Introduction:

The Islamic Republic of Iran has adopted strict regulations banning drug cultivation and production and has launched an all-out fight against drug traffickers and has made great deal of spending on treatment and rehabilitation. Furthermore, a number of Iranian police members have dedicated their lives to the cause of fighting the menace of illicit drugs. Iran due to its vicinity with a region known as the Golden Crescent which is a major opium-producing region has become a victim of political, economic, social and cultural losses.

The world public opinion is unaware of countries where these drugs are produced and the countries that are exposed to its consequences. For this reason, many people are unaware of the volume of losses inflicted on Iran. Moreover, not enough attention has been paid to the necessities regarding cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran in fighting illicit drugs.

In spite of this, the Islamic Republic of Iran by relying on its material and human resources has made its utmost efforts so as to create a strong barrier in the face of the malicious drug trade and its flow towards Europe and regional countries.

Regional Situation

Nearly 54 percent of drug abusers in the world (opium and its derivatives) live in Asia. Meanwhile, the Golden Crescent region in southern Asia encompassing Afghanistan and Pakistan (Iran’s eastern neighbors) is considered as the biggest producer of opiates in the world. The intensity of the process of supply and demand in this region has led to the noticeable concentration of mafia networks involved in the production, distribution and smuggling of illicit drugs.    

The area of lands under poppy cultivation in Afghanistan in 2006 reached its highest level in the past two decades hitting a record high of 165000 hectares which is equal to 82 percent of the total land under poppy cultivation throughout the world. The amount of opium production had a 50 percent increase compared to its previous year reaching 6100 tons and the figure is predicted to reach 7000 tons in 2007.

At this juncture, the government of Afghanistan as well as the international community is facing serious challenges in fulfilling its commitments for reducing poppy cultivation and opium production in Afghanistan. Despite the lack of sustainable security in Afghanistan, concentration of security and intelligence agents of western countries particularly the US and Britain in Afghanistan, existence of extremist and terrorist groups, lack of full authority by the Afghan government and the presence of mafia networks involved in the production, distribution and transit of illicit drugs in the region, the Islamic Republic of Iran by allocating considerable budget, facilities and human resources in fighting illicit drugs, countering the drug supply, harms reduction and wide-scale plans for treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts has turned into a pioneer country in the fight against illicit drugs in the world.

Today more than any other time there is the necessity for adopting major policies as well as executive strategies in the region particularly in countries neighboring Afghanistan aimed at preventing the spread of harms caused by illicit drugs in political, economic, cultural and social fields.

Approach adopted by the Islamic Republic of Iran

In the Islamic Republic of Iran, the officials and the people enjoy a common view on the necessity for fighting illicit drugs as well as implementing harms reduction projects. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei has termed narcotic drugs as a major calamity and a major threat against the country. The Supreme Leader by submitting the general policies of the system in the field of the campaign against illicit drugs has emphasized the swift and decisive implementation of these policies which is indicative of his concern over the critical situation of drug addiction and smuggling. Today more than any other time the officials of the country at different levels by mobilizing all the existing facilities through national resolve seek to accelerate the trend of the campaign against illicit drugs. With regard to the sensitivity of the issue and the threats posed by narcotic drugs, the international community is expected to fulfill its commitments and fully support the Islamic Republic of Iran as the country in the frontline of the battle against illicit drugs.

Important measures taken by the Islamic Republic of Iran

1-                Measures taken within the major management structure

·                    The general policies of the system in the campaign against illicit drugs approved by the Expediency Council submitted by the Supreme Leader

·                    Inclusion of the issue of campaign against illicit drugs in Article 97 of the country’s fourth economic, social and cultural development plan approved by Iran’s Parliament (Majlis)

·                     Approval and announcement of basic measures implemented in the fight against illicit drugs by the Cabinet of Ministers

·                    Submitting the document on special development regarding the fight against addiction to drugs and psychotropic substances by the Management and Planning Organization

·                    Preparing and formulating plans as well as operational and executive projects by the executive bodies in the country

