Say no to drugs" is a slogan that portrays Indonesia`s seriousness to fight drug abuses, but the programs it has launched have yet to produce any significant results while the number of drug users is increasing each year.

"Crimes and narcotic abuses are still posing a serious threat both to the world and our country. Although we have done a lot to stop and prevent narcotics crimes, yet we still need to make more efforts to assure that Indonesia is freed from illegal drugs," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said during a function to observe International Anti-Narcotics Day in Jakarta on Sunday.

Indonesia has established a National Narcotics Agency (BNN) to make efforts and launch campaigns against drug abuses and illegal trafficking. Last year the BNN declared its goals to free Indonesia from illegal drugs by 2015.

With the various campaigns, BNN chief Gories Mere hoped Indonesia would be free from narcotics by 2015. To achieve the goal he called for cooperation of all parties. "BNN hopes with continued cooperation with the office of the minister for backward regions Indonesia will be free of narcotics by 2015," he said last year when signing an agreement with minister for backward regions Ahmad Helmy Faisal to eradicate the circulation of drugs in poor regions.

It seems however that the number of drug abusers still continued to increase. During the function to observe world anti-narcotics day at Jakarta`s National Monument Square on Sunday, BNN head Gories Mere said that the number of drug users in the country has now reached 5 million.
He said that based on a BNN survey narcotic abuses continued to increase and in 2009 the number of narcotic addicts 10 to 59 years old accounted for 1.99 percent of the country`s population or about 3.6 million. 

Their number increased 2.21 percent to about 4.02 million in 2010. Since early this year, the abuses have reached 5 million, an increase by 2.8 percent.
According to BNN campaigner Andi Prawira, of the five million drug users, about 1.5 million are teenagers. "One third of the total number of drug users have HIV/AIDS," Andi said.

Gories even mentioned that what had been revealed was actually like the tip of an iceberg phenomenon which continued to pose threats and affect students and other members of the young generation.

Millions of drug users in the country virtually came from various social and professional backgrounds, including artists, musicians, students, politicians, and even policemen.

As some narcotic agents of international networks have been revealed by local security personnel, Gories was confident that the circulation of illegal drugs in the country was part of international networks. International narcotic networks are operating in Indonesia, involving syndicates from, among others, Iran, Nigeria, India, China and Malaysia.

Therefore, the Indonesian government has to make more efforts to rid the country of drug cells which could destroy the future of the nation`s younger generation.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono launched the National Strategy and Policy (Jakstranas) Movement for the Prevention and Eradication of Illegal Circulation and Abuse of Narcotics ((P4GN) 2011 - 2015.

"To save us all, I hail the efforts of BNN to fight and prevent abuse of narcotics," the president said stressing that narcotics crime is a serious and dangerous crime that needs common attention and commitment to preventing and eliminating it.

He said that narcotics destroyed the nation`s younger generations, characters and society and in the long run, it will tarnish the nation`s competitiveness. The president said that narcotics abuses would also prompt people to commit other criminal acts such as robbery, theft, money laundering and terrorism.

To further intensify campaign against drugs, the President ordered the BNN chief to lead the (P4GN) movement which aimed to free Indonesia from narcotics in 2015. "I have ordered the BNN to lead this movement," he said.

He has also instructed the government ranks and files in Jakarta and in the region to support the BNN in realizing its determination to create "Indonesia Free Narcotics 2015."

He said if all sides were committed and work hard together, Indonesia would be able to stop and prevent narcotics crimes which had the potentials to destroy the nation`s younger generations.

In an effort to carry out the program and to free Indonesia from narcotics abuses, the President issued a six-point instruction. "We have done a lot (to stop narcotics crime) but it seems that it is not yet enough, we still have to be more aggressive," the president said.

The first point of the president`s instruction to free Indonesia from narcotics in 2015 is to increase the intensity of illegal drug trafficking prevention efforts.

The second point is a request to increase regional and international cooperation in an effort to protect Indonesia so that it would not easily be disrupted by narcotics organizations. Yudhoyono also called on educators, parents and religious leaders to actively educate younger generations so that they would not be misled and involved in narcotics crimes.

The president`s fourth point of instruction was directed to police and legal enforcers, asking them to actively make efforts to uncover narcotics crimes and punish the perpetrators with appropriate punishment.

The fifth one, Yudhoyono said, was that the people should become more active and have greater care.

In the meantime, the sixth point concerned common efforts to encourage narcotic rehabilitation programs and the preparedness to accept former drug addicts to return to society.(*)  

Source: ANTARA