The Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) today called for a clear-cut policy for the government to help rehabilitated drug addicts who have turned over a new leaf to secure jobs. Its vice-chairman, Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, said both the government and private sector should look into the employment of rehabilitated drug addicts and help them to be re-integrated into society so that they could settle down and not have to live a life of crime.

“The government should consider initiating a policy to help former drug addicts to seek employment just as it has a policy on the employment of disabled persons,” he said in a statement on Sunday. Lee said providing employment to former drug addicts to keep them away from crime was essential as unemployed former addicts had been identified as one of the primary causes of snatch thefts and other petty crimes in the country.

“Drug addicts who have successfully undergone drug rehabilitation and retraining need to be assisted to eke out an existence. “If they fail to seek employment, they will continue to be involved in petty crimes such as snatch thefts,” he said.

Lee said tackling the problem of snatch thefts required an integrated approach, including strengthening street patrols by the police in crime-prone areas.
Besides, he said, more severe punishment for snatch thieves should be provided as a deterrent to others.

Other proposals included installing more road barriers to separate the roads from the pedestrian paths to make it difficult for snatch thieves to grab the belongings of pedestrians, as well as enhancing crime prevention vigilance and awareness among pedestrians, he added.

Source: www.Bernama.com Malaysian news agency 28th March 2010

Vietnam has targeted to lower the number of drug addicts to below 0.1 percent of its population by 2010, Vietnam News Agency reported Wednesday.

Under the national anti-drug program by 2010 approved by Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Tuesday, the country has eyed to have 60 percent of its communes without drug addicts, and reduce the rate of people relapsing into addiction.

To this end, Vietnam, with population of over 84 million, will intensify surveillance on trading kinds of drugs from abroad into the country, eliminate growing trees providing materials for drug production, and tighten control over additive substances.

It will also complete law systems on drug prevention, improve public awareness and intensify international cooperation on the issue.

As of late 2006, Vietnam had a total of 160,226 drug addicts, over 70 percent of whom are in the age bracket of 18-35, according to statistics from the country’s Ministry of Public Security.

Source: Xinhua Peoples Daily Online 26.09.07

Admitting an absence of credible data affording an insight into the drug abuse situation in the country, Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Mukul Wasnik said he has suggested setting up of more drug de-addiction centres across India.

Wasnik said he has suggested to the union health ministry to consider setting up of centers, like “national drugs dependent treatment centre, which is functioning at All India Institute of Medical Sciences”, in different parts of India as it would be a big step in dealing with drug abuse.

He was speaking after releasing the International Narcotic Control Board ’ s (INCB) 2009 annual report here.

“I would have to admit that data available on drug abuse has not been of such a nature that can give us a total insight into the entire situation,” Wasnik said.

He added that his ministry has been coordinating with other ministries on the issue and a big network of about 350 voluntary organisations is involved in dealing with the situation.   The INCB report highlights that rates of drug abuse tend to be higher among teenagers and young adults.   Another new trend noted by the report is increase in young women using drugs – the gap with the level of drug use by young men has narrowed substantially.

It said: “Primary prevention strategies need to focus on the whole population, as such strategies can reduce demands for drugs as well as identify gaps or population that is not sufficiently served.”   “Primary prevention needs to begin with prospective parents, by raising their awareness of the harms caused by drug, alcohol or tobacco abuse during pregnancy,” it added.

“Drug education is an important prevention component in early adolescence. Nightclubs, discotheques, bars and music festivals are key locations for getting messages about drug abuse across the older adolescents and young adults, as well as colleges and universities,” the report said.

It said that besides other steps, there needs to be collaboration with NGOs and others to tackle drug abuse.

Source:Times of India 25th Feb 2010

This study was designed to document knowledge about Kuwaiti drug users and to investigate whether or not there is an association between their poor self-concept and high level of anxiety. One hundred and seven incarcerated drug users, 107 individuals serving prison terms for offenses other than drug use, and 107 “normal” individuals were included in this pilot study. The Arabic version of Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale and Spielberger’s State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were used to measure the subjects’ self-esteem and state-trait anxiety, respectively. The results documented revealed that there is a relationship between levels of self-esteem and anxiety in Kuwaiti drug user behavior.

