your current reality, right here, right now. By developing the ability to be present, meditation can have transformative effects directly on the choices you make. Meditation, tailored for the western mind, provides an antidote to addiction or dependency on alcohol, a drug or behaviour. It challenges the misguided search at the root of addiction by facilitating an authentic connection with your true self. Meditation can free you from being bound to the habitual pathways of your mind that feed the cycle of dependency: desire, craving and use. Drugs or alcohol can eventually lose their power to govern your way of being.

Your Rehabilitation Program Structure

Medical and psychological assessments form the basis of your rehabilitation treatment plan. Detoxification is required prior to commencing the therapeutic program. We recommend you undertake your detoxification process at The Bay in our medically supervised program that focuses on your safety and comfort. Your rehabilitation program is completely one-to-one. There are no groups or meetings to attend. An entire treatment team, attuned to your needs, delivers your program in the comfort of your private luxury accomodation. Your therapeutic program evolves with you. Throughout your stay our Clinical Director develops and adapts your rehabilitation treatment plan for optimal results. This plan will reflect your needs and preferences and the varying levels of intensity required for your healing.

The Core Elements of your Treatment:

Physical - healing and rejuvenating the body: detoxification, medical and nursing services, bodyoriented natural therapies such as acupuncture and naturopathy, shiatsu, massage, nutrition, chi kung, yoga, fitness training...

Behavioural - learning new skills: Cognitive behavioural Therapy (CBT), dependency counselling, psycho-education, psychophysiology of dependency, relapse prevention, management strategies for anxiety and depression... Psychological - addressing underlying issues: psychotherapy, trauma resolution (Somatic Experiencing ), relationship counselling, family of origin work, CBT, EMDR, Hypnotherapy, NLP, psychiatry... Meditation: helping you find the way that works for you: mindfulness in daily life, movement meditation, self enquiry, guided meditation, zen meditation, vipassana techniques, meditation instruction... After Care: planning for your rehabilitation from alcohol or drug dependency includes your personalised After Care program to support your sustainable recovery.

STATICS OF DRUGS
Potential Opium Production (metric tonnes) in Afghanistan 2001-2007

Heroin-Morphine Base Seizures (kg), Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan 2001-2006

Opium Base Seizures (kg) in Pakistan Iran and Afghanistan 2001-2006

Cannabis Seizures in Pakistan 1992 2007

CONCLUSION
In conclusion, drug education programs, if properly structured, are an extremely effective form of educating young children about drugs. Through general information about drugs and ways to deal with peer pressure, drug education programs in schools are vital to children's well being in the future.