Drug abuse: Tendencies and ways to overcome it

resources for their synchronized deployment. No other document but such a

Concept can lay the solid foundation for the National Program of

Counteraction against Narcotics. The Program necessarily requires an

approval at the highest level by the President, the government and the

parliament to make all of its provisions mandatory for everyone.

The development of the National Program stands out as one of the most

important tasks among the anti-narcotics measures. It is essential to

invite experts in different fields of research, as well as the

practitioners from the concerned departments to participate in it. The list

of participants, the scope of their duties and the financing are to be

endorsed by the government. The authors of the Program have personal

responsibility for producing a profound analysis of the situation with

drugs, and for the efficiency of the recommended methods for combating drug

abuse. They are also responsible for providing research or organizational

background during the implementation of the steps they have recommended.

The time frame and other specifics of the program must be included in the

resolutions of the government and the parliament.

2. The main goal of the government policy in regard to narcotic

substances should be: a) to prevent their use for other than medical

purposes; b) curb the demand for them; c) and curtail their illegal

manufacturing and turnover. This goal is attainable in practical terms only

through a set of coordinated steps in politics, economy, legislation and

public health. They should be directed at perfecting the laws regulating

narcotics. Methods should be developed of an early identification of the

persons who use drugs for non-medical reasons, of their treatment and

rehabilitation. Policies should be developed counteracting the unlawful

production and sale of drugs at the national and international setting.

3. The mandatory measures of organizational, legislative and material

support of the government policy in the field of drugs fall into two

categories.

The first category implies the establishment of an inter-departmental

anti-narcotics system of measures, which will incorporate the following

elements.

Information support of the program. The departments involved should set

up a data bank to store information about the state of affairs in

narcotics, the proliferation of drugs, the accurate techniques of drug

identification, and other data - national and international - which will

help make decisions and implement measures against narcotics.

Research and technical support. Conducting fundamental research of and

quick response analysis on drugs, the development of advanced techniques

and technologies of halting narcotics should be implemented.

Administrative support. The President, the parliament or the government

should found a special committee entrusted with the overall monitoring of

the drug abuse in the republic. This agency also should map out a uniform

national strategy and tactics, direct and coordinate all the elements of

the struggle against narcotics, and set up subordinate regional committees

and commissions. As need be, it should be able to amend the state policy in

regard to drugs. This agency surely must include psychiatrists specializing

in the treatment of addicts, lawyers, psychologists, sociologists,

teachers, pharmacists, journalists and other specialists and experts, as

well as representatives from the ministries of public health, social

welfare, education, agriculture, foreign economic ties, industry and trade,

transport, telecommunications, foreign affairs, the interior, justice,

finance, national security (as well as of the foreign intelligence

service), air, maritime, and inland water transport, of the State Bank,

Intourist, customs service, and the Prosecutor's Office.

Material support. Financing should be provided for the National Program

to Counteract Drug Abuse in general and for its specific aspects. The

financing structure may include specialized funds.

Medical support. A mechanism of medical interaction on the issues of

drugs must involve all the agencies and departments concerned and their

separate branches.

Support from the system of education. It is necessary to train an

appropriate number of anti-drug specialists with due regard to the

experience gained by their foreign counterparts.

Accountability. Regulated accountability and control of all the

agencies and departments participating in the campaign against narcotics

should be established. The participants will be furnished with special sets

of documents and evaluation criteria. They will bear personal

responsibility for the final results.

The second category of mandatory measures defines the direction of the

effort against narcotics, sets out the target goals and names the

participants. At a minimum, the main direction should be of a simultaneous

offensive on the production, trade and consumption of drugs.

In the field of legislative regulation, a set of laws on combating

narcotics should encompass a) perfection of the effective legal acts on

drugs, b) the legally defined rules of identification, check-up and

voluntary/compulsory treatment of drug addicts, c) the rules of drug

identification, d) legislative support of international cooperation

including the obligations that arise from the international treaties and

agreements, e) elaboration of legal norms to fight drug-related money-

laundering, f) and bringing national legislation in line with the

international laws.