Source: Substance Use & Misuse 1996, Vol. 31, No. 7, Pages 937-943

Counselling centres for the prevention of drug abuse would be opened in various parts of the capital, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said here Thursday.”The Delhi government would set up counselling centres to bring forceful awareness about prevention. It is better to prevent occurrence of any bad incident than cure it after it takes shape and grows gradually,” Dikshit said while inaugurating a day-long seminar on drug abuse prevention.
She said the administrative reforms department has already cleared the proposal for appointment of counsellors and it would take sometime to make such centres functional.
Dikshit called upon NGOs to come forward and put an end to menace of drug abuse, which is affecting the youth.
“There would be no dearth of funds for extending help to NGOs to enable them to substantially contribute in prevention of drug abuse,” said state Health and Social Welfare Minister Yoganand Shastri here.
Source: Thaindiannews.com 4th Sept.2008

MANILA, Philippines – Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) chairman Vicente Sotto III on Friday expressed disappointment over the Commission on Human Rights’ opinion that the planned random drug testing could violate an individual’s rights.

During a meeting with education officials on Friday morning, Sotto insisted that the random drug testing – set to be conducted in over 8,000 schools – would not trample any human rights as claimed by various sectors.

“They (CHR) got it completely wrong. The objective of the drug test is not punitive, but preventive. This is a health issue. The students’ confidentiality is assured and anyone testing positive can be rescued in time through counseling,” Sotto said in a statement. “In fact, Sotto said “any attempt to block the implementation of the latest effort against illegal drugs should be the one considered as a violation of human rights. Preventing drug testing is a violation of human rights because you are preventing the government to cure drug dependence,” Sotto said in a separate radio interview.

It’s like stopping efforts to stamp out drug dependence and help drug addicts,” he added. Sotto gathered officials form the Department of Education, the Commission on Higher Education, and the Technical Education and Skills Development to draw up guidelines in the planned random testing for high school and college students nationwide. Sotto said they did not invite the CHR to Friday’s meeting, but added that the rights body is more than welcome to send a delegate to supervise or contribute ideas in the creation of the guidelines. He also reiterated during the meeting that the random drug testing could no longer be taken out of the government’s intensified anti-drug campaign because it is considered as its most important part.

The measure’s significance lies in the fact that it not only involves the “prevention” of drug dependence, but also the government’s “intervention” in ensuring that the students would be subjected under counseling to cure them of their addiction. In his statement, Sotto assured transparency in the conduct of the testing, adding that various sectors including the Supreme Court had approved of the measure.

“The student’s family will also be alerted about the situation. Those who fear that drug-testing will violate the privacy of students and put them behind bars are mistaken,” he said. “The matter of drug testing was the product of consultation and had been the subject of DDB Resolution No. 6 promulgated since August 1, 2003. Likewise, the Supreme Court, in the case of Social Justice Society vs. DDB promulgated on November 3, 2008, decided that random drug-testing in schools is constitutional,” Sotto added.

He also said that passing a drug test has in fact been a requirement for admission in a number of schools in Metro Manila for quite some time now.
The government is slated to carry out the initial stages of the drug testing in March. Then at the start of the school season in June, the government would resume the program for its second instalment.

The DepEd earlier said it would expand its random drug testing to include more students and more schools, ultimately targeting to include about 6 million students from 8,000 schools. For its part, the Department of Health on Thursday suggested that the drug testing which it had been conducting since 2005 should now include the detection of cocaine, Ecstasy, and barbiturates – and not just shabu and marijuana.

Source: GMANews.TV Jan.16 2009

Due to the UAE’s strategic location, policies and free zones, the nation is a thriving commercial hub. This country should take pride in the way it has become both a marketplace of goods and services as well as a marketplace of ideas.

But not all the influences that arrive on the UAE’s shores are positive. Yesterday’s revelation of the seizure of 100kg of the stimulant Captogan, an amphetamine commonly used as a recreational drug, came only weeks after customs officials confiscated 16kg of heroin at Dubai International Airport. The Ministry of Interior’s department of anti-narcotics has said that drug related crimes have risen significantly due to the increase in population and in the transit of people and goods through the country.
These recent discoveries and other high profile arrests such as the jailing of a British DJ last year for possession of cannabis illustrate how seriously the Government takes the threat. This no nonsense approach is commendable. No amount of investment in narcotic control is big enough. Drug use may be an individual crime but it has tremendous social costs. Crack-cocaine ravaged American cities in the 1980s and a dependence on the flowering plant khat, chewed by 80 per cent of Yemen’s adult population for its stimulative effects, has been widely attributed as a cause of that nation’s unemployment and poverty levels.
The UAE’s large population of young people, particularly those living outside the cities, have a limited amount of entertainment outlets and drugs all too often become an insidious escape route from boredom. The authorities must continue their vigilant approach, but through education and the creation of more extra-curricular options for youth, the false appeal of drug use can be diminished.

