Drug abuse still prevalent despite war on drugs<\/p>\n
Indonesia observed the International Day Against Drug Abuse and
\nIllicit Drug Trafficking on June 26. The Jakarta Post's Damar
\nHarsanto examines drug abuse here and some ways to combat drug
\ntaking and trafficking.<\/p>\n
TV presenter Farhan once witnessed a friend buying drugs in an
\narea in North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
\"I was stunned. The drug dealer just called a boy on a bike,
\nwho seemed to be the dealer's neighbor, gave him money and told
\nhim to take the package. The boy came back with marijuana and he
\ngot Rp 5,000 (less than 50 US cents) for his help,\" he said.<\/p>\n
If you, like Farhan, have had a similar brush with drugs then
\naccording to a survey, you are not alone.<\/p>\n
The University of Indonesia (UI) and the Yayasan Cinta Anak
\nBangsa (Love the Nation's Children Foundation, YCAB)'s 2003
\nsurvey on drug abuse in the city found that 75 percent of
\nrespondents in Jakarta are familiar with drug-taking and the
\nbusiness because either their family members, relatives or
\nfriends, are involved.<\/p>\n
Another survey by the International Labor Organization (ILO)
\nestimates that about 3 percent of the nation uses drugs and says
\na disproportionate number of them are teenagers and youths, who
\nalso often work as drug pushers.<\/p>\n
Even more worrying is a survey carried out by the National
\nNarcotics Body (BNN) and UI in 2004, which finds that children as
\nyoung as seven years old have tried drugs and that first-time
\ndrug users are getting younger, year-by -year.<\/p>\n
The BNN has long blamed weak law enforcement against big-time
\ndrug producers and distributors, as the root cause of the
\nproblem, which it said meant there was a large supply of cheap
\nnarcotics, from marijuana, methamphetamine (shabu-shabu), ecstasy
\nand heroin in the city.<\/p>\n
However, with 16 airports and 139 ports across the country,
\nalong with the nation's many remote and porous borders, police
\nhave their work cut out stopping the flow of drugs into the
\ncountry. And as recent developments have shown, Indonesia is now
\nnot just a market but also a producer.<\/p>\n
In March, police raided a drug factory disguised as an Islamic
\nschool in Jasinga, Bogor, just an hour's drive from Jakarta,
\nwhich is believed to have produced more than 250,000 ecstasy
\npills a day since 2000.<\/p>\n
Run by an international drug ring, the police later discovered
\nthe raw materials for the pills were smuggled into the country
\nfrom Singapore and China.<\/p>\n
\"We're talking about a transnational crime committed by
\nheartless but powerful and very well-organized drug networks with
\nvirtually unlimited resources,\" BNN chief Comr. Gen. Sutanto
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Sutanto said the country with a population of 220 million was
\na lucrative drug market, with many people relying on drugs to
\nescape from poverty and stress, a product of big-city living.<\/p>\n
Drugs are now cheap and easily available in the city, he said,
\noften supplied by pushers in small amounts at schools as well as
\nin the more traditional venues like nightclubs and back
\nalleyways.<\/p>\n
Drug awareness educators say a two-pronged strategy is needed
\nto reduce illicit drug intake in society; a crackdown on the
\nproduction and distribution of drugs nationally, along with a
\ncampaign to educate the public about the dangers of narcotics.<\/p>\n
To be effective, they say, the strategies should involve as
\nmany members of the community as possible, including children of
\nschool age.<\/p>\n
Veronica Colondam of YCAB, said parents and schools needed to
\ntake an active role to ensure their children were not tempted by
\ndrugs.<\/p>\n
\"This would be with the help of the 97 percent of the nation's
\npopulation who are against drugs,\" Veronica said.<\/p>\n
Preventive measures alone, however, would not be enough to
\nfight the drug producers and pushers, she said.<\/p>\n
\"We need others to support the anti-drug drive using different
\nstrategies, including efforts to reduce drug supplies and to
\ncarry out harm-reduction programs ... All programs should be
\nimplemented with the same speed and urgency.\"<\/p>\n
In December 2003, the BNN signed a cooperation agreement with
\nthe National AIDS Commission (KPA) to create a program to reduce
\nHIV\/AIDS transmissions in the injecting drug user community.<\/p>\n
HIV\/AIDS can be easily spread by using intravenous drugs if
\ninjectors use dirty needles.<\/p>\n
The 2005 country report completed by the National AIDS
\nCommission (KPA) shows that HIV infections soared from 15.8
\npercent in 1999 to 47.9 percent in 2002 among injecting drug
\nusers.<\/p>\n
\"We are pushing for the idea of establishing the KPA's
\nnetworks up to the regional level, with civil servants involved
\nactively in promoting the commission's program thanks to the
\ngreater role we expect from the Ministry of Home Affairs,\" KPA
\nhead Suharto said.<\/p>\n
Another plan trialed by the Jakarta Provincial Narcotics Body
\naims to pass more power downwards, to district administrations to
\nsolve area-specific problems.<\/p>\n
\"It is the people at the district level who know the most
\nabout drug-related problems in their respective communities, not
\nthe police or officials in the provincial administration.
\nUnfortunately, (district-level officials) have little power as
\nthey have no money to institute these programs,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said the administration would select 10 out of 44 districts
\nin the city for the pilot project, with each receiving funds to
\nfinance their antidrug programs.<\/p>\n
The district heads will chair the anti-drug project, while
\npolice precinct chiefs will become the deputies.<\/p>",
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