It is almost tragic that whenever sensible words are spoken about drugs, they never emanate from the conditioned mouths of our mainstream political parties. From them, all we hear is that drugs are evil and the only way of dealing with the issue is to lock up users for years on end.
Such an approach may win votes, but it has not – over many years now – done anything to solve the problem. If anything, things have got worse, and the only people who have profited from such a situation are drug barons.
In the meantime, lives continue to be wrecked, our prisons have people in them who should not be there and, because political parties’ so-called principles are determined solely by what is dictated by opinion polls rather than reason, we never move forward.
Malta is losing its fight against drug addiction and trafficking. Drugs are dispersed all over the two islands, and those who have money and friends can buy as much as they want.
The preceding sentence should have been in quotation marks, because the words are not ours. They belong to Mgr Victor Grech, who is departing after many years as director of Caritas.
We do not think punishment and prison are the best measures to improve the behaviour of young people on drugs, except in cases where that person would be a huge risk to society, such as in drug trafficking and organised crime.
Again, these are not our words. Nor, of course, do they belong to a mainstream political party. Yet again, they are his. We – this time without invisible quotation marks – fully subscribe to this position.
So, it seems, does Malta’s President, George Abela, who in a visit to Caritas two years ago said he agreed with those who argued that incarceration may not be the best way to deal with drug addicts who have recovered and do not pose a risk to society.
Former European Court of Human Rights judge Giovanni Bonello said only two days ago that a distinction should be made between drug users and traffickers.
“We would like to see the personal use of drugs treated no longer as a judicial issue, but as a social problem,” Dr Bonello said after Alternattiva Demokratika – the only political group to approach the subject with a modicum of realism and sense – presented the Commission for Law Reform with its drug policy position.
Let’s not beat around the bush: All drugs have the potential to wreck lives and cause serious problems for users and their families. But it would also be unrealistic not to admit that, in the same way as alcohol, there are people who have recreationally made certain substances a part of their lives and will continue to do so. While society may look at this disapprovingly, it would be foolish to ignore this fact because it affects people’s sons, daughters and grandchildren.
Nor can it ignore the problems caused by drug addiction. Mgr Grech said in his final speech that last year, 694 drug addicts sought Caritas rehabilitation services – seven per cent more than in 2011 and 34 per cent more than in 2004. Unfortunately, he also warned that the Church-run agency may not be able to sustain its sterling work due to financial difficulties.
Joseph Muscat can talk about being progressive till he’s blue (perhaps this time not the Nationalist hue) in the face. But it is only when he starts to address issues that may not be vote-winners, that people can even consider attaching credibility to his words.