Sutiyoso blames law enforcers for drugs<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Governor Sutiyoso accused law enforcers on Wednesday of turning a
\nblind eye to drug dealing in the capital, leading to rampant drug
\nabuse, especially among the young.<\/p>\n
\"It does not make sense that law enforcers say they cannot
\narrest the drug dealers, but some of these dealers are operating
\nright in front of their very noses,\" Sutiyoso said on the
\nsidelines of a workshop on preventing drug abuse in major cities
\nin the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) region. The
\nworkshop was held at the Borobudur Hotel in Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso cast doubt over just how serious law enforcers were
\nabout dealing with this problem.<\/p>\n
\"I already proved just how widespread drug dealing is here by
\narresting a suspected dealer in a discotheque,\" he said,
\nrecalling a 2001 incident at a bar in the Lokasari entertainment
\ncomplex.<\/p>\n
There are an estimated 10,000 injecting drug users (IDUs) in
\nJakarta. These drug users face higher risks of contracting HIV by
\nsharing needles. An official report showed that as of Dec. 31,
\nthe capital had the highest recorded number of people living with
\nHIV\/AIDS at 2,505, or 45 percent of the officially reported 5,540
\ncases of HIV\/AIDS nationwide.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso emphasized that law enforcers, especially the police,
\nplayed a vital role in fighting the sale and use of drugs.<\/p>\n
\"The situation is very alarming. We all must make drug dealers
\nour common enemy. Otherwise, we will see the loss of the next
\ngeneration because drug dealers target teenagers and children,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo, who also chairs the Jakarta
\nNarcotics Board, floated the idea of establishing a network among
\nmajor cities in ASEAN to improve cooperation in drug prevention
\nand eradication programs.<\/p>\n
\"We are in dire need of a strong network among major cities in
\nthe region in the war against well-organized international drug
\ntrafficking rings,\" Fauzi said.<\/p>\n
Fauzi also underlined that the effort to combat drug
\ntrafficking had to involve the public, or it would be doomed to
\nfailure.<\/p>\n
\"The most effective and best way to eradicate drug trafficking
\nis to establish a community-based system that reaches down to the
\nlowest unit in the community, which is the neighborhood unit,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Because different communities have different characteristics
\nand needs, the system would have to be adapted to the different
\ncommunities, he said.<\/p>\n
\"There are some possible methods we could adopt. But we have
\nto be careful because the use of some methods are still
\nsensitive in our community,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He cited the example of using methadone as a substitute for
\nheroin addicts and needle-exchange programs.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sutiyoso-blames-law-enforcers-for-drugs-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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