Drug abuse, production and trafficking poses a grave threat to the entire mankind today. Therefore, every country and region across the world is steadfastly mounting the fight against the menace of narcotic drugs and Myanmar is no exception. The Government of the Union of Myanmar is, in its own way, implementing extensive plans to wipe out the danger of narcotic drugs from its soil once and for all. All the national peoples, on their part, are actively and enthusiastically lending themselves to the government’s fight against narcotics.

In accordance with the guidance by the Head of State, the 15-year plan for the eradication of narcotic drugs and the New Destiny Project are being implemented phase by phase. As a result, there has been a remarkable drop in the production and trafficking of opium and heroine in Myanmar, and the United Nations and the international community has recognized it.

A coordination meeting on educating the public about the danger of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances was held in the meeting hall of the Ministry of Information on 5 September and it was attended by responsible personnel of the Ministry of Information, the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, the Ministry of Health, the Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control, the Myanmar Writers and Journalists Association and editors of journals and magazines.

The government has been staging narcotic eradication campaigns as a national duty and journalists are doing their bit, especially in educating the public. Respective ministries and departments and the media are required to pool resources to be able to educate the people effectively and extensively. People have often heard about tragic consequences of the abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. Psychotropic substances are produced not with the use of opium but with the use of chemicals smuggled into our country from abroad. Production can be done easily and so trafficking in psychotropic substances is on the rise. At such a time like this, the onus is on the media to fully cooperate with the government in the fight against drug abuse and to seriously educate the people, especially the youths, about the evil effects of drug abuse.