SE Asia strives to cut youth drug abuse

SE Asia strives to cut youth drug abuse

By Paul Alexander

HANOI, Vietnam (AP): Youth drug abuse continues to rise in Southeast Asia despite legal crackdowns, threatening the "fabric of society," officials at a regional anti-drug conference said Thursday.

They urged a cooperative global effort that would incorporate young people's views and encourage alternative healthy activities.

"Undoubtedly, drug abuse is extremely dangerous to the survival of a nation, and it may even endanger mankind in general," said a paper presented by Bersama, an Indonesian umbrella group of anti-drug organizations.

"Drug trafficking has such a huge criminal network that they have the ability to impose their will on society. Drug abuse is not merely a single problem; it is always associated with other aspects of life, such as health, security and socio-economy."

Maria-Pia de Palo, program officer for the U.N. Drug Control Program's Regional Center for East Asia and the Pacific, said the biggest rise has been in synthetic-type drugs, including amphetamine-type stimulants like Ecstasy.

"There are also disturbing indications that young people are increasingly being exposed to a popular youth culture and mass media messages that are more tolerant toward the use of certain illicit drugs," she said.

De Palo said youths must be involved in seeking solutions.

"Young people are usually considered a target population and sometimes even a problem instead of a resource in the prevention of drug abuse," she said. "It is fundamental that their voices be heard in the attempt to raise awareness among their peers, policy makers and the public at large."

In recent years, Vietnam, Indonesia and other countries have stiffened their penalties for drug abuse and trafficking. In Vietnam, 34 people were sentenced to death for drug trafficking in their first eight months of the year.

"The government of Vietnam is deeply concerned that drug abuse continues to be more and more serious, particularly among young people, which endangers ... the fabric of society and erodes cultural values and the family," Le Minh Huong of the Ministry of Public Security said in an opening speech.

Despite such efforts, drug addiction continues to rise, particularly among the young.

"National efforts are important but not enough," said a paper by the ASEAN Secretariat. "There should also be concerted efforts at the regional and international levels with a global approach and participation of all sectors in the societies."

Not every country has seen increases.

Singapore said its number of drug-abuse arrests has declined since peaking in 1994 and that youths comprise only 6.8 percent of all drug abusers.

It credited a number of initiatives, including a high-profile annual campaign introduced in 1995 that is launched each year with a variety of concerts featuring popular local and international stars espousing anti-drug messages.

"The annual campaign aims to raise the awareness of the general public toward the detrimental social and economic effects of drug abuse, and to introduce alternative healthy lifestyles to our youths," a paper from the island-nation said.