Middle ground sought for harm reduction program
Dewi Santoso, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
A year since the harm reduction program was launched, the National AIDS Commission (KPA) and the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) are still encountering difficulties with law enforcers when their volunteers distribute sterile needles to drug users as it is viewed as a violation of the law.
"It's very difficult as the program may still be considered to be in violation of the Narcotics Law, which views injecting drug users (IDUs) as criminals. The workers may be considered to be abetting a criminal," KPA Jakarta chairman Suharto said on Thursday.
Therefore, he said, the project has only been implemented in the rehabilitation center of Fatmawati Hospital, South Jakarta, and the Cipinang Penitentiary, East Jakarta.
Suharto said that more areas needed to be covered by the program as IDUs were spread throughout Jakarta.
Last year, BNN and the Ministry of Health signed a memorandum of understanding, in which the controversial harm reduction program was officially launched and introduced to the public as part of the country's fight against HIV/AIDS.
It is a scheme that provides IDUs with the alternative of either methadone treatment, or sterile, disposable needles. Methadone is a substitute drug that can be taken orally instead of by injection.
Data from the Ministry of Health reveals that half of an estimated 124,000 to 169,000 IDUs in the country are HIV positive. The total number of people living with HIV/AIDS in the country is estimated at between 80,000 and 130,000.
"In a bid to find the middle ground on how to carry out the program without violating the law, we will consult with the Supreme Court 'to soften the law' ... Each volunteer will wear an identity card, so as to let the police know they are not drug- dealers and are helping in the program," he said.
Only a few countries have implemented the program as it is still controversial, even in the United States and Australia. The Netherlands is among the program's success stories. India and Thailand have also participated in the program on a limited scale.