How much do you really know about drugs?

How much do you really know about drugs?

Monique Natalia, Contributor, Jakarta

One of the biggest problems facing young people, especially
youths living in a big city like Jakarta, is drug addiction.

There have been so many cases of drug addiction that some
people think it is a trend. The government is still trying to
fight it without any tangible results.

But what do young people really think about drugs? Have they
ever ventured into its dark inviting world? The most important
question is how they think the problem could be solved. The
Jakarta Post talked about possible solutions with these six
youths.

Risa, 20, North Jakarta:

For me, drugs classify as any kind of substance that can lead
to an addiction. So even if you are just taking pills for a
headache, like Panadol, for example, and if you somehow become
addicted to it, you can call it drug abuse. Heroin, BK pills and
marijuana are what come to mind when I hear the word drugs.
Frankly, I've never tried any kind of drug. I think that it's
better not to try it at all than to try it just because you are
curious and then get addicted in the process.

I have a friend, though, who is a junkie and I know that
because I caught her red-handed snorting something. I don't know
what it was, maybe it was some kind of heroin or maybe it was
putaw (low grade heroin).

It gave me a real shock to see her do that. She never used any
drugs before that. She only smoked cigarettes, I mean, not
marijuana. But then she went to study in the United States and
when she came back she became really weird.

She even once asked me if I had any pot with me. She asked
that question easily, you know, like she was just asking for
candy or something. So I was really shocked. That was so unlike
her. And when we caught her using drugs she acted as if it was
nothing, she didn't even feel bad about it. That really made me
and my friends worried. We also didn't know what to do.

We talked about whether we should tell her parents or just
keep it to ourselves. But in the end her parents found out on
their own and they put her in some kind of rehab center. Now
she's much better. At least I hope she is.

I know that there are a lot of antidrug campaigns as well as a
lot of media attention focusing on the problem of drug addiction,
but it's kind of too late. I mean, the problem of drugs was there
way before all this media hype about putaw and the antidrug
campaigns. It's been there all along but they just didn't see it.
But don't get me wrong, I think all their efforts to put an end
to it are not wasted. It's better late than never, right?

Karen, 19, South Jakarta:

Once I saw my friend almost overdose on putaw. I couldn't do
anything. I just stood there and watched. It was terrible. I felt
kind of sorry for him, but there was still this thought inside my
head telling me that he had himself to blame for getting
addicted.

I think most people do it because they just want to be like
their other friends. Some do it because they just have too much
money and don't know what else to do with it.

But I think the people who first started this drug addiction
thing were the cool teens, you know, the hip and popular ones.
They do it because they think it's cool and all the other ones
follow them because they want to be considered popular and cool,
too.

To be honest, I've tried almost every drug there is, except
heroin and shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine). I only tried
them because my curiosity got the better of me but fortunately, I
didn't get addicted.

I think it's wrong if you are doing it to escape from your
problems, but if you only tried it once just to find out what
it's like, then that's not that wrong. I think everybody is
curious, that's very normal. Don't get me wrong, though, I still
think that a drug addiction is very bad and I'm also very
familiar with all the negative impact it can have on people.
That's why I always try my best not to get in too deep, and not
become addicted.

Hanan, 18, Bogor:

I have never tried drugs, not at all. Well, nobody has ever
offered me drugs, but even if they did, I wouldn't try them. I'm
afraid that if I tried them once and liked them, then I wouldn't
be able to quit, because I'm that kind of person, you know.
Whenever I try something I like, I just can't stop. It's very
hard for me to quit doing something that I like, so it's better
that I never try them (drugs) at all.

I do have a friend that is an addict, though. We're not really
that close but sometimes we hang out together. He was a putaw
user. When I found out that he was a junky I was really
surprised. He didn't seem like that type of person. Well, it's
not that he's, you know, Goody Two Shoes, but he's just your
regular type of guy. Plus, he's the only one in his gang that has
become a drug addict so it's kind of weird.

Even though I don't live in an environment that is
continuously exposed to drugs, I still think that the problem of
drugs is big and something should be done to stop it. I know
there have been a lot of antidrug campaigns on TV but I don't
think they are effective. It only scratches the surface of the
problem and does not go any deeper. I think to fight the problem
you should start with families. Drug addicts don't listen to
anyone, especially the TV or the media, but maybe if help came
from their families they would sit up and take note.

