Opium farmers sell daughters to cover debts to traffickers

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Opium farmers sell daughters to cover debts to traffickers
By Justin Huggler in Laghman, Afghanistan
Published: 03 October 2005


Afghan farmers prevented from growing poppies under a British-led eradication programme have been forced to hand over their daughters to drug traffickers to settle their debts, according to reports from Afghanistan.

The claim is the latest in a series to dog the British effort to curb Afghanistan's opium industry.

Opium dominates Afghanistan's economy, accounting for 60 per cent of its income. Critics say the country is turning into a narco-state under the noses of Nato peacekeeping forces, and of the Western governments involved in reconstruction.

The latest claims come from Nangahar province, which has been held up by the British, put in charge of the fight against opium in Afghanistan, as their biggest success. Opium cultivation fell by 96 per cent there this year, part of a 21 per cent fall nationwide.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article316683.ece

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1. Duplicate

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