2-                Countering the drug supply

Studies conducted by the United Nations have indicated that a major portion of drugs produced in Afghanistan are seized in countries that are along the transit route from the area of production (Afghanistan) to the area of consumption (Asia and Europe). In other words, due to the existence of major drug consumption markets in countries neighboring Afghanistan, the Middle East and eventually Europe, they have turned into focal points of attention by international drug trafficking networks involved in the production, distribution and transit of drugs produced in the Golden Crescent region. It is to be added that based on a UNODC report, 54 percent of drug abusers that use opium and its derivatives live in Asia and 25 percent live in Europe.   Establishment of sustainable security in the eastern regions of the country, concentration of facilities with the aim of blocking the eastern borders, destruction of drug networks as well as groups involved in the distribution of drugs, increasing number of operations and armed clashes with drug smugglers are the outcome of sacrifices made by Iran’s police and security forces along 1900 kilometers of Iran’s joint borders with Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Islamic Republic of Iran based on Islamic and humanitarian principles has dedicated 3557 martyrs in the fight against illicit drugs (127 martyrs from 2005-2006) indicating its firm resolve in its all-out campaign against drug production, cultivation, distribution and transit. But at the same time, major steps are required to be taken by the international community for containing and controlling drug production in Afghanistan and fulfilling the commitments approved in various international conferences and meetings in a complete and transparent manner.

Qualitative output of the fight against drug supply in 1385 (Iranian Calendar)

1-                During the year 1385, 209 individuals were arrested on an average following every armed confrontation with drug traffickers. The figure shows 29 percent reduction compared to its previous year (295 cases of arrest after every operation). With regard to an 8 percent increase in the cases of arrests related to drug traffickers (in general) and a 38 percent increase in arrests related to drug distributors (in particular) one can realize the qualitative enhancement of operations carried out by the police and security forces targeting the main elements behind drug distribution in the country.

2-                In 1385 nearly 201 kilos of illicit drugs have been seized on an average following every armed confrontation with the drug traffickers.

3-                In 1385, with the arrest of every drug-related offender nearly 963 grams of narcotics were seized on an average which shows a 13 percent increase compared to 1384.

4-                Statistics show that in 1385, one member of the police force has lost his life in return for 6.8 tons of drug seizures on an average basis. The figure stood at 5 tons in the year 1384. These figures are indicative of  the qualitative enhancement of operations as well as the combat capabilities of the Police force. Statistics also indicate that in 1384, the Police force has lost one of its members following 20 operations. The figure stood at 34 operations in the year 1385.

A glance at Iran’s measures in countering the drug supply

On an average during the year 1385:

-                                             nearly 6 operations have been carried out against drug traffickers on a daily basis

-                                             more than 6 drug distribution networks have been destroyed on a daily basis

-                                             more than 1145 kilos of drugs have been seized on a daily basis

-                                             more than 1190 drug-related offenders have been arrested on a daily basis

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3-                Demand Reduction

The Islamic Republic of Iran with its young population that constitutes 33 percent of the country’s population is considered as a lucrative market for drug traffickers. The drug mafia strategy seeks to target the young generation and the healthy people so as to inflict harms on healthy individuals in the society. The huge profit resulting from the drug trade increases considerably at the retail scale which has led to the rapid activation of drug distribution networks becoming further active in schools, universities, educational centers, communities, families and work places.

Based on existing statistics, during 1385, drug-related offenders constituted nearly 40 percent of prison inmates. Prison inmates between the ages of 19-39 constitute 79 percent of drug-related offenders who are serving their sentences in prisons. 71 percent of drug-related offenders are almost illiterate and 57 percent of drug-related inmates are married. These married inmates have to take care of their family members whose number reach 408000 and are exposed to perpetrating various social offenses.

4-                Drug Addiction Prevention

The Islamic Republic of Iran in an effective move has drawn a distinction between different target groups (families, educational centers, work places and communities) and conducted scientific planning and within such a framework has come up with valuable solutions in line with drug demand reduction in the society.

In an initiative by the Drug Control Headquarters inspired by the justice-oriented policies of the ninth government, for the first time the credit allocated to cultural and prevention sectors was distributed on a provincial level. Such a move managed to cover a wider scope of the target community through cultural and preventive plans.

In line with this, different activities have been categorized and priorities given to them, special significance has been attached to activities that contribute to public awareness, measures have been taken to mobilize 12 executive bodies active in the field of prevention and culture and finally measures have been taken for further contribution by non-governmental sectors, public institutions and the distribution of the allocated credit on a provincial basis. These measures have contributed to the materialization of the goals set by the special document concerning the campaign against addiction to drugs and psychotropic substances at the national level.