Dubai Customs’s ability to locate the Captogan stash in 152 industrial sized spools of thread through a study of their density is a testament to the effectiveness of their technology and their thoroughness. But drug smugglers will still attempt to flout the law. Strategies for education and rehabilitation are needed to help further reduce the risks that drugs pose to society.
Source: TheNational digital edition Feb. 2009

The so called war on drugs is 100 years old this year, yet the taking of illicit drugs is showing few signs of coming under control.

The International Opium Commission, first convened in Shanghai in 1909 and since then the number of internationally-controlled substances has grown to more than 200. The United Nations’ International Narcotics Control Board, in its annual report released yesterday, paints a picture of an ever-expanding and increasingly violent drugs market, with new trafficking routes being opened regularly, many of them in our region.

WATTERS: It will be an ongoing battle. I think it’s like a lot of other things we face in life, poverty, discrimination and racism. It’s a continuing battle. But certainly things would be a great deal worse if it hadn’t been for what was launched in China in the year 2009 [1909]. For example, in 2009 [1909], there was, in China alone there was three thousand tonnes of morphine equivalent of opium being consumed. Now in the whole world today, there’s not that much, including what’s being used legally. So we know there’s been a very significant downturn in the use of that drug, even though it’s very much in the hands of very clever criminal syndicates, but we’ve certainly controlled it to a very large extent.

LAM: Your report also notes that the internet is playing an increasing role in the trafficking of legal and unauthorised prescription drugs. How is the Internet being used for drug trafficking?

WATTERS: Well Sen, like a lot of other areas in our modern life, we’re having to cope with changes in technology and certainly the rapid movement of information and the free movement of information on the Internet allows for criminal syndicates around the world to plan their movements of drugs and place their orders using various sorts of cryptology, avoiding the open statement. Then on top of that, we have what we call the Internet pharmacy proliferation around the world and these pharmacies are very often, not all, but a significant number of fronts for Illegal organisations to allow controlled substances to be moved freely from country to country through the postal systems.

LAM: And indeed, with modern communications being so efficient now, the drugs do pass quite easily from country to country. For instance, your report pointed out that Chinese chemicals are being used by Canadian ecstasy manufacturers to make drugs which then end up being sold in Australia and Japan. So it’s quite a daunting challenge, isn’t it?

WATTERS: Yes, it’s an international movement and certainly part of what we’ve been doing at the International Narcotics Control Board is seeking to control those precursors and we do very, very well in many ways, but when you think that a country like China with its vast numbers, they tell us they have got 50,000 factories there that are producing chemicals that could be diverted illicitly into the methamphedamine markets, so it’s a huge task and the India similarly has a big task just to control these things.

LAM: So is there a sort of common attitude by world authorities towards drugs and drug use. For instance, the chair of Britain’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, Professor David Nutt, recently said that using ecstasy was no more dangerous than horse riding. So are we wasting resources by targeting drugs like ecstasy?

WATTERS: Well, with all due respect, I think he’s being very foolish to even talk like that. One of the difficulties we face in many countries is to use the term recreational or party in relationship to dangerous drugs. We do know that more than 95 per cent of the member states of the United Nations are signatories to the convention and that covers 99 per cent of the world’s population. So in principle, they all agree that we should control drugs, make available where necessary, but certainly not allow for the recreational use of these dangerous substances and to suggest that…there is so much medical evidence that these methamphetamine type drugs can have seriously long term psychotic affects. I suppose it could be said if you fell of a horse and landed on your head, that might be equivalent.
presenter: Sen Lam
Speaker: Major Brian Watters from the Salvation Army is a Member of the International Narcotics Control Board and Chairman of the Australian National Council on Drugs
Source:www.radioaustralia.net Feb20th 2009

