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| Pak Minister wants ban on liquor to go | | |
Islamabad, Feb 9
Kicking off a row, a senior Pakistani minister and a ruling party lawmaker have demanded lifting of the nearly 25-year-old ban on liquor.
Raising the issue, a taboo in the Islamic country, ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q, (PML-Q) Ali Akbar Wains suggested in the National Assembly that the government relax the ban on alcohol to wean young men from drugs.
"In my personal opinion, the government should relax the ban on liquor to arrest the rising trend of the use of drugs like heroin, morphine and hashish among the youth of the country. Most drug addicts are between the ages of 20 and 30 years," Wains said in the house yesterday.
By banning the "minor evil" of alcohol, the government had given the "major evil" of drugs to flourish in the country, he said.
Members of treasury and opposition were surprised to see Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sher Afgan Niazi rise up to second Wains suggestion.
"It is a fact that restrictions on liquor have resulted in a surge in the use of deadly drugs in Pakistan," Niazi said.
As Environment Minister Tahir Iqbal and treasury member Zulfiqar Dillon rose to oppose the proposal, Niazi said "I am not going to mention how many members of this honourable house drink." The speaker expunged the Ministers remarks, but Niazi insisted that he stood by what he said.
The suggestion that the alcohol ban should be lifted drew wide grins from most of the parliamentarians in the house, but most preferred to remain silent |
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