In the field of medicine: the identification, medical treatment and

social rehabilitation of drug addicts presupposes improving the methods of

early diagnosis and treatment of addiction, the development of prophylactic

measures, a system of registering and monitoring drug abusers, the

gathering and analysis of information and information exchange between

relevant departments.

In the sphere of combating drug-related crimes, it is essential to

suppress the illegal cultivation of plants containing narcotic substances,

improve control over the transportation of narcotics across borders, and

curb their clandestine manufacture. It is also necessary to control the

manufacturing, storage and trade in the chemicals and equipment, which may

be used in the illegal production of drugs. The stamping-out of such crimes

necessitates stringent regulatory mechanisms in the production,

transportation and use of narcotic substances for medical and research

purposes, as required by the international conventions, advancement of

investigative methods, improvement in the customs service, administrative

and other forms of curtailing crimes linked to drugs and limiting the

illegal demand for them. The circle of involved participants in actions

against narcotics, especially in the field of prophylactics and halting the

spread of drug abuse should be enlarged through unconventional forms and

methods of work, such as invigorating the efforts of religious and

charitable organizations, private companies, psychological aid centers,

army units, and so on.

Understandably, the suggested list of efforts is not exhaustive.

Nonetheless, it puts the emphasis on the main directions and can be viewed

as a version of a multifaceted approach toward organizing a program of

action combating drug abuse.

The Experience of Countries:

The experience of countries that have developed national programs against

drug abuse can be very instrumental in drawing up a national anti-narcotics

program.

In 1982, the United States adopted a program against drug trafficking

and organized crime. Its implementation presumed mapping out a special

presidential policy and the participation of the governors of all the

states.

The USA:

The then US President Ronald Reagan sanctioned the allocation of an

additional USD 130 million to the Department of Justice budget for the

implementation of that program. These funds were distributed to the federal

law-enforcement agencies, the judiciary, penitentiaries and the police. The

administration envisioned an increase in the number of prosecutors, FBI

agents, and the personnel of anti-drug departments, customs services, the

coast guards, Internal Revenue Service, Immigration Naturalization Service,

and other departments.

More than a half of the allocation was set aside as salary and bonuses

for special service agents. The rest was spent on modernizing police

equipment, the renovation of the state and federal prisons, and enhancement

of the FBI technical capabilities in neutralizing criminals who can afford

the most up-to-date listening devices and surveillance equipment.

The program also made provisions for creating special regional task

force, and creating programs for participation in actions against drug

abuse by the state, as well as for more room in federal jails. Coordination

committees responsible to the Secretary of Justice were established in all

of the 94 Federal judicial districts. The committees were obliged to make

up plans for fighting grave crimes at the county, state and national

levels.

It was for the first time that a program envisioned deployment of the

armed forces against the spread of drugs. Their task was to detect and

detain traffickers, especially at the US-Mexican border and in the

Caribbean.

A variety of drug prevention programs were developed at the regional

level, such as the program of aid to potential abusers and their victims in

the District of Columbia or the program against the abuse of drugs and

alcohol by adolescents in Maryland. Many of them, however, remained

ineffective not because they lacked professionalism, but more often because

the moves lacked coordination. Not rare was the shortage of financing,

technical and personnel support.

In 1989, the US adopted the national strategy against drugs, which is

executed by more than thirty federal departments, including the CIA.

American experts believe that the US share of the worldwide consumption of

drugs is more than a fifty per cent. They also consider drug trafficking as

a global threat which cannot be controlled by the efforts of a single

country. There must be international cooperation to settle this bedeviling

problem.

Since the bulk of drugs originate outside the US, the Administration

put an emphasis on attacking drug dealers on their home territory and on

stepping up counteraction to the proliferation and sale of drugs inside the

country. The strategy evidently has flaws, as the situation shows no signs

of dramatic improvement.