Bandar Seri Begawan – The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in its tireless vigilance has once again apprehended several individuals suspected of consuming and distributing illegal drugs openly in public.
According to a press release from NCB, investigations into these activities have warranted the arrests of 10 men between the ages of 18 and 38, including two men who had been reported to have blatantly sold these drugs to passers by at a jetty and the back streets of Kg Saba Darat in the capital.
Some 70 NCB officers were involved in the drug bust last Thursday where they succeeded in seizing several packets of illegal drugs.
The operation is part of a series that NCB will be conducting in known drug hotspots in their commitment to clean up the streets of illegal drugs.
According to Section 39(a), Paragraph 27 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, any person found guilty for possession of controlled drugs will face a minimum sentence of 20 years imprisonment and 15 strokes of the cane, and a maximum sentence of 30 years with 15 strokes of the cane.
But possession of controlled drugs exceeding 500 grammes carries the death penalty in Brunei.
Meanwhile, suspects found guilty of consuming controlled drugs will be charged under Section 6(b), Paragraph 27 of the Misuse of Drugs Act and will face a minimum of three years and a maximum of 10 years or imposed with a $20,000 fine or both.
Source: Borneo Bulletin www.BruDirect.com March 2009

Why do the young turn into drug addicts and what could be the reasons for their increasing number in our country? Riti Naik looks for answers.

The ‘d’ generation
Ranmeet never came second in class throughout his school life, he was that brilliant. Besides, being an excellent drummer and a swift swimmer, he was also an obedient child. However, when he got through IIT Kharagpur, he lost interest in studies as he had never wanted to take up engineering. With a huge syllabus before him and an adamant mother behind, today, the boy stays with his father in his room. Ranmeet is a drug addict, and his father tries day and night to help him out, fully aware that sending him to a rehab would put an end to his studies. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.
This incident talks about a victim who has been treated mercilessly by circumstances. Yet, everyday, thousands of students, all over the country are actually willing to become drug abuse victims. Among these, numerous have already become addicted and blighted their lives.
No one ever aims to become an addict. Who knew that a brilliant boy like Ranmeet would turn his life into such a hell? Well, a question can be asked here: did he turn his life into that of an addict? The answer is ‘yes’ because no one could have taken the drug for him to become an addict. Yet, is he solely responsible for his state? Can we put the entire blame on him? This is the general mistake made by society, which comprises people like you and I – to put the blame on the user. No doubt the user is most guilty, but the contribution of circumstances is something undeniable here.
First, why did a studious boy like Ranmeet take a drug? Or, if we expand the question: why do students of the twenty-first century take drugs?
In most cases youngsters ‘try out’ drugs. When peer pressure threatens to label someone as an outcaste, people generally give in. After the effects are experienced, whenever, a youngster feels s/he cannot cope with her/his circumstances, they fall back on drugs. In this way, they become dependent on drugs during their stressful times. Once a person is under the influence of drugs, s/he will subsequently need more amounts of it every time to produce the same effect. If this is not nipped in the bud, there is very little chance of the person not to turn into an addict.
This is a very crucial point of one’s life, where s/he needs support from loved ones, which is denied most of the times. And specially, after becoming an addict, society turns its face away once they push her/him to a rehab. We must understand that they are what they are today because, somewhere in their lives, they have made a wrong choice, somewhere they haven’t been guided well. And because of this mistake, their lives have changed, they have become unknown beings to themselves, the spark within them flickered out.
So, if we consider ourselves to be responsible people who are wise enough not to make that wrong choice, don’t you agree that it’s our responsibility to accept them too? To try to give them what they deserve? To at least help them get back to their previous life?
No matter how much we try, we cannot run away from drugs. The menace has crept into the very roots of society. Drug abuse is rampant everywhere, all around us -some in large magnitudes, others in less significant numbers. In Australia, selling of loose petrol (which is directly not put inside the engine), is banned. Addicts inhale the smell of petrol for they can’t pay for ‘harder’ drugs. Many times, while waiting at road signals, we see little boys and girls coming with scraps of cloth to wipe the car windows and ask for alms. Some of them, in a quick gesture of picking up something on the ground, wipe the exhaust pipe, preferably of bikes. Once the signal is back , they wait for the next one, sniff the cloth to kill hunger. The child becomes a victim of drug abuse.
One does not become a drug addict only from heroin, cocaine, crack, marijuana(or any other form of it) or club drugs (like Ecstasy, LSD). Many times some addicts even sniff Fevicol, dendrite, nail polish removers, enamel paints and correction pen fluids. These are referred to as ‘inhalants’ and cause severe permanent damages to the brain in the long run. These volatile substances, if taken in good quantity can actually give the user a ‘high’ and lead to addiction. And along with this, we also have alcohol, cigarettes, and pharmaceutical products (sleeping pills, cough syrups and painkillers). Even if they don’t make addicts, they pave the road for one.
The human body can function well without drugs. Mentally, we are quipped with reasoning power with which we can fight every thought that disturbs us. We therefore can solve every problem ourselves, and in case some of us are unable to, there are various other options. Seeking refuge in drugs is not the solution.
Drugs are illegal, hard to obtain and have terrifying after effects – we all know that. So why fall victim to something as heinous as drugs, when you can manage everything yourself? Many take drugs to get that feeling of confidence and being on top of the world. This feeling can be experienced the moment you know what you are doing and your conscience favours you.
The reasons why the youth take drugs, like stress management, for getting that euphoric feeling, making their bodies feel they way they want to —can be all achieved with a little bit of hard work which will in turn do wonders for the mind and body as well.
A human being is a natural creation and a part of it cannot be artificial. Drugs produce effects that are artificial; be it the painkiller or the LSD effect, when you become part of another world. Once, one starts using drugs, one is less dependent on her/his own body functions and more dependent on this foreign stimulant. At first the body refuses to take in excess of such stuff and the person rejects it by throwing up. But once the bodily functions are somewhat affected and the normal working of the human body has decreased, the body gives in and the addict becomes a victim of overdose.
Many movies depict the complete destruction of a character due to drug abuse. Fashion portrays a super model Shonali (played by Kangana Ranaut), who initially a drug addict, spoils her entire career and subsequently, her whole life with her increasing dependence on drugs. In Dev D, Dev (Abhay Deol), doesn’t care to see how much he has started deteriorating in the eyes of those who love him. Other movies like Devdas, Don-2, we see that though the protagonists knew that another drink would kill them, yet they could not restrain themselves. They chose drugs over normal life, destruction over self-restraint.
Many times, events in our lives compel us to give up all hope and shut ourselves up in darkness. Most people use drugs in such a situation to escape that dreadful feeling of loss. And this is the excuse many of our friends give when we come to know about their addictive habits. Most of the times we let them indulge in it, thinking it would be better for them to forget the incident. However, supporting the usage of drugs is as dangerous as misuse of drugs. As a responsible generation, we have to make a decision now; we have to say ‘No’ to drugs.
Nothing can equal the confidence with which an innocent child dreams. These dreams long to be fulfilled by the child buried deep inside us as we grow up. Some claim to need drugs just to feel confident, yet a major bulk of the world population is functioning very well without drugs.
A drug is not a prerequisite for existence. With an able mind and body, we can surely create our own style, we can have our own vision. With a little awareness we can be naturally high on confidence and nurture our own dreams.
And now that we know that we can do well without drugs, we must completely do away with it. We can only be great individuals once we are completely independent, when we do not have to depend on anything to bring out the best in us.
A drug is not a scary subject. It’s just about a strong decision we’ve have make and say “No thanks, I’m fine without drugs”, whenever someone offers it to us.