Following are some of the measures taken in this respect:

1-    Implementation of educational plans including school-oriented      

Prevention, promoting life skills and health with the aim of protecting the students and eliminating high-risk behavior at different educational levels;

2-    Promoting public awareness with regard to the changing of the drug consumption model from ordinary drugs to synthetic ones;

3-    Publicizing alternative activities in order to promote public health and exuberance through sports activities and the holding of cultural and artistic festivals;

4-    Developing counseling services for individuals that are exposed to risks;

5-    Empowering NGOs and public institutions for materializing the broad-based movement aimed at preventing drug addiction in the society;

6-    Taking measures so as to allocate more budget to deprived regions and provinces in the field of prevention and cultural activities;

7-    Formulating and implementing the broad-based plan on preventing addiction in universities;

8-    Promoting the scientific knowledge and training technical manpower in the field of prevention by holding workshops, seminars and the signing of an MOU with Payam-e-Nour University and the Asian Studies Foundation;

9-    Preparing educational packages (books, tapes, films, brochures) based on existing requirements;

10-     Conducting applied research;

11-     Inclusion of a chapter on “harms resulting from narcotics and psychotropic substances” in textbooks based on an agreement reached between the Drug Control Headquarters and the Education Ministry;

12-     Publishing a bulletin on addiction in schools for school counselors;

13-     Implementing four survey projects on the issue of drug abuse;

14-     Launching a website dealing with issues related to young people;

15-     Allocating a news segment to the issue of drug abuse by Iran’s News Network;

16-     Implementing a plan for raising the awareness of government employees, entrepreneurs and laborers with the aim of preventing drug addiction;

17-     Holding meetings with religious authorities and ulemas and making use of their decrees and guidelines aimed at preventing social harms particularly addiction to drugs;

18-     Making necessary coordination with IRIB for broadcasting video-clips, documentaries and movies aimed at actively raising public awareness on the issue of drug addiction;

19-     Signing of cooperation agreements with universities throughout the country;

20-     Preparing and formulating the draft of a five-year plan on specialized training;

Treatment, rehabilitation and harms reduction

Undoubtedly, treatment of drug addiction is a difficult and complicated process that requires teamwork and could be accomplished through a combination of science, art, experience, patience and commitment. Drug addicts and their families are the first victims of drug abuse. Statistics related to the year 1385 indicate that drug addicts constitute 68 percent of arrest cases made due to drug-related offences. Moreover, drug addicts constitute 52 percent of drug-related offenders who have been imprisoned. 4484 drug addicts lose their lives in the country on an annual basis due to drug abuse. Meanwhile, common injection and use of common syringes contribute to 65 percent of HIV contaminations.

At the current juncture, since a major portion of social crimes and offenses are directly or indirectly related to drug abuse and smuggling and with respect to the heavy burden imposed on the country’s police, judicial and correctional institutions there is the necessity for delineating a new scientific and applied mechanism in the field of treatment and harms reduction aimed at containing the spread of drug abuse.

Considering addicts as patients, categorizing high-risk and ordinary addicts, observing medical standards, selecting the best treatment method with regard to the diversity of drugs causing addiction, making use of professional and committed medical staff, considering personal particulars as confidential and post-treatment care are among the general principles for materializing the process of treatment and harms reduction.

On this basis, the Islamic Republic of Iran with the aim of enhancing mental and social security in the society has intensified measures along the country’s eastern border areas and at the same time by making use of scientific, research and experimental activities has adopted measures seeking to upgrade activities in the field of treatment of drug addicts and harms reduction. Allocation of more budget to treatment, rehabilitation and harms reduction, expansion of governmental and private centers that are active in the field of treatment, adopting necessary arrangements for intravenous drug users enabling them access to treatment facilities by launching out-reach centers, supporting poor drug addicts enabling them to receive treatment (by reducing their treatment costs, offering them social security insurance for addicts, offering counseling services to addicts and their families), setting up vocational training workshops for addicts who have undergone treatment aimed at their social reintegration, establishing government and private clinics for methadone treatment for high-risk IDUs (MMT), conducting post-treatment care aimed at preventing relapse, establishing TC centers, setting up special centers aimed at harm reduction among street addicts (DIC) and equipping triangular clinics inside prisons aimed at reducing high-risk behaviors among prison inmates can be considered as the most significant operational parameters in the field of treatment and harms reduction during the year 1385.

Some other important measures in this field are as the following:

·                    Production of sufficient amount of methadone (pills & syrup)

·                    Production of  Buprenorphine  and its administration at addiction treatment centers

·                    Considerable rise in the number of governmental and private treatment centers

·                    Further activation of NGOs in the field of treatment and harms reduction

·                    Paying more attention to long-term maintenance treatment rather than short-term treatment

·                    Training specialized staff including physicians and psychologists

·                    Offering vocational training to addicts who have undergone treatment by the vocational training organization

·                    Paying closer attention to psychological interventions in the treatment of addicts

·                    Implementing projects in the field of treatment and harms reduction in prisons

Qualitative output of treatment, rehabilitation and harms reduction activities in 1385

According to the UNODC annual report, the global average number of drug addicts that undergo treatment in every one million population is 584 addicts. Regions such as North America, Oceania and Western Europe provide the treatment coverage for 5154, 2659, 1322 addicts respectively in every one million population enjoying higher levels of treatment. The Islamic Republic of Iran with a population of 70 million people has provided treatment coverage for 382500 drug addicts within various treatment and harm reduction programs in 1385. In this way, Iran has provided treatment facilities for 5465 drug addicts in every one million population which indicates a nine-fold increase compared to global standards and enjoys a status similar to that of developed countries.

