Poppy seed opium dealers may lose cars and flats

Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s new decree should solve the painful poppy seed opium problem.

Head of the drug and human trafficking prevention department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Mikalai Karpyankou mentioned two painful problems at the press conference dated for the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. The problems are the distribution of poppy seed opium and “designer drugs”.

Speaking about poppy seed opium, Karpyankou mentioned the President’s new decree. Drug dealers will get fined for €1000-8000.

“The buildings where poppy seeds are stored will be confiscated too – flats, garages and so on,” Karpyankou explained.

Poppy seed opium appeared on the Belarusian market in 2004. The seeds could not be called drugs. It was only illegal to boil them and turn them into a drug. The real number of drug addicts has exceeded 100 thousand people and has reached 150 thousands, experts say. There is a chance to solve the problem now.