OPIUM GROWING DOWN 22%

Opium poppy cultivation was down 22% worldwide in 2005, according to
the annual World Drug Report, released Monday by the United Nations
Office on Drugs and Crime.

But officials say continued political turmoil, poverty and violence
in Afghanistan could reverse the trend as soon as this year. That
nation is responsible for 89% of world opium production.

The report says cocaine use in western Europe is reaching alarming
levels and that consumption of cannabis, the world's most popular
drug, continues to rise.