ZUBAIR QURESHI
False messages and glamourizing of drugs by the drug traffickers is a challenge in raising public awareness about this menace and collective efforts are required to curb this trend. These views were expressed by Country Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Jeremy Milsom while addressing the launching of four short videos on ‘Solutions to Drug Problem – From Youth to Youth’ at the Pak-Brunei Friendship Hall.
The Karim Khan Afridi Welfare Foundation (KKAWF) in collaboration with UNODC and the Drug Abuse Prevention Centre (DAPC–Japan) had organized the screening of the videos.
The scripts of the videos are written by students from 17 schools of Islamabad and Rawalpindi as part of a script writing competition supported by the UNODC. While appreciating the efforts of the young video makers, Jeremy Milsom said it was important to understand how dangerous the use of drugs was.
The diversification of synthetic drugs is intensifying the alarming situation of the rise of drug use specially as there are now 1,100 different variety of narcotics substances including in Pakistan, he said. He lauded the KKAWF for launching and production of the videos adding that such initiative should be disseminated in the schools and communities.
