Soviet Drinkers Hold 1st AA Meeting
MOSCOW — Soviet drinkers heard advice on how to stay sober at the first meeting in the Soviet Union of Alcoholics Anonymous, one of the organizers said Saturday.
American alcohol counselor J.W. Canty told reporters that the group discussed such problems as how to keep off drink and that the first AA literature in Russian was also passed around at the meeting, held earlier this week.
Kremlin leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev has launched a major campaign against heavy drinking, which is a way of life for many Soviet citizens.
A small group of Soviet and foreign alcoholics and doctors took part in the meeting. But because AA, an international organization, stipulates in its charter that only alcoholics can found new branches, it would be up to the Soviet drinkers who participated to decide whether they wanted further meetings, Canty added.
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