MO MOWLAM: MY IRANIAN DRUGS MISSION

The drugs trade is a global phenomenon with no respect for national
boundaries.

Likewise, the social problems the trade creates are felt keenly across the
world.

To fight this lucrative, ruthless business, governments have a duty to
tackle both the demand and the supply of drugs.

This was the main reason for my recent visit to Iran.

Drugs route

Although no drugs are produced in Iran, it is a route through which
approximately 90% of all heroin that reaches the streets in the UK flows.

It travels over the long common border Iran shares with Afghanistan - which
produces 80% of the world's opium supply.

This growing quantity of opium (and its derivatives) in Iran is driven by an
ever-increasing demand in Europe and the USA.

War on drugs

For more than a decade, Iran has been fighting a bloody and courageous war
against the drugs smugglers.

In the last 20 years some 3,000 police officers have died in the fight
against trafficking.

And not without success: last year, Iranian police and customs accounted for
more than 88% of worldwide seizures of opium and 44% of heroin and morphine.

UK aid

The UK already does a great deal to promote international co-operation
through the efforts of our police and customs.

We are contributing over ?2.67m to UN efforts to combat drug trafficking in
Iran, providing equipment and training for customs officers including
night-vision gear for those patrolling the borders.

But transit of drugs is only half the story. In Iran itself drug addiction
is a big problem.

Almost one million of the 60 million or so people in Iran are thought to be
drug users and drug-related deaths are rising.

My mission in Iran was twofold. First, to meet those working to combat drug
addiction and swap ideas and experience on issues like anti-drug treatment
and helping young people stay away from drugs.

On my first day, I opened a seminar on reducing the demand for drugs.

Tackling demand

At the same time, I wanted to talk to the Iranian Government at the highest
level about what we can do to cut off the drug supply routes.

To this end, I signed a memorandum of understanding on drugs co-operation
with Vice President Akbar Hashemi.

I also met other senior leaders including President Mohammad Khatami.

Frank talks

We discussed issues frankly: the Iranians emphasised what they see as double
standards in the West where the bulk of world demand for heroin comes from.

They consider themselves victims of that demand.

I raised the issue of human rights directly in all of my meetings. As
coverage in much of the Iranian press showed, I was heard; but the Iranian
government expressed the view that it is not for other countries to
interfere in their domestic political affairs.

Although I had a lot of good meetings I learned most from talking to two
groups of young people.

Listening to addicts

One was a group of addicts in a treatment centre in Esfahan, Iran's second
city.

They taught me the power of their Muslim faith in helping them break their
addiction.

This strongly echoes my discussions with recovering addicts in the UK who
cling to strong beliefs in their families, children or religion to get them
through.

Clarity

The second was a group of teenage boys that I stopped to talk to in the
square in Esfahan.

Impressively, they spoke in English with a clear intellectual clarity which
reminded me of conversations with my 17-year-old stepdaughter and her
friends.

These young Iranians talked about the problems of heroin addiction, what the
government should be doing, and of their hopes for the future.

Downward trend

Although the United Nations estimates that 180 million people are consuming
illegal drugs worldwide, the trend in the use of opiates like heroin in
Western Europe appears to be downwards.

This, at least in part, is due to the efforts of countries like Iran.

I am left with some enduring impressions of Iran: deserts and snow-capped
peaks; architecture ancient and modern; warm people and cold
air-conditioning.

Co-operation between the UK and Iran sits comfortably in this context:
distinct cultures and traditions with a common threat - drugs. Only through
effective co-operation can we find a common solution. Let's hope we can
achieve this sooner rather than later.