Legal and judicial scope

Based on Article 33 of the Anti-Narcotics Act all executive, judicial, etc operations are concentrated at the Drug Control Headquarters. Of course this does not mean that the Headquarters interferes in the process of judgment. On the other hand, the Headquarters is tasked with spotting the challenges and shortcomings and eliminate the constraints with the aim of promoting the qualitative performance of the judicial system in countering drug-related offences and organized crimes. Among the approaches adopted in this regard one can refer to the review of methods and revising certain theoretical and practical aspects within the judicial system.

Some major legal and judicial measures are as the following:

1-                Follow-up and holding technical meetings on the general policies of the system at the Expediency Council;

2-                Formulation of legal and judicial strategies;

3-                Preparing the draft on the amendment of the Anti-Narcotics Act by taking into account the general anti-narcotics policies and the developments related to drug addiction as well as smuggling of illicit drugs and psychotropic substances with respect to international conventions;

4-                Promoting the role of the Headquarters’ representative at the Judiciary’s commission for pardoning;

5-                Follow-up for the establishment of specialized units dealing with drug-related cases in eastern part of the country;

6-                Inclusion of the subject of criminal law related to illicit drugs in university curriculum at the B.A. and M.A. levels;

7-                Identifying the challenges within the criminal justice system in the anti-drug campaign aimed at promoting the quality of measures adopted by the Police force;

8-                Implementing a pilot plan in one of the provinces aimed at using alternative methods in countering drug-related offenders;

9-                Enhancing the security of courts and drug storehouses in 30 provinces;

10-           Equipping laboratories for addiction diagnosis and determining the purity of seized drugs aimed at accelerating the judicial process leading to the issuance of the court ruling;

11-              Implementing police-oriented treatment plans as well as treatment-oriented courts for addicts who seek treatment voluntarily.

 Major Activities by the Drug Control Headquarters in the Field of International Cooperation 

·        Visit by a senior delegation chaired by Drug Control Headquarters’ Secretary General to Afghanistan and the signing of an MOU concerning the campaign against illicit drugs;

·        Formulating the text of an MOU between the Islamic Republic of Iran, Tajikistan and Afghanistan that was signed in the course of the trip by the President;

·        Participation of a senior delegation chaired by DCHQ Secretary General in Paris 2 & Moscow 1 int’l conferences;

·        Evaluating the integrated border project as well as regional and international cooperation projects for final preparation to be signed by the Drug Control Headquarters and UNODC;

·        Making the necessary planning for holding a quadrilateral meeting with the participation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and UNODC;

·        Enhancement of relations with Afghanistan and Pakistan;

·         Promoting regional and international interactions;

·        Holding a gathering of ambassadors of ECO member states in Tehran hosted by DCHQ;

·        Preparing the mechanism for preparing ECO’s anti-drug strategy for 2007-2009;

·        French and Turkish ambassadors’ meetings with DCHQ Secretary General;

·        Meeting between Iranian ambassadors to Britain and Afghanistan with DCHQ Secretary General;

·        Meeting of German special envoy in Afghan affairs with DCHQ Secretary General;

·        Meeting of a parliamentary delegation from British House of Commons with DCHQ Secretary General;

·        Preparing and finalizing the text of an MOU between Iran & Thailand;

·        Strengthening of relations with Latin American states (Bolivia, Colombia and Venezuela)

·        Promotion of cooperation with the UN and regional organizations such as ECO, Shanghai and the collective security pact;

·        Promotion of relations with the littoral states of the Persian Gulf;

·        Final formulation of the by-law related to the exchange of DLOs;

·        Active participation in the 39^th meeting of the UN Sub-commission on drugs held in Jordan;

·        Follow-up for the implementation of second phase of projects related to the anti-drug campaign in cooperation with the UNODC

·        Participation in the 50th meeting of the UN Commission on Drugs.     

·        We hope that through continued efforts and enhancement of the said measures in the current year we would be able to take more effective steps forward in the fight against the menace of illicit drugs