Pakistan-Singapore Pledges To Bolster Efforts In Crime Prevention

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Mar, 2021 ) :Pakistan and Singapore on Friday pledged to bolster their efforts in combating cybercrime, stopping movement of psychoactive substance and cannabis related items.

During a video conference Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid and Singaporean Minister for Home Affairs Josephine Teo Li Min agreed to observe zero tolerance towards use of narcotics drugs and expressed commitment to combat cross border smuggling of such commodities.

The conference on Crime Prevention was held at Tokyo, Japan on the sidelines of Kyoto Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, said a news release.

Rashid told the Singaporean Minister that Pakistan had fortified its borders with Afghanistan and Iran through fencing and deployed Special Forces to stop illegal human trafficking and smuggling of narcotic drugs.

He said an integrated approach was being adopted to strengthen security and sanctity of border for which Pakistan had recently employed modern border management system at the frontier.

The minister further informed his counterpart that smuggling of narcotics drugs into Pakistan was mostly carried out through Afghanistan border.

This had drastically been restricted due to better border management by government agencies, he added.

Rashid apprised that up to 90 percent of Pak-Afghan border had now been fenced while the remaining part would be fenced by the end of this year.

He stated that fencing at the Pakistan-Iran border was 40 percent completed while the border would be completely fenced by the year end.

This initiative, he said would greatly help in stopping illegal human trafficking and narcotics drugs on these borders.

Josephine Teo Li Min said Singapore greatly valued Pakistan's efforts in combating the use and smuggling of narcotics drugs.

She said Singapore, too, had zero tolerance towards the use of narcotics drugs.

Sheikh Rashid extended Pakistan full support to Singapore in becoming a member of the Commission for Narcotics Drugs.

Josephine thanked Pakistan's Minister for his pledge to the cause of Singapore in Narcotics drugs control.

She emphasized on the changing patterns of the use of narcotics drugs in modern times, especially, psychoactive substance, which had, recently, been on the rise among young professionals.

She said use of such drugs among the educated and employed youth poses a bigger challenge in containing the use of narcotics drugs and related substance.

She was of the view that Pakistan should spare more resources to eliminate the use of psychoactive substances among the youth.

The Singaporean Minister emphasized on the need to collaborate more actively with the international community in fighting the menace of narcotics drugs.

Rashid assured that Pakistan would utilise the resources to play its role alongside the international community in Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.

Both the ministers exchanged pleasantries and extended invitations to visit their respective countries.