Azeri youths protest US gov’t report on drug use
About a hundred Azerbaijani youths protested outside the US embassy
in Baku on Thursday against allegations about widespread drug
addiction among the country’s students cited in a recent US State
Department report.
The report maintained that consumption of narcotics is increasing in Azerbaijan. It said 23,254 persons are registered as drug addicts in the country, though unofficial figures are estimated at approximately 300,000. The State Department said students are thought to be a large share of total drug abusers at 30-35 percent.
Participants in the picket, organized by the Azerbaijan Union of Student Youth Organizations, chanted slogans like "We say no to the US State Department’s biased report", "Unfair report" and "We say no to drug addiction".
Dashgyn Ganbarov, who chairs the Baku State University’s student trade union committee, said that, considering there are only about 140,000 students in Azerbaijan, saying 100,000 of them are drug addicts is absurd.
In a statement submitted to an embassy representative, the protesters said the allegations sullied the Azerbaijani youngsters, demanding a retraction from the US government. They also vowed to continue protesting if this picket yields no fruit.
Meanwhile, an employee of the US embassy was called to the Education Ministry, Deputy Minister Elmar Gasymov said, adding that the ministry’s protest was voiced to the diplomat.
"The embassy employee told us that they [the State Department] had referred to the local NGOs’ information," Gasymov said.*
The report maintained that consumption of narcotics is increasing in Azerbaijan. It said 23,254 persons are registered as drug addicts in the country, though unofficial figures are estimated at approximately 300,000. The State Department said students are thought to be a large share of total drug abusers at 30-35 percent.
Participants in the picket, organized by the Azerbaijan Union of Student Youth Organizations, chanted slogans like "We say no to the US State Department’s biased report", "Unfair report" and "We say no to drug addiction".
Dashgyn Ganbarov, who chairs the Baku State University’s student trade union committee, said that, considering there are only about 140,000 students in Azerbaijan, saying 100,000 of them are drug addicts is absurd.
In a statement submitted to an embassy representative, the protesters said the allegations sullied the Azerbaijani youngsters, demanding a retraction from the US government. They also vowed to continue protesting if this picket yields no fruit.
Meanwhile, an employee of the US embassy was called to the Education Ministry, Deputy Minister Elmar Gasymov said, adding that the ministry’s protest was voiced to the diplomat.
"The embassy employee told us that they [the State Department] had referred to the local NGOs’ information," Gasymov said.*
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