Įdomu būtų žinoti, kokiais keliais Jemeno arabų kalbos žodis atsirado 
Lietuvos jaunimo žargone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Poor Yemenis seek
nirvana with narcotic leaf
By Ghaida Ghantous

	


SANAA, March 14 (Reuters) - A group of young Yemenis throng outside a 
small market around midday to buy bushels of the mild narcotic qat for 
an afternoon of mastication and relaxation.
Mohamed Awadi, 20, spends nearly half his monthly salary to indulge in 
the long chewing sessions, a centuries-old tradition practiced by both 
ordinary people and top government officials in the poor Arab state.
“Qat is relaxing. It takes me out into space,” said Awadi who spends at 
least 15,000 rials ($83) each month on the branches of bitter green and 
reddish-brown leaves.
Qat lovers seek what they call “kaif”, a state of heightened perception 
and emotion achieved after hours of chewing.
After taking the plastic-wrapped branches from the market sellers, 
dressed in the traditional shirt and lungi with the jambiya dagger tied 
at their waists, the men head out for a hearty lunch to bolster 
themselves for the chewing sessions.
They take place in a small room or diwan, scented with incense and kept 
warm to enhance the effect of the drug. Often a hookah pipe is placed in 
the middle for those who want to smoke tobacco too.
Lounging on low mattresses with the bags of qat next to them, the men 
pluck the softest leaves and push them into one cheek, where they are 
ground into a growing wad the juices from which are absorbed into the 
bloodstream.
Bottles of water are placed on small tables to combat the dehydrating 
effects of qat, which contains chemicals similar in effect to 
amphetamines, which raise blood pressure and body temperature as well as 
releasing adrenaline.
Despite the bulging cheeks, conversation is lively as jokes are swapped 
and the pile of discarded leaves and twigs grows and adrenaline builds
in the first few hours.
But when “kaif” arrives, the mood becomes introspective and this is the 
time to play soft, romantic music.
“You ponder life and plan your future and when you wake all you are left 
with is empty talk,” said 21-year-old Fouad, who is studying computer 
science at an American institute.
He chews qat daily and spends 20,000 riyals a month or two-thirds of his 
allowance on the habit. “It helps me study,” he said, as other students 
at the market nodded in agreement.
The gatherings, at which politics and business are discussed and 
contacts made, are growing in popularity among young people and women 
despite official efforts to reduce its consumption.

Lucrative trade
Qat is an expensive habit in a country where, according to a World Bank 
official, per capital income is $500, the poor account for 42 percent of 
the 18.5 million population, unemployment is around 11 percent and 
under-employment is 25 percent.
There are concerns that qat is reducing productivity with the vast 
majority of the workforce retreating for a four-hour qat break in the 
afternoon. There are also fears that the water-intensive crop is 
depleting scarce water resources.
There have been some efforts to curtail its usage. The state banned qat 
in government offices, the military and the national airline. In 1999, 
it was announced that President Ali Abdullah Saleh had given up the habit.
But the campaign to wean the population off qat has not been very 
successful. Not only is it a popular pastime, it is also a very 
lucrative trade.
Ali al-Jaradi, 43, said he makes between 40,000 and 50,000 rials a day 
from selling qat. The price ranges between 200 and 1
,000 rials a bundle in markets in Sanaa, depending on the quality of the 
leaves and on rainfall.
Shawqi, a taxi driver, manages to bring in only 30,000 rials each month 
by working 12 hours a day.
The stimulant, which is also prized in the Horn of Africa, is also 
smuggled across the border into Saudi Arabia, where it is illegal.
“Qat is a major problem,” said Nadir Mohammed, senior economist at the 
World Bank office in Sanaa. “It is a water-intensive plant which is 
depleting water resources and national productivity.”
“They dig 700 metres (2,300 feet) for wells. They are not prepared to do 
that for any other crop, but qat pays money,” he added.
Yemen has only 130 cubic metres of water per person per year. According 
to government statistics, qat uses up as nearly 80 percent of the water 
supply in some parts of the country.
Experts say the problem requires a major reduction campaign offering 
farmers an alternative.
Officials are also concerned about the effect of qat on health, 
especially that of children in the absence of laws regulating the drug. 
Pesticides are used in cultivation and the side-effects include lack of 
appetite and insomnia.
Mohamed Hatta, like many, ignores the critics. “It brings you kaif,” he 
said.