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THE International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking was observed the other day in the country like other parts of the world.
State Minister for Home Lutfuzzaman Babar, while addressing a seminar organised by the Department of Narcotic Control on the occasion, said he was getting disturbing reports about spread of drug culture in all segments of society. Newspapers are reporting that people of all ages and professions are increasingly getting addicted to drugs. The strong drug nexus, far from being smashed, is making deep inroads into different layers of society.
We agree with the state minister that drug is an international menace and trafficking in drugs originates in the international crime syndicate. But there is hardly any scope to downplay the responsibility of the governmental bodies in fighting the war against drugs. We have to identify the syndicates and take actions against them.
Easy availability is one of the causes for increase of the drug menace. Drug-taking is no longer confined to the unemployed and poverty-stricken people. These days people from all ages and professions are becoming addicts. The more alarming is the fact that adolescents are increasingly taking to drugs. Students of expensive schools are not excluded. In the West also, the drug menace is claiming more victims.
Drugs are smuggled in as there is a thriving international network in full operation. This puts a greater responsibility on the law enforcers and the drug fighting agencies. They must be made more accountable.
We need good treatment centres for drug addicts. Facilities for treatment and rehabilitation of the addicts should be more easily available at lower costs. Here the government can certainly do more to attract medical and psychological specialists in sufficient numbers to run the rehabilitation programme and also encourage voluntary groups to work on this line.
Abdul Quddus
Elephant Road
Dhaka
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