SECURITY FORCES RAZE POPPY FIELDS AS PART OF NATIONWIDE DRUG CRACKDOWN

Murr Says Campaign Will Safeguard Nation's 'Reputation And Credibility'

Lebanese security forces began an intensive one-week campaign Tuesday aimed
at destroying 5 million square meters of poppy fields.

Fighting bad weather, a 100-member team of Internal Security Forces and army
personnel equipped with tractors destroyed about 1.2 million square meters
of poppy plantations on the first day of the campaign.

Speaking during a news conference at his office in Beirut, Interior Minister
Elias Murr said that within a week, all poppy crops nationwide would be
razed, with the exception of fields now covered with snow, whose destruction
would have to wait until spring.

Emphasizing the importance of eradicating the trade and cultivation of
drugs, Murr said the campaign was aimed at preserving the country's
reputation.

"Lebanon's reputation and credibility are at stake here, and we don't want
to give any person or country that could help Lebanon economically an excuse
not to do so," Murr said, denying rumors that foreign pressure was put on
the government to carry out the moves.

Answering a question on whether the anti-drug campaign was a means to help
Lebanon reach a compromise with the United States over "other political
issues" - including Hizbullah - Murr said this was not the case.

"No American has called me, and I haven't called any Americans," he said.
According to Murr, when the ministry first announced the campaign to
eradicate drug cultivation last year, some "western embassies" contacted him
to offer help.

"I told them we would not need any help at the technical, military or
security levels and that this was our duty and we would do it ourselves," he
said.

"This is not an advertising campaign," he added. "The year 2002 is the year
to eradicate drug cultivation and drug dealers. They can keep on
cultivating, but we will keep on destroying." The ministry, according to
Murr, did not receive a green light from any side before proceeding with the
operation.

"There is an illusion in this country that whoever makes the decision to
eradicate drug cultivation in Lebanon needs to get approval," Murr said.
"This is not the case. I made the decision, I informed the president and the
prime minister and I am implementing it. It is as simple as that."

Murr stressed the "unlimited support" which the campaign had received from
all political groups and parties, as well as residents in the Bekaa.

"There might be some groups involved in drug cultivation, but 99 percent of
the people are not," Murr said.

The campaign is aimed at the cultivation of opium and its timing coincides
with its harvest, but Murr said other illegal crops, including cannabis,
would also be destroyed.

Opium cultivation flourished last year after authorities failed to crack
down on hashish cultivation due to the economic hardship that farmers were
facing, the minister said.

However, he rejected any such angle for poppy farmers, saying that while
some farmers grow cannabis to provide for their families in the absence of
any alternative crops, opium is used to produce heroin - a dangerous
narcotic which "threatens Lebanese society and youth in schools and
universities."

Murr also warned farmers not to challenge the police who implement the
operation.

"Their orders are very clear," he said. "The crops will be destroyed. This
is a final decision and there will be no turning back."

Estimating the value of the destroyed crops at millions of dollars, Murr
called on donor countries "that promised 10 years ago" to provide
alternative plantations to keep their word and help Bekaa farmers.

"Our problem is not with the farmers," Murr said. "They are poor people and
they need help. Our problem is the dealers."

According to the minister, 1,536 drug dealers were arrested last year. "We
know that there are about 2,500 dealers in Lebanon, and by the end of the
year we hope they will all be arrested," he said.

Referring to a suggestion by Zahle MP Mohsen Dalloul that called for the
government to provide alternative crops prior to cracking down on poppy
farmers, Murr called the suggestion "well founded," but said that, as
interior minister, he decided not to wait until the crops were collected and
on the market before making a move.

According to Colonel Samir Sobh, commander of the judicial police, the
eradication campaign took place in three areas: Ras Baalbek, Hermel and Deir
al-Ahmar, where a 1-million square-meter field had been previously
destroyed.

Sobh urged citizens to cooperate with the government's efforts, noting that
about 1.5 million square meters of fields had already been destroyed prior
to the troops' arrival by farmers concerned about possible judicial
prosecution.