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.