Containing the hard drugs inflow

If hard drugs are continuing to flow into Sri Lanka, the inescapable conclusion is that there is a considerable demand for them in this country. This is discomforting news but that is the harsh reality.

The prisons are chockfull of those who have been convicted of drug-related offences and the news is that there has been no decrease in the rate of hard drugs-linked detections. In fact, we are given to understand that last year, 38 kilograms of heroin were seized and some 14,000 or more persons were arrested in connection with hard drugs related offences.

Hard drug abuse and related issues constitute a very knotty problem and unraveling it is unlikely to prove easy on account of its complex dimensions. However, it is more than two years since the number one narco-terrorist group, the LTTE, was crushed and one would have expected a diminishing somewhat of the hard drug abuse problem with the demise of the Tigers, but this does not seem to be the case. While, the LTTE was a predominant factor in Sri Lanka-centred drug trafficking over 25 years or more, since the proceeds from drug sales were used to replenish LTTE war coffers, there are apparently more causes, that operate independent of the Tiger war machine, which are keeping the drug trade going in the South Asian region and outside.

There is a criminal underworld in this country which is closely bound-up with drug abuse which must be crushed completely if a substantial dent is to be made in the hard drug issue. This is already being done by the law enforcement authorities and concerned sections would like to see a stepping-up of this process. There needs to be an all out offensive on these drug traffickers and their backers and it is when the back is broken completely of these seemingly powerful backers that the drug menace could be stopped in its tracks a good deal.

We hope some dramatic progress would be made in this direction in the days ahead. We need to get at the primary factors that feed the drug blight and unless and until these factors are located and eliminated, the struggle to stamp out the drug cancer would continue.

This calls for a rigorous law and order approach to the problem. In the past, the governmental authorities took the fight back to the criminal underworld in a most decided fashion and this effort must continue unrelentingly until the drug Mafias and their backers are completely eliminated. There could be no let-up in the offensive.

Meanwhile, the appeal of hard drugs needs to eliminated from the hearts and minds of those who are unfortunate enough to come under their sway. For instance, the young need to be constantly watched over and protected from the evil and its traffickers.

All vulnerable groups need to be educated and re-educated on the blight which is hard drug abuse. While schools and educational institutions should play a lead role in this task, a considerable part of the responsibility to protect these vulnerable sections should be shouldered by parents and elders too.

The youngsters are not few in number who consider it ‘smart’ and ‘chic’ to sport a glass of liquor and a cigarette in public. If these injudicious habits go unchecked, the chances are that they would ‘graduate’ to hard drug abuse. Therefore, the adult world should take it on itself to guide the youngsters of this country towards healthy lifestyles by shunning drug abuse and by leading by example. Besides, the more than ample religious institutions in this land should come out more openly against drug abuse and ensure that young minds are filled with only those things that lead to wholesome living.

The problem of hard drug abuse has also international ramifications. Over the years, Sri Lanka has turned into a virtual transit point for drug trafficking in this region.

Close geographical proximity of Sri Lanka to notorious manufacturing centres of these heinous drugs in Asia and to some theatres of war and conflict which facilitate the drug trade, have proved important factors in drug trafficking penetrating our borders.

Thus, the menace calls also for a vigorous regional approach for its elimination. Hopefully, the relevant regional state agencies are cognizant of these dimensions and are already pooling their resources and expertise to address the issue. Besides, SAARC should lose no time in containing the menace, since it embodies the legitimate hopes and aspirations of this region.