Dimas, 16, North Jakarta:

I have a lot of friends that are drug addicts. I know that not
only because they've told me, but I've actually seen them take
drugs. Whenever we hang out together there is always someone that
is on something.

But that doesn't mean that I'm one of them. I am not a drug
addict. I've never even tried drugs. Sure, they've offered me
some for free from time to time but I've always said no and they
respect that. So they don't hassle me for not taking them. In
return I don't hassle them to quit. They are not babies -- they
can make up their own mind, so they should know when to quit.

It doesn't mean that I don't care, I do. They are my friends!
But I know that nothing I say is going to make a difference, and
I don't want to be like their parents. At first I tried talking
to them, but it was no use so I gave up on that approach. Another
thing I tried to do was try to get them involved in something fun
and time consuming so that they wouldn't think about it.

I think that's part of why some do it. They think they have
nothing better to do. Most addicts don't have any real interest
in anything so it's hard for them to get their mind off of drugs.

I think it's very important for people like that to have
something that they are passionate about, like a hobby or
something.

Take those rehab centers, for example, one of my friends who
went there told me that all they did was lecture you on the bad
effects drugs have on your life. They never really made the
addicts do anything. They don't get them involved in any positive
activities to encourage them to lead a drug-free life.

That is why most people fall back into the same trap even
after they've been "clean" for some time. They just don't know
what else to do with their time. I think that is what people
should do if they want to put an end to this problem. They should
build rehab centers that can offer you alternatives to drugs,
alternatives that lead to a happy life.

Hari, 17, South Jakarta:

I started smoking weed when I was in junior high and then I
started drinking alcohol. One day, I was hanging out with my
friends and one of them offered me shabu-shabu. I figured I'd
just give it a try and see what it was like, and I liked it.

But that's not the drug I ended up getting addicted to. Some
time after that another friend of mine brought us some putaw. By
that time I had already tried just about every drug that was in
fashion among the users, so I thought why not try putaw? But then
I really regretted it, because I became really addicted to it. I
knew that I was addicted because once my body was hurting all
over when I didn't have it. I even had a fever!

I really regret having tried putaw, because even though I've
quit for some time, I still feel that I need it. My life was
really messed up when I was a junky. Drugs ruined everything in
my life. It ruined my relationships with family and friends, and
it also made me skip school so often that they (the school)
kicked me out.

At one point, I became so fed up because I couldn't control my
life anymore. Drugs really controlled me. After I realized that,
I tried to get better, so I told my parents about my addiction
and they got me into a rehab center.

I'm still recovering. I've been through detoxification and
some counseling, but I still think of myself as a junky. It's
hard to really get yourself "clean".

Sometimes I wish I could go back in time so I could somehow
stop my old self from trying that drug. I think the worst effect
it could have on you is that it makes your life span shorter, you
really have to watch out not to overdose, or bye-bye world!

I think this problem is going to be really hard to get out of.
It's no use getting rid of all those dealers because other ones
would take their place. I even heard from my friends that the
police are selling them. So after they arrest drug dealers and
confiscate the drugs, they sell putaw, and whatever else they
manage to get their hands on. So one thing that I can say is that
if you've never taken drugs, it's better not to try!

Darma, 19, West Jakarta:

The only drug I have ever tried is ecstasy. Well, I do smoke
weed from time to time but that's about it. I actually prefer
smoking pot to all those chemically produced drugs. The sensation
that I get is also better.

I also don't get addicted to pot, so that's good. Well, I know
it's bad for you and I do try not to do it too often, but I think
it's just like smoking. Smoking kills, you know! So why doesn't
the government just ban cigarettes, too! You can get all these
diseases from smoking and nowadays almost everybody smokes. You
can get them (cigarettes) everywhere.

It's good that there is an age restriction so that underage
youths cannot buy cigarettes. But they can still buy cigarettes
from street vendors and they never ask you for identification.
Even if you look like you are only ten years old! So I think
that's what the government should handle first. Besides, when
people smoke in public it is also to the disadvantage of
nonsmokers, as they become passive smokers.

About the problem of drugs, I know that there are a lot of
addicts out there and the number of people dying from drug abuse
keeps increasing so I think the government should pay more
attention to it. What I think should be done is build good rehab
centers with qualified counselors and real doctors to help
addicts.

But the centers should be built for the benefit of addicts who
can't afford high-priced rehab centers, because I know there are
a lot of centers out there but they are very expensive. This way
everybody can get a chance to recover, not only the rich.
Especially since the problem of drugs has reached all layers of
society.