The number of drug addicts has sharply increased
he number of drug addicts has sharply increased. Based on latest reports issued by the nation's antidrug agency (BNN), 50 people ' mostly young people ' die each day from drug abuse. BNN predicts that this year the number of drug addicts will exceed five million.
Meanwhile, the capacity of all rehabilitation centers across the country is only about 18,000 patients. Even if BNN and its provincial chapter offices (BNNPs) can fulfill their commitment to recover 100,000 addicts in 2015, the capacity is far from enough.
While BNN concentrates on law enforcement, what kind of roles can be played by civil society groups in Indonesia? Last week, a workshop held by the Sekar Mawar Foundation (YSM) in cooperation with the Catholic University of Parahyangan (UNPAR) Bandung looked closely at this question.
It is important to answer the problem because the mental destruction caused by drugs is lifetime damage and the recovery, if it is possible, takes a lifetime effort, as stated by a former drug-addict-now-turned-counselor with Sekar Mawar Foundation.
The former drug user confessed that use of drugs ignites stimulation in the brain, creating a 'false happiness', but soon igniting dangerous effects: weakening our nervous system and slowly but surely distracting our brain system, similar to the way deforestation can turn Borneo into the Sahara.
Speaking at a workshop in Lembang, Bandung, BNN's North Sulawesi chapter chief Sumirat Dwiyanto confirmed that drugs could radically and drastically change a user from being a good citizen to a potential criminal. 'Once he or she has become an addict, his or her social life will be strongly affected: relationships with others tarnished and personal capacity decreased, with deteriorating mental health,' Sumirat explained.
Anastasia Cakunani, the director of the Sekar Mawar Foundation, explained that a commitment and action plan was vital to help young people find something SMART: specific, measurable, actionable, attainable, realistic and time-bound.
'This workshop primarily aims to protect students from consuming drugs by leverage of their knowledge of effects of drugs as well as boosting their morale to design their personal commitment and action plan,' shared Cakunani.
Royani Lim
Jakarta
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