DOHA: An apex committee devoted to fighting drug trafficking and abuse in the country has called for developing a five-year (2016-20) national strategy to combat the menace.
The panel has recommended that upgraded methods in line with latest developments in the arena of fighting the drug menace internationally should be adopted to fight drug abuse and trafficking here.
The Cabinet yesterday reviewed an annual report of the Standing Committee on Drugs and Alcohol on the 4th phased plan to implement the National Anti-Drug Strategy, reports Qatar News Agency (QNA).
In the upgraded fight, the importance of family, mosques, schools, the media and civil societies should be stressed to ensure a drug-free society.
The annual report had three parts. The first part focused on fighting and draining out supplies and on the demand side, it was stressed that preventive education and awareness was needed. The third part related to treatment and rehabilitation of addicts.
The report contained data and the number of arrests made of gangs involved in the nefarious trade as also consignments seized, cooperation with international agencies and awareness drives launched, among other things.
The Cabinet approved the grant of right to benefit to those entitled to benefit from a farmer market scheme (Phase 1) of the state-owned Qatar Development Bank (QDB).
The scheme, unveiled in December 2013, envisages allotting plots of land for farming, fish and animal breeding to and providing soft, long-term loans (for five and eight years) to big and small farm owners (for animal breeding, fisheries and agricultural production) as part of Qatar’s plan to ensure food security.
Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani chaired the Cabinet’s weekly session.
At the outset, the Cabinet was briefed on the outcome of the 26th session of the Arab League Council in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, on March 28 and 29 and Qatar’s support for all that would push forward the joint Arab action and realize Arab solidarity and cooperation among Arab states for the good of their peoples was lauded.
The Cabinet praised the speech of Emir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani gave at the opening session of the summit and its contents of clear visions and positions towards the different Arab issues.
The Cabinet took measures towards the issuance of a draft law amending some provisions of Law No. 8 of 1996 on endowments after the Cabinet took note of an Advisory Council recommendation on that draft law.
It approved a draft law on the reconciliation law in crimes and violations stipulated in some municipal laws and decided to refer it to the Advisory Council.
According to the provisions of the draft law municipalities and competent departments at the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning may resort to reconciliation in crimes stipulated in the municipal laws before a final verdict thereon was passed whenever the crime is punishable by fine or imprisonment and fine in case that the text allows for choosing one of the two punishments. Reconciliation shall not be applied in crimes punishable by mandatory imprisonment.
Reconciliation in such crimes and violations shall be made in exchange for the payment of an amount equal to a quarter of the maximum limit of the fine’s amount set for the violation within seven days after the violation was reported. Reconciliation after the passage of that period shall be made in exchange for the payment of half of the maximum amount of the fine set for it. No reconciliation shall be made with the violator before the correction and removal of the violating works, the payment of due fees and the restoration of the situation to the previous situation before the perpetration of the crime at the expenses of the violator, QNA said.
The Peninsula
