A thousand new drug users everyday: Father Somar<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A 12-year-old girl approaches a sweet corn
\nseller in Blok M, South Jakarta. \"Pak, your tummy looks so
\nchubby. I have just the right thing for you,\" she tells him.<\/p>\n
The girl opens her palm, showing him a small pack of shabu-
\nshabu (crystal metamphetamine).<\/p>\n
\"This is a very good drug. It'll make you thinner in three
\ndays. Guaranteed. If not, you can have your money back,\" she
\nsays.<\/p>\n
The sweet corn seller that particular afternoon was Father
\nLambertus Somar, head of the Kasih Mulia Foundation, an NGO that
\nworks with drug and alcohol addicts.<\/p>\n
He was in disguise to gather more information about drug
\nselling on Jakarta's streets.<\/p>\n
He said he found out that the girl lived in a slum area
\nsomewhere behind Blok M with seven other younger sisters and
\nbrothers.<\/p>\n
\"We can see how easy it is to get drugs nowadays: at every
\nlevel of society.<\/p>\n
\"The girl sold drugs everyday to make a living. Amazingly, the
\ngirl herself was not a user. She knows what it does to people. It
\nturns out she was the family's breadwinner,\" 68-year-old Somar
\ntold The Jakarta Post on Monday.<\/p>\n
At least 1,000 people in the country are introduced to drugs
\neveryday, said Somar, a priest who is also famous for his natural
\nhealing abilities. He has been practicing alternative medicine
\nsince 1982.<\/p>\n
Out of the around two million drug addicts in the country, 17
\npercent of them eventually die as a result of their habit, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"The number of addicts this year has soared up to 1,000
\npercent compared to the number in 1996. This year, no less than
\n166 high schools in Jakarta have students that are affected by
\ndrugs. Drugs are killing our young people. It's getting worse
\nbecause people just don't care,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The Kasih Mulia Foundation has 20 staff members that work with
\npatients from all different religions and ethnic backgrounds.<\/p>\n
\"We use a different approach for every patient. We have
\ntreated more than 60 people this year, aged between 17 and 39
\nyears old,\" he said.<\/p>\n
A willingness to be cured and to have a healthy life has got
\nto come from the addicts' themselves, he said.<\/p>\n
A workshop program has also set up to help recovering addicts
\nfind jobs and rebuild their lives.<\/p>\n
\"It needs at least three to five years for addicts to become
\nfully cured. In most cases, drug addicts end up with damaged
\nnervous systems as well as lung and liver illnesses.<\/p>\n
\"Most of our patients cannot afford to pay for the treatment,
\nwhich is Rp 3 million per month. Most of them can only pay
\nbetween Rp 5,000 and Rp 100,000,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The foundation now has seven rehab centers in west, south and
\nNorth Jakarta as well as in Tangerang.<\/p>\n
Its main center is in Stella Maris Monastery on Jl. Taman
\nPluit Permai Timur in North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
In an effort to raise money for a new rehabilitation center in
\nCisaat, Sukabumi, West Java, the foundation and its sponsor PT
\nMakindo Tbk. is auctioning a number of paintings and sculptures
\nby several artists, including Srihadi Soedarsono, Arie Smit,
\nWidayanto, G. Sidharta, at Hotel Gran Melia on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Initial construction of the center on a seven-hectare plot in
\nCisaat is expected to start next month. The center will have the
\ncapacity to accommodate 300 patients.<\/p>\n
A \"one-stop service\" drug clinic complete with a prevention
\nand information center is also set to be built early next year in
\nSlipi, West Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The Kasih Mulia foundation is located at Jl. Camar Indah I,
\nBlok DD 10, in Ruko Pantai Indah Kapuk, North Jakarta. Interested
\nparties can call (021) 588-103. (edt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/a-thousand-new-drug-users-everyday-father-somar-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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