ursday, August 23, 1973
THE SUMMER DAILY
Page Five
Thursday, August 23, 1973 THE SUMMER DAILY Page Five
Famine
By LARRY HEINZERLING fall,
Associated Press Writer yello
ON THE ROAD TO AGADEZ, woo
Niger - Just ahead, the fabled T
mud-brick city of Agadez rises it d
out of the wilderness at the edge tiny
of the Sahara Desert, huts
Far to the south, on the fer- semi
tile banks of the Niger River, A
stands Niamey, the dusty capital a
of this landlocked African nation aliv
of four million people. and
pudd
THE TORTUROUS, almost en- have
tirely dirt road that links these tion
two towns cuts a 600-mile swath far
through the "famine zone" of aged
one of the countries worst hit Fa
by West Africa's drought. tree
The bumpy two-day journey labo
north by desert jeep unveils the of Ia
catastrophic impact of nature's Th
frivolity on an impoverished peo- their
ple and their land. poun
But the stench of death, t h e year
skeletons of dead cattle and They
camels that litter the rocky de- roun
sert and the anguished faces of T
proud nomads who have 1 o s t signs
everything are not at first appar- forI
ent. with
THE THIN, hungry children, from
the "grain lines" keeping thous- Tr
ands alive andthegrim give'
ands alive and the grim refugee g
camps for those who abandoned satc
their homesteads come later. sru
From Niamey the road first In
winds through parts of Niger's town
so-called "breadbasket" filled abou
with scenes of rural Africa bus-
ily at work. TH
In the fields between Niamey faint
and Dosso farmers are planting -
and weeding again.
Young green stalks of millet
or peanut crops now pushing
from the scattered fields signal
the coming of this year's rains.
Other farmers across t h e
drought-stricken sub-Saharan re-
gion from Mauritania to Chad
are also grimly gambling that
this year's rain will turn their
remaining stocks of seed into
food.
The four-year dry spell has
critically diminished most stocks
of grain and millions of cattle
and other livestock have perish-
ed from lack of pasturage a n d
water in the six nations of Niger,
Chad, Mauritania, Upper VA-
ta, Mali and Senegal.
THE LEAGUE of Red Cross
societies has reported that half
of the 24 million people in the
six sub-Saharan countries a r e
considered "severely affected"
by the drought. It estimates that
losses of livestock in the region
range from 60 to 95 per cent.
A massive international relief
effort is pouring hundreds of
thousands of tons of food grain
into the region to keep the popu-
lation - almost 90 per cent rur-
al -- alive until this year's har-
vest in September and October.
Because of the depleted stocks
of seed and spotty rainfall so
far, this year's harvest is not
expected to be large and more
food from abroad will be needed,
relief officials say.
SOME FARMERS in Niger,
who planted too soon, h a v e
already lost entire crops which,
after the first July rains, wilted
and died under the searing rays
of the African sun.
Others waiting longer h a v e
been blessed with steadier rain-
plagues
that insures that their little ridden sire,
ow thatch-roof graneries on as you ap
den legs will be full this fall. area.
e countryside in the south The rottir
otted by small clusters of cattle and
reddish-brown, mud-brick ped dead
or thatch homes that re- where they
ble beehives. food give c
the mercile
FEW CATTLE, thin but Governms
e, nibble at the new grass forced mar
drink from the few mud men from t
les along the road. They uous for t
survived a massive migra- died soon a
by thousands of herders and
ers fleeing the drought-rav- AT TAIf
north. tle airport,
rmers rest in the shade of a of United
after hours of back-breaking by Canadia
r in their sun-baked plots go planes
and with wooden hoes. will keep
eir wives, babies strapped to starving.
backs, rock back and forth North of
ding what is left of last doughts bec
's millet in wooden bowls. parent;
y use long, wooden staffs Mile after
ded at the end. on either si
tered with t
IERE ARE FEW visible dead cattle
of real crisis here except plague had
he occasional trucks loaded
relief grains going north FEW PEI
Nigeria. visible nort
aveling north, this relative- man stumbl
erdant countryside slowly muttering i
s way to larger and larger translates:
hes of parched land and thin of his cows.
