Source: www.newsday.co.tt
TWO incidents this week have shown how important it is for a society to act, through its various arms of State, its NGOs and its ordinary citizenry, to try to curb the illicit drug use.
TT, among the other nations, was shocked at the tragic death of soul singer Amy Winehouse after a troubled life of addiction to illicit drugs and alcohol. The world has been deprived of a huge talent whose earthy tones spanned generations and cultures. “They tried to make me go to rehab, But I said no, no no”, were the words of her hit song, “Rehab”, which is now sure to become a tragic anthem of lives lost to drug addiction. Rest in peace, Amy.
The second happening this week, at home, was the stark revelation by Dr Lincoln Douglas, Minister in the Ministry of the People and Social Development, of the extent to which drugs are ruining the lives of men, women and yes, children, in TT. He addressed a recent meeting on the certification of drug counsellors at the Kapok Hotel hosted by the Organisation of American States (OAS).
The figures are shocking.
Some 40 percent of both men and women in jail in TT are there due to some sort of involvement in illegal drugs, whether drug use, drug peddling, or committing other crimes to fund a drug habit, or under the influence of drugs. Of all the women jailed for drug charges, most (two thirds) were involved in the drug trade, said Douglas. His figures were equally shocking for the population of youngsters incarcerated at correctional facilities. Some 74 percent had tried marijuana, while some 57 percent had smoked crack cocaine. Half of these youngsters are still using drugs, said Douglas. He said youngsters from as young as nine-years-old have used drugs.
These figures suggest is a clear link between drug use and criminality.
While popular culture sometimes seeks to glamourise illicit drug use especially marijuana, in songs and in movies, one must remember that drugs have been outlawed for a reason, that is, for their detrimental effect on one’s physical and psychiatric health.
Given the large proportion of inmates jailed on drug offences, and given this country’s prevalence of street-dwellers (many whom exhibit mental problems likely incurred by illicit drug use), there is certainly a need for concerted action against drugs.
So Douglas’ support for rehab centres is certainly welcomed. There is a proliferation of centres offering rehab treatment, and Douglas has vowed a Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Act to set standards.
He also lamented the lack of specific treatment centres for adolescents and women involved in illicit drugs, and of any specific centre in Tobago, apart from the Psychiatric Unit of the Scarborough Hospital.
We welcome the Government’s focus on the ills of drug abuse and the need for rehabilitation.
Minister Douglas did not spell out what shortcomings, if any, he is seeking to rectify in the proposed new Bill. However, we would hope to see a collaborative approach between the State and those NGOs who have laboured long and hard in the vineyard, and who would possess expertise and insights probably not available to official State agencies.
Of course, while we support all efforts in the very difficult task of drug rehabilitation, we would also like to see an end to the machine of misery that is manufacturing drug addicts and street-dwellers — the drug trade.
We await to see how the well-heeled parasites who traffic illicit drugs to prey on this society’s most vulnerable will now be curbed by recent laws such as the Financial Intelligence Unit Act and Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Bill.
As one speaker at the OAS event said, there are too many Amy Winehouses in this region crying out for help, and we certainly hope it will be forthcoming.