Editorial

One hopes the launch of a draft document on a national drugs policy by Family and Social Solidarity Minister Dolores Cristina will mark a turning point in Malta's attempt to come to grips with and curb the escalating incidence in drug abuse.

It is an attempt at centralising the government's structures so as to coordinate all efforts at cutting the supply and demand of drugs, regulating the services aimed at prevention and reduction, and the treatment and rehabilitating of drug addicts.

Despite the fact that various agencies have been working in this area for years, the statistics are not encouraging. In 2005, there were 1,714 individual heroin users receiving drug treatment, 12 per cent more than in 2004 and 19 per cent over 2003. These shocking figures are of great concern as the costs to society are incalculable. Heroin addiction is the most advanced level of drug abuse and a clear indicator of the deteriorating situation.

Drug abuse ruins individuals, undermines families, promotes crime and cripples society. The government realises it has to spruce up its act to have all the information necessary to pin down the causes of this phenomenon.

One would have expected rising standards of living and improved life expectancy to have had a different outcome. Something is radically wrong in modern society when so many of our youngsters resort to such negative behaviour.

The increasing incidence in family breakdown along with the abandonment of traditional values obviously play a part. The general culture of indiscipline where binge drinking and recreational drug use are part of our youth's entertainment scene has got out of hand.

Unscrupulous operators who promote a hedonistic culture have been allowed by the forces of law and order to continue making a fortune at the expense of gullible and vulnerable young people. Educational institutions at times appear to turn a blind eye to the type of entertainment young people indulge in. Open bar parties regularly attended by even young teenagers have, alas, become an accepted form of entertainment.

Against a backdrop of insecure backgrounds and socially-accepted misbehaviour - two areas where parents have a lot of responsibility to shoulder - we are faced with a correctional approach that is crying out for immediate reappraisal. The distinction between drug traffickers and users has to be addressed more effectively. Placing young offenders in jail is usually a passport to perdition.

Shamefully, drug abuse at Corradino is a well-established reality.

It is long overdue that first offenders are made to do community service and, when indicated, work towards compensating the victims of their petty crime. The possibility of reintegrating them into society will be much more successful when they are faced with the direct consequences of their actions.

Reversing the sliding levels of discipline at schools is essential and every effort should be employed to involve young people in healthy social and sporting programmes. Such activities should not be optional but an integral part of education.

Thanks to better data gathering, the government and others involved in this sphere should target those individuals who are more likely to succumb to the lure of drugs.

The introduction of a draft national drugs policy is a welcome step but it is crucial that reports and policy papers are immediately translated into effective action. Otherwise, it is an exercise in futility. Too much time has been lost already.