Govt establishes new agency to combat rising drug abuse

Govt establishes new agency to combat rising drug abuse

Annastashya Emmanuelle, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Confronted with an alarming increase in the number of drug users,
the government has set up a more powerful agency to combat drug
abuse.

State Minister of Administrative Reforms Feisal Tamin said on
Tuesday that President Megawati Soekarnoputri had issued Decree
No. 12/2002 on the establishment of the National Narcotics Agency
(BNN), which has the authority to investigate and take legal
action against drug users and pushers.

"Drug abuse is an issue that needs immediate attention... we
need an institution with more teeth to tackle this situation
because the number of drug abusers is increasing," State Minister
Feisal said after meeting Vice President Hamzah Haz here on
Tuesday.

Indonesia has seen a dramatic rise in the use of narcotics and
other banned substances, changing from a mere transit point on
international drug smuggling routes to a burgeoning market for
drugs.

A survey conducted by the Program for Management and
Eradication of Drugs and Narcotics Abuse (P4) -- a consortium of
non-governmental organizations -- at drug rehabilitation centers,
schools and public places in Jakarta in October 2000 revealed
that an estimated 3.4 million people in Jakarta, which has a
population of 12 million, were known to be drug abusers. The
figure showed a 70 percent increase from 1999, when the number of
drug users was estimated at 2 million.

The new narcotics agency, which is scheduled to operate on
April 1, is to replace the current National Narcotics
Coordination Agency, which has been criticized for not having the
authority to investigate and prosecute drug abusers.

According to Feisal, BBN will report directly to the
President. Its members include the National Police, the attorney
general, the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, the Ministry
of Religious Affairs, the Ministry of Health, as well as the Food
and Drug Control Agency.

He said he would soon meet with National Police Chief Gen.
Da'i Bachtiar and ministry officials to discuss candidates from
each respective departments.

The agency will be headed by the National Police chief. It
will have its own budget and regional offices, which will be
required to coordinate with a central team.

Feisal said seven operational task forces would be created to
be in charge of, among others, implementing the law and
investigating suspected drug abusers.

"The Vice President expressed the hope of seeing effective
coordination between the institutions and not just the delegation
of responsibilities to other departments," said Feisal, adding
that Hamzah wanted harsher punishment for drug users and dealers.

Drug abuse in the capital has reached a worryingly high level,
not only in terms of the massive number of drug abusers but also
in terms of the early age at which youngsters encounter drugs.

Data obtained from police records last year indicated that
drug abusers are not only adults, but also teenagers and even
children still at elementary school.

As many as 1,000 high school students were recently caught
using drugs, and some 166 high schools across the capital
reported drug cases.

The worsening situation seems to indicate the government's
failure, so far, of dealing effectively with combating drug
trafficking.

President Megawati has called for harsher punishments against
drug dealers in a bid to help curb drug abuse.