New narcotics bill carries death penalty<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The new bill on narcotic drugs the government
\nsubmitted to the House of Representatives yesterday carries a
\nmaximum penalty of death for convicted offenders.<\/p>\n
The bill, submitted by Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman, is a
\nrevision of Law No. 9 of 1976. It carries stiffer jail terms and
\nfines.<\/p>\n
Oetojo said the new bill was drafted due to concerns that the
\n1976 law on narcotics was no longer an effective deterrent for
\ndrug dealers.<\/p>\n
"Drug dealers use more and more sophisticated methods. We need
\na tougher law to eradicate drug trafficking and abuse," Oetojo
\nsaid in a plenary session chaired by deputy House Speaker
\nSoetedjo.<\/p>\n
What most concerned Indonesia, he said, was narcotic abuse
\ninvolved young people.<\/p>\n
"This fact is really deplorable. What else can we expect from
\nthe younger generation if many youngsters are addicted?" he said.<\/p>\n
Police statistics show that Indonesia has an estimated 120,000
\ndrug addicts, the third highest of the seven-member Association
\nof Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) after the Philippines, 334,500
\nand Vietnam, 180,000.<\/p>\n
Attorney General Singgih warned recently that in 1995,
\nIndonesia recorded 600 new cases, a development he described as
\n"extraordinarily worrying".<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Drug Rehabilitation Center reported last year that
\nthe number of students abusing drugs had increased at an alarming
\nrate.<\/p>\n
Director of the center Al Bachri Husin said the hospital
\nadmitted three addicted students last year compared to "only" one
\nin 1995, reported Kompas.<\/p>\n
The center handled between 10 and 20 drug addicts a day,
\nmostly heroin addicts.<\/p>\n
Beside the bill on narcotics, the government also submitted
\none to ratify the 1988 United Nations Convention against Illicit
\nTraffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.<\/p>\n
The two bills, after they are passed into law, were expected
\nto effectively help Indonesia deal with drug-related problems,
\nOetojo said.<\/p>\n
Illicit narcotic trafficking over the past several decades has
\ngiven countries throughout the world a headache, making
\ninternational cooperation a must, he added.<\/p>\n
Geographically, Indonesia is a strategic transit point located
\nas it is between the Indian and Pacific oceans and close to the
\nso called Golden Triangle, the infamous opium fields in the area
\nbordering Myanmar, Thailand and Laos.<\/p>\n
Oetojo said the 1988 UN convention dealt with matters
\nconcerning drug control that are not regulated in Indonesia's
\npertaining law on narcotic drugs such as money laundering,
\ncontrol of drug delivery and wire tapping. (pan)<\/p>",
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