The exhibition "Maya Planet:
World against drug addiction" is held in Tajikistan

Dushanbe, May 22. In the capital of Tajikistan, the official opening of the international anti-drug exhibition "Maya Planet: The World against Drug Addiction" was held. The event on the basis of the Russian-Tajik Slavic University (RTSU) was organized by the World League “Mind Without Drugs” with the support of the Agency for Drug Control (DCA) under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan.

According to the president of the World League, Professor Jenishbek Nazaraliev, the purpose of the exhibition of artwork is to create a conscious immunity to drugs among young people. That is why the exposition was presented in one of the leading universities in the country. After the end of the show at RTSU, the exhibition will go to the Tajik National University.

During the opening, representatives of the World League made a video presentation of the main projects of the public organization and said that before the exhibition was shown in other countries of the world, the exposition would be presented in the republics of Central Asia. The organizers made such a decision, given the proximity of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan to the borders of Afghanistan. As transit countries for Afghan drug trafficking, the Central Asian republics are under constant threat of drug abuse and increasing extremism.

The World Against Drug Addiction exhibition included 60 of the best photographs, drawings, paintings and confessional stories selected by the World League as part of the Maya Planet anti-drug contest (www.mayaplanet.org) from more than 2000 works. In total, 150 countries participated in the competition.

At the opening ceremony of the exhibition in Tajikistan, more than 250 guests gathered. Visitors to the exposition praised the preventive effect of this event. Among the guests of honor were the delegates of the Drug Control Agency of the Republic of Tajikistan, the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Tajikistan, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan, the National Center for Monitoring and Prevention of Drug Addiction of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Tajikistan, the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Tajikistan, UN, OSCE, UNU, as well as representatives of NGOs, television channels, print media, news agencies and students of RTSU.

During his speeches, UN Resident Coordinator in Tajikistan Alexander Zuev and representative of the National Center for Monitoring and Prevention of Drug Addiction Asatullo Sharapov focused on the relevance of this problem for the entire region. In addition, guests noted the timeliness and effectiveness of the approach as a prevention of the existing threat of anesthesia. By all accounts, the author’s works presented at the exhibition very emotionally convey the idea of the harmful effects of drugs on humans. This makes them an effective tool for prevention among young people.

Special thanks to the World League were expressed by Major General Uktam Toshmatov, who held the post of chief of staff of the AKN RT in the 2000s, and now is the head of the apparatus of the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Tajikistan. According to Uktam Toshmatov, he worked for 30 years in the field of combating drugs and highly appreciates the preventive action of the World League. The Major General expressed his admiration for the activities of the organization and wished success in further work.

The exposition will be in the Russian-Tajik Slavic University until May 29. Representatives of the World League have already received proposals to extend this event on the basis of other universities in the country, as well as the newly opened National Museum. Recall that for the first time the World Against Drug Addiction exhibition was presented in Kyrgyzstan on March 5, 2013. During this time, the organizers of the event covered over 300 thousand people aged 7 to 28 in schools and leading universities of the country. In Tajikistan, the World League is counting on the same effect.