Not child’s play

“Our efforts must especially be focused on youth”. To this end we need to “involve and encourage parents and teachers to fully play their role”, said KOFI ANNAN , Secretary General of the United Nations, who seized the occasion of International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (26 June) to insist on the “educational” aspects and the efforts of prevention that need to be made in the fight against the spread of drugs. ALSO IN CHILDREN. It’s no accident that the slogan chosen for the 2006 world campaign is “Drugs are not child’s play”. The campaign, promoted by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), aims to “raise the awareness of public opinion about the destructive power of drugs and the need for society always to have regard for the well-being of children as a priority”. According to the experts of UNODC (based in Vienna, with offices of coordination in Washington and Brussels, as well as 21 regional offices), “at least 200 million people, i.e. over 5% of the world population comprised between the ages of 15 and 64, have made use of drugs at least once over the last 12 months”. But “children too are prone to the consumption and illicit trafficking of drugs”; those most vulnerable to this risk are “street children, who work and live in desperate conditions, and the boys and girls that belong to families of drug consumers or drug traffickers”. The UNO is asking for a priority commitment to these “minors at risk” in its 2006 anti-drugs campaign. It is urging “adults to protect children”. CANNABIS, AMPHETAMINES, ECSTASY. Some alarming figures have been published by the UN Office on Drugs. ANTONIO MARIA COSTA , executive director of UNODC, on presenting the 2006 Report on drugs in Washington, said there “are three weak points in the fight against drugs: the supply of heroin in Afghanistan, the demand for cocaine in Europe and the generalized demand/supply of cannabis”. The Report shows that cocaine consumption in Western countries and opium production in Afghanistan are increasing, after a decrease was registered in 2005. “The demand for cocaine in the old continent is reaching alarming levels”, said Costa, appealing to the governments of the European Union “not to ignore the problem”. Costa also furnished some alarming figures: “In 2004 some 25 million people used amphetamines at least once; 10 million used ecstasy; 162 million used cannabis at least once, the equivalent of 4% of the population between the ages of 15 and 64; and consumption continues to grow, also because it is considered a light and innocuous drug. But there are increasing proofs that cannabis can cause mental diseases”. To curb the phenomenon, Costa suggests measures aimed “at reducing both the demand and supply of drugs”. EU, PREVENTION AND REPRESSION. “The strategy of the European Union on drugs is essentially based on an effort to strike the right balance between prevention and education on the one hand, and measures of repression against producers and traffickers on the other”, said FRANCO FRATTINI , Vice-President of the Commission, and Commissioner for Justice, Liberty and Security. Speaking at a press conference on 26 June, Frattini explained the EU anti-drugs strategy, and its coordination with the UN programme. In the 25 member states, he said, “8,000 people die every year due to the effects of drugs, most of them young people between the ages of 20 and 30. However, according to our estimates, the total number of deaths could be three times higher than that figure, taking into account the deaths linked to the indirect effects of drug addiction, including Aids, trafficking, violence and suicides”. “The balance between health and repression – added Frattini during the same press conference in Brussels, flanked by Commissioners Benita Ferrero-Waldner (external relations) and Markos Kyprianou (health and protection of consumers) – is a reflection of the balance between the rights of citizens and public security”. In this sense, “close cooperation between all those who deal with drug addiction in civil society is essential”. YOUTH AT RISK. The data published in Brussels are no less worrying than those furnished by the UN. According to the European Watchdog on Drugs and Drug Addiction (OEDT), “between 3 and 3.5 million people made use of cocaine last year; of these, 1.5 million are to be considered regular users”. In addition, “12 million EU citizens consume cannabis, of whom 3 million on a daily basis”. Ecstasy, “produced in Europe, is now the second most widespread drug after cannabis” and “8% of youth regularly consume it”. Another aspect that should be borne in mind is “the systematic mixture of drugs with alcohol and medicines, a growing problem which it is difficult to redress”.