Canada:

On May 25th, 1987, the Canadian government officially introduced a

national strategy against drug abuse. The strategy had resulted from long

consultations with provincial governments, different private organizations

and individual specialists. The goal of the strategy was to shape a unified

course of actions against the abuse of drugs in Canada.

The general supervision of its implementation was vested in the

Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. Other participants were the Royal

Mounted Police of Canada, the Directorate of the Penitentiaries, the

Ministry of Justice, the Customs Department and the Excise Tax Service, the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Training and Youth.

The main goal was to work out a balanced line of action that would meet

the needs of all Canadians, bring down the impact of alcohol and other

stimulants on individuals, families and entire communities. The strategy

comprised six directions of action: 1)education and prevention, 2)control

over law abidance, 3) medical treatment and rehabilitation, 4) gathering of

information and research, 5) international cooperation 6) and national

policy. Over two-thirds of the resources were directed into the

educational, preventive and treatment programs to curtail demand on the

banned substances.

The Royal Mounted Police had the assignment to help develop and

implement five initiatives on restraining the supply of and the demand for

drugs, namely 1) a program to curb the black marketing of drugs, 2) the

coordination of coastal guard patrol, 3) the gathering and processing of

data on drugs, 4) technical assistance to foreign countries and 5) an

educational program.

Canadian experts note that it is hard to measure the effects of this

program yet, but all the above measures contribute to saving lives and

making the nation healthier.

The United Kingdom:

The British government is acting upon a multifaceted anti-narcotic

strategy that it adopted in 1994. There are five strategic priority aspects

in it 1) cutting down drug imports, 2) raising the efficiency of law

enforcement, 3) exercising effective deterrence measures and strict control

inside the country, 4) organizing preventive efforts, and improving the

treatment and 5) the rehabilitation of drug addicts.

The government strategy is based on the assumption that all the

problems of narcotics are inter-related. Therefore, parallel measures

against the supply and demand of drugs are necessary. It is intended to

scale down illegal imports of drugs by supporting international efforts

against their manufacture and trade, reinforcing the customs and police

force, toughening control over the legitimate production, and consumption

of drugs for medical purposes, deterring drug dealers by heavy fines and

depriving them of their illegal profits.

The struggle to curtail demand must follow two general lines - keeping

the new addicts from abuse and rendering aid to those whom have developed

addiction.

To ensure proper interaction of all the elements of this strategy, the

British government has set up a working inter-departmental group from among

the ministers and high-ranking executives. The parliamentary deputy home

secretary heads the group. Also participating in its work are officials of

the home office, the ministries of health, social welfare, and finance, the

customs service, the department of overseas territories, the environmental

department, and so on.

The new government-run intelligence service for drugs has replaced the

older drugs central intelligence. Police and customs officers staff the

government-run intelligence. Its duty is to gather, analyze and distribute

information obtained either abroad or at home.

The regional anti-drug departments have special support units. The

customs service has been reinforced by top-class specialists and top-notch

smuggling clampdown equipment. In compliance with the 1986 law on illegal

drug trade, the police and the courts have received broader authority as to

the identification, freezing and confiscation of drug dealers' profits. In

1988 the UK and the USA signed a bilateral agreement on the confiscation of

the discredited bank assets.

The police and the customs service have formed a special financial

division to accumulate on a national scale, survey and pass down for

further investigation the data on financial issues, i.e. reports from the

banks and other financial institutions on monetary deposits of questionable

origin.

The government has outlined the procedure for police operations against

the three categories of drug dealers, big, medium and small.

Great Britain upholds the international community's efforts by

contributing annually Pound Sterling 150,000 to the UN Fund for Drug Abuse

Control. As mentioned before, the UK also runs a program of assistance to

overseas projects.

Regarding the drug abuse situation, a review of the government measures

underlines that the government-sponsored policy works toward a closer

international cooperation, enhances the efforts of the law-enforcement

agencies, helps the younger generation realize the impact of drug addiction

and boosts the effort against this evil.

Mexico:

The drug control programