Ramatullah Kawsar
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/ 9 January 2005

Afghan elders threaten opium growers

Tribal elders in southeastern Afghanistan have threatened to torch the houses of people found growing opium and make them pay a hefty fine in a bid to stamp out the burgeoning poppy cultivation. By far the most drastic suggestion yet offered for tackling the country’s rampant drug trade, the punishment has failed to win the approval of Afghan President Hamid Karzai despite his anti-narcotics stance.