b. Slightly o
Tahoua, a cattle marketing by now on'
of simple abode buildings stands a m,
t halfway from Niamey to oro Fulani ,
lez, it strikes you. people cons
They are
IE EVIL SMELL, at first death all a:
, filters through the fly-
African countries
ets, growing stronger
proach the market
ng bodies of dozens of
donkeys that drop-
on rubbish heaps
y were foraging for
off a foul odor under
ass sun.
ent officials say. t h e
ch by nomadic herds-
he north was too ard-
heir cattle, w h i c h
after arrival.
OUA'S sandswept lit-
several hundred tons
States grain flown in
n Hercules C-130 car-
from Lagos, Nigeria,
the population from
Tahoua the tragedy of
omes increasingly ap-
r mile the barren land
de of the road is lit-
he bodies of scores of
and camels, as if a
suddenly struck.
tOPLE or villages are
h of Tahoua until a
es out from the brush
ncoherently. A guide
"He has lost all 50
He has gone crazy."
ff the track road -
ly a sandy track -
akeshift camp of Bor-
tribesmen, a nomadic
tantly on the move.
profiting from t h e
round them.
A GRUESOME pile of skel-.
tons perhaps 30 feet high marks
the temporary camp as a
slaughterhouse.
The Fulani are buying dying
cattle for slaughter at 50 cents
a head from other herdsman
moving south.
One young tribesman, dressed
in animal skins and armed with
a simple bow and arrow, s a i d
through an interpreter t h e y
were curing the meat and plan-
ning to sell it in Nigeria, to the
south.
Just north of Abalak, heavy
rains have flooded parts of the
road, turning portions of it into
miniature lakes.
A TRUCK carrying relief food
to Agadez has been trapped in
deep mud for two days, a sigh
that towns to the north will soon
be completely cut off by the
heavy rains.
"In August the trucks will not
be able to pass," warns a gov-
ernment official. "The only way
to bring food to Agadez then will
be by plane."
"Until 1968 the area between
Abalak and In-Gal was pasture,"
said one official. "Before, this
road was very crowded. You
couldn't even drive along it be-
cause there were so many cat-
tle in the way. Now look. There s
nothing.
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If somebody tells you drug laws
overseas are relaxed, that somebody
is talking through his hat.
Ifrsomebody tells you the system
of justice gives you all the ights of a
United States citizen in the United
States, that's a bunch of baloney.
You should get the facts straight.
The truth is their drug laws are tough.
And they enfome them to the tetter.
There's a girlfreem the United
States sitting in a Rome jail right now.
She'll be there for six to ten months
awaiting trial. With nobail. Noteven
a chance for it. Ifshe's convicted, it's
a minimum of three years. Carrying
stuff across a border, from one
country to another, is asking for
trouble. And you'll get it.
That's their law. And there's no
way around it.
Over 900 United States citizens
are doing time on drugcharges in
foreign jails right now. And nobody
can get them out. Not family. Or
friends. Orthe smartest lawyer in town.
Not the United States government.
Ifyou're planning a visit to
Europe, the Middle East or south of
our own border, check out the
countries. Get the facts. And get them
straight before you leave.
oe act awill come through.
Loud and ctoar.
Whenyou're busted for drugs
over there, you're in for the hassle of
your lIfe,
Swe n Possession or salt
up to 19 months and permanent
expulsion from the country.
U. S. Embassy:
Stnandvagen tot
StackholmSowodo-
'1e. 63/05/20
Morocco. PosseOsti'r, 3
sonths to 5 yearsand fine.
U.S. Embassy:
43 Ave, Allal Ben Abdellah
Rabat. Morocco
Tl. 30361/62
Mexico.Poeono9
years plus fine. Trafficking, 3 to 10
years plus fine. Illegal import or
exportofdrugs, 6 to 15 years plus
line. Persons arrested on drug charges
can expect a minimum of 6 to 12
months pre-trial confinement.
