Some synthetic drugs, are widespread on an appalling scale. These relatively cheap and readily available synthetic drugs are spreading so quickly that they have become a national disaster in Azerbaijan, Chairman of the Azerbaijani Popular Front Party Ali Karimli wrote on his Facebook page.
He noted that this is happening with the connivance of the country's authorities.
From what Karimli said, it becomes clear that these are synthetic drugs containing methamphetamine.
Methamphetamine (abbreviated from N-methyl-alpha-methylphenylethylamine) is an amphetamine derivative, a white crystalline substance. Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant with a high potential for the formation of addiction, and therefore it is classified as a narcotic substance. In the west, it is used to a limited extent in medicine.
First synthesized in Japan in the late 19th century, methamphetamine has gained widespread popularity in Europe and the US since the mid-20th century, primarily as a brain and physical stimulant. However, over time, such "side" effects of this drug were revealed with regular use, such as a destructive effect on such vital organs of the human body as the brain, heart and liver.
Today, this drug and its derivatives are widely distributed throughout the world, including the US and Europe. The increased scale of this dangerous phenomenon has recently been described in the reports of authoritative international organizations.
According to the UN, after marijuana, amphetamine stimulants ranked second among the drugs used worldwide, while the level of their consumption often exceeds the level of consumption of heroin and/or cocaine, reads the report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
According to another report of the Organization, last year the number of people who use drugs in the world was about 275 million, which is 22% more than in 2010.
More drugs are being produced in Europe due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to an EU report. Amphetamine and methamphetamine production has increased across the continent. In addition, the authors of the document are particularly concerned about the increasing abuse of drugs of the benzodiazepine group, the document notes. According to the observations of EU experts, as a result of lockdowns, drugs started to be widely sold online.
A similar trend of the transition of "drug dealers" to media platforms is observed in the United States.
Azerbaijan is a country on the route of drug transit from Afghanistan and Iran to the countries of the region and beyond, actively cooperating with specialized international organizations in the fight against this negative phenomenon.
According to the 2020 World Drug Report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for the past five years, a large amount of opium from Afghanistan is transported to European countries in transit through Iran and Azerbaijan.
According to the head of the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee Safar Mehdiyev, the customs of Azerbaijan prevented the smuggling of about 6 tons of drugs to Europe over the past 3 years.
As a result of one customs inspection alone in May of this year, an attempt to smuggle over 244 kg of heroin from Iran to Georgia was suppressed.
In the same month, Azerbaijani customs officials stopped a cargo containing 107 kilograms of heroin at the border with Iran on its way to the Czech Republic.
Also, in May, almost 250 kilograms of drugs were intercepted at the Azerbaijani-Iranian border.
Drug trafficking incidents on the border with Iran are often accompanied by shooting and casualties.
Detention of drug couriers, elimination of illegal laboratories and drug plantations hold the lion's share in the police reports.
For example, last month, employees of the Main Department for Combating Drugs of the Azerbaijani Interior detained a number of persons involved in online distribution of drugs and psychotropic substances. More than 70 kg of illegal drugs were seized from them, including methamphetamine.
Methamphetamine, just like many other drugs and precursors, is banned in Azerbaijan. All of them are mentioned in the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the approval of lists of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors prohibited for circulation.
Sufficiently easy and cheap methods for the production of synthetic drugs, the relatively free movement of certain types of drugs across the border, as well as the possibility of sale through e-commerce, caused their rapid spread in Azerbaijan. Head of the Main Operational and Investigation Department of the State Customs Committee, Major General of the Customs Service Masum Rasulov, spoke about this recently in an interview with haqqin.az.
He said that recently, in particular, amphetamine has become popular among young people due to the widespread opinion that it relieves fatigue and helps to improve mood. However, it also causes drug addiction and contributes to the destruction of the body. Even more dangerous is methamphetamine, similar in pharmacological properties to amphetamine. It is more active and poisonous. According to experts, methamphetamine is 3-5 times stronger than cocaine and twice as addictive as heroin.
Those addicted to this destructive substance can get rid of the dependence of its constant use only with the help of narcologists, and even then with difficulty, he said.
According to the Azerbaijani Healthcare Ministry, 33,724 people are registered with the diagnosis of drug addiction. The statistics on the registration of drug addicts does not reflect the real picture, since many drug addicts, for various reasons, prefer not to go to medical institutions, experts say.
The same opinion, in particular, is shared by a narcologist, doctor of medical sciences Araz Aliguliyev.
“80% of drug addicts in Azerbaijan are heavy drug users. Up to 1,000 drug users are identified each year, indicating an increase. Drug addiction is latent in nature, and it is impossible to fight it by force alone,” the specialist notes.
As for the position of the authorities regarding the drug problem, this is eloquently indicated by the Azerbaijan State Program on Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking and Drug Addiction approved by the president. In addition, since 2000, the country has regulated the procedure and conditions for the use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances for medical purposes, as well as the use of medical measures in relation to persons with drug addiction. Since 2005 methadone substitution treatment programs have been introduced.
The essence of these measures is that drug addicts are given the synthetic drug methadone free of charge in order to help them get rid of heroin or other drug addiction and return them to society. This practice is applied in 106 countries and is officially supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and is considered by these international organizations as one of the most effective methods of treatment of opioid dependence, as well as a method of reducing the risk of contracting HIV infection
Thus, we are convinced that the problem of drug addiction in Azerbaijan exists, as well as throughout the world and at the highest level is recognized by the authorities. It is also obvious that the country is systematically taking effective measures to combat drug trafficking across the border and illicit drug trafficking and consumption in the country.
This, undoubtedly, makes the narrative of the head of the Popular Front Party, which we have considered, completely untenable, as well as his pretentious characterization of drug addiction as a “national disaster of Azerbaijan.”
