Parents told to be wary of drug abuse threat

JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie warned Indonesian parents yesterday to step up their vigilance over the rising danger of drug abuse by the young generation.

The President said parents were the ones most responsible for their children, though teachers and society also play an important role in their education and maturation process.

According to official statistics only 0.065 percent of the total population, or 130,000 people, are drug addicts.

"Other countries' experiences show that the real number is actually about 10 times that of the official data," Habibie warned during a commemoration of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking at the State Palace yesterday.

Present at the ceremony were Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare and Poverty Eradication Haryono Suyono, Minister of Justice Muladi, Minister of Social Services Justika Sjarifudin Baharsjah and dozens of social activists.

Habibie said success in eradicating drug abuse would depend much on the tireless efforts of the whole nation to prevent youth from this horrifying addiction.

"Various research shows that less religious people have a higher risk of becoming addicts rather than those who have a strong religious background," Habibie noted. (prb)