Students and an antidrug stance

Why have students never staged demonstrations against narcotic and drug abuse, while they have staged demonstrations against the New Order, the holding of the special session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the referendum, the Law on State Security and so forth?

It does not seem reasonable that they have not staged rallies against drug abuse. As the younger generation concerned with the fate of the nation, they cannot see that the danger posed by narcotic and drug abuse is much greater than then president Habibie's ratification of the Law on State Security, or the holding of the MPR special session. If only they had let the special session of the MPR proceed as scheduled, there would not have been any Semanggi Tragedy.

Dangers resulting from the abuse of narcotics and drugs may last three, 10 or 15 years. Now that hundreds of students from a prestigious Jakarta university have been netted because of the abuse of narcotics and drugs, I am bothered by thoughts that courageous demonstrations staged by students in the recent past might have been connected with the use of narcotics and drugs on the part of the participants.

YENNI MARPAUNG

Surabaya, East Java