U.S. Embassy:
Cor. Danubio and Paseo de la
305 Colonia Cuaubteoso
Mexico City, Mexico
et 511-7491
Spain. Penalty depends on
quantity oftdrugs involved.
Less than 500 grams cannabis, fine
and expulsion. More than 500 grams,
minimum of 6 years injail.
U.S. Embassy:
Serrano 75
Madrid, Spain
Tel. 276-3400
Italy. Possession: Minimum I
years and 30,000 lire tine. Maximu
8 years and 4,000,000 lire fine.-
US. Embassy:
VV.Vnento
119 Rome, taly
Tel. 4674
United Kingdom.
Possession, use trafficking: maximum
10 years and heavy fine. Possession of
small amount for personal use usually
punished by a fSe or light
amprisonment and expulsion.
U.S. Embassy: '
24/31 rosvenorSquare
W. t., London. England
Tel. 499-9000
Netherlands. Possession,
fine or 6 months in prison. Traflicking,
mnaximum 4 years.
U.S. Embassy:,
102 Lange Voornhout
The Hague, Netherlands
Tel 62-49-11
Greece. Possession, minimum Sn Possession,
2 years in jail Trafficking, maximum maximum 2 years or fine up to 30,"
10 years plus fine ,rancs. Trafficking, maximum 5 years
U.S.Embassy U.S. Embassy:
91 Vasilissis Sophia's Bl d. 93/95 Jubila msstrasse
Athens, Greece Bern Switzerlans
Tel 712951 Tel 43 00 11
Gw many. Possession, jail BahamasPOsssion
sentence or fine. Traffickirrg. gttonths to I year.
raximum 3+years plus fine. U.S. Embassy:
U.S. Embassy: Adderly Building
Mehlemer Avenue Nassau, Bahama$
53 Bonn-Bad Gode ber£ Tel. 21181
Bonn., Germany
Tel,02229-1955
Janan
CanadaPossession, jail
==s' hence and expulsion. Tralinckinig,
a' Possession. pre-trial 1mimum 7 years, maximum life.
detention, suspended sentence and U.S. Embassy:
xpulsion.'I rafickn g, maximum 100 Wellington Street
5 years. Ottawa, Canada
U.S. Embassy: Tel. 236-2341
10-5 Akasaka I-Chrome
Minato-Ku. Tokyo
Tet. 583-7141 De mar
Possession, fiat
and detention p to 2 years
U.S.Emssy
Leb non. . P tol3 agHa mm kjods Alle 24
years in prson .rak mg 3 to Copenhagen, Denmark
15 years. Tel TRO4505
U.S. Embassy:
Corntche atRue Ai
Mreieherruy.Lebanon.
Tel 240-.00
Jears. Traflicking, 10 }ears to a,
M U.S. Embassy:
Jamaca. ossesion prion 10 Ata'uk Blvd.
Posseo po Ankara Turkey
sentence and fine. Trafficktg. Tel. 18-62-00
maxtmum 3 years at hard labo.
U.S.E bay:
43 Dake Streat 1
Kingstn. Jatmaica ran. P oussnt c, 6 mnto
T .26341 3oyears. Traflicking. 5 y ear to death
and tine of 3,000 rials per gra.
U.S. Etmhasty:
rn ce 250A ve.Takti Jamsh id
F Possession. te or Tehran.Iran
trafficking: prison term of3 month ' Tel. 820091,.825091
to 5 years andi ie. Customs Court
will also levy heavy fine. Minimum NationaltClearinghouse for
$ to 4months pre-trial confinement. Drug Abusetlnformation.
U.S. Embassy:
19, Rue de Franquevile
Paris, France
Tel. Anjou 6440 advertising contributed for the public goof
Israel. Possession, heavy fioe
, *Qd expulsion. Trafficking. maximumn
10 years and 5.000 Iraeli poundsltine.
U.S. Embassy:
71 Hayarkon Street
Tel Aviv, Irael u ie
Tel 561731 fordr s I '
re i th hassfe