Special Correspondent: Bangladesh is now at “grave risk” of becoming a transit corridor for international drug syndicates due to its geographic position, BNP Chairperson’s Adviser Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal warned on Saturday. He was speaking as chief guest at an anti-drug rally organized by the Anti Drug Society in front of the National Press Club, Dhaka, to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Alal said Bangladesh sits in the middle of Asia’s three major drug production and trafficking zones: the Golden Triangle comprising Myanmar, Laos and Thailand; the Golden Crescent covering Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan; and the Golden Wedge. “Because of this location, international drug trafficking rings are using Bangladesh as a transit route,” he said. He stressed that drugs do not destroy just one individual. “They ruin a family, corrode society and weaken the state. That is why the government, law enforcement agencies, political parties, social organizations and ordinary citizens must work together to prevent it,” Alal added. Anti-Drug Society President Md. Al Hadi presided over the event, while moderated by Secretary Zakir Hossain. Other speakers included Syed Tosharraf Ali, Advisory Editor and Columnist, Daily New Nation; Jahangir Alam Pradhan, former General Secretary, Dhaka Union of Journalists; Professor Shafiqul Islam, educationist; Principal A.S.M. Mostafa Kamal, Chairman, National Human Rights Council; Joint Secretary S.M. Tajul Islam; Treasurer Pradip Kumar Pal; Joint Secretary Tofazzal Hossain Fuad; Organizing Secretary M.H. Prince; Kazi Abir Aslam; Ayatullah Akter; Motiur Rahman; and others. Leaders of various social and political organizations and a large number of conscious citizens also joined the gathering. With Bangladesh located between multiple drug-producing regions, speakers said drug trafficking is a cross-border crime that requires a cross-border, cross-society response. The rally’s message was clear: without collective action, the next generation will pay the highest price.