Caring is the better option

LET’S get one thing clear. There has never been nor will there ever be a drug-free society. Every civilisation in human history has had at least one substance to deal with pain, the improvement of performance, and even to socialise.

Today, it’s almost scandalous to think that drugs are as consistent in our society as food and companionship. So before we dive into this topic of drugs, it’s important that we recognise how we cannot completely eliminate drug use from society. We must instead learn how to manoeuvre the use of drugs into a balance that works between efficiency and minimal harm.

Capital punishment is the highest punishment for drug abuse. Under section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act, anyone caught in possession of 15g or more of heroin and morphine, 200g or more of cannabis, and 40g or more of cocaine will receive the mandatory death sentence by hanging. The punishment for those caught with drugs but not convicted of trafficking can range from imprisonment and rehabilitation to fines.

In March 2012, then Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein revealed in Parliament that the mandatory death penalty had failed in countering the drug trade in Malaysia, where drug addiction is on the rise. Between 2015 and 2016, the number of drug addicts recorded increased 14% to 30,847. In the past two years, even the number of new cases of drug addicts has increased from 20,000 to 23,000. Clearly, our approach in tackling the problem of drug use is not working.

I have always urged for the National Anti-Drugs Agency (AADK) and the Malaysian Drug Prevention Society (Pemadam) to be revamped to have greater relevance with today’s youths. I have also been adamant that these agencies be given greater funding so that they may focus more on the rehabilitation of drug users.

It is time for us to spend more on the rehabilitation rather than punishment of drug addicts. We must recognise that the old method of increasing penalties on drug addicts is not working. For years, we have upheld this policy and for years the number of drug users has only increased. I totally agree with the heavy punishment imposed on the dealer but not on the users. They are victims, not criminals, and they need help.

During the Vietnam war, it was found that over 20% of the American soldiers on the ground were using heroin. Experts at that time were concerned that when the war was over, these soldiers would go home addicted. The Archives of General Psychiatry followed these soldiers home after the war and when a detailed study on them was released, it was found that 95% of the soldiers who used heroin stopped using. What happened?

Bruce Alexander, a professor of psychology in Vancouver, argued that addiction lies not in the “chemical hooks” of drugs but on the environment of drug users. It was because the American soldiers wanted to escape the dire reality of war that they used heroin.

But once they were back home, once the veterans were surrounded by family and a nine-to-five job, they found no use for heroin because they were comfortable being psychologically present in their lives.

The Centre for Drug Research based in the Netherlands similarly found that people mostly use drugs as relief from a life dented by trauma, isolation, the loss of a loved one or depression. It was less about the chemical compound of the drugs and more about the current state of the person’s life.

Across the world, different nations have different methods of dealing with drug addicts. Some countries go to the extent of public humiliation while others impose criminal records that make it harder for the addict to find jobs. These methods do more harm than good for addicts because it’s a policy of isolation.

Putting up barriers between addicts and the world only motivates them to despise their reality, increasing the eventuality of drug use as a means to escape.

What we need in 2017 is to intensify efforts to ensure that these addicts are able to integrate themselves back into society. Instead of giving them the conventional vocational training, what I propose is that we equip these troubled individuals with skills that are relevant today and for the future economy.

In these days of technological advancement, equipping them with merely odd jobs skills may no longer be relevant. In fact, we may end up pushing them into jobs that will no longer be relevant or in demand. We should be equipping them with skills such as IT, coding and business training.

By giving them proper training and a business platform, they might one day become successful entrepreneurs.

I have sat with families and parents whose children are in prison for drug use. I have sat with children caught for using drugs in school. Drug addiction affects families, friends, classrooms and households.

Today, we are at a crossroads. We can either continue our path of punishing and demonising drug users, and risk jeopardising an increasing number of our nation’s asset, or we can begin to move away from a system that has not worked.

We can begin to endorse a system where drug addicts are provided opportunities, employment, training, care and love rather than isolation.

If only we are brave enough for a radical change in approach.

SENATOR KHAIRUL AZWAN HARUN Pemuda Umno Kuala Lumpur