Coordinator, La Martiniere for Girls
Source: Daily Dose May 2009

Men diagnosed with cancer are less likely to survive the disease if they were smokers or heavy drinkers, Reuters reported Nov. 7.
Smoking and drinking are well-known risk factors for cancer, but researchers have begun looking into how these addictions affect survivability, as well. Researcher Young Ho Yun and colleagues at the National Cancer Center in Goyang, South Korea tracked 14,578 cancer patients for about nine years and compared mortality data to patients’ history of smoking and alcohol use.
The researchers found that former smokers were more likely to die from any kind of cancer than non-smoking cancer patients, possibly because smoking causes tumors to grow more aggressively. Smokers also may be less likely to get cancer screening tests, the authors noted, so their disease is often further advanced when treatment begins.
Among patients with head, neck, or liver cancer, heavy drinkers were more likely to die than non-drinkers, with risk increasing with consumption levels.
“Our findings suggest that groups at high risk of cancer need to be educated continually to improve their health behaviors — not only to prevent cancer, but also to improve prognosis,” the study authors noted.
The research appears in the Nov. 1, 2006 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

According to a survey, based on interviews With 108 marijuana users aged between 13 and 31 and released by the Caritas Youth and Community Service in Aberdeen (Hong Kong) almost one in five young marijuana users said the Body Shop’s hemp promotion influenced someone they know to experiment with the drug. 44% said the products lowered their psychological resistance to experimenting, while 48% said they led people to believe that the drug had no adverse health effects. 18.7% said they knew who someone who started using marijuana as a direct result of the – promotion of commercial hemp products.
The Body Shop was not named in the report but according to the South China Morning Post on Sunday, Caritas social worker Fung Hing-kau identified the company after the report was released. Caritas Youth and Community Service supervisor Lam Wai-fan criticized the company for using the drug to promote its products.
Source: HNN Press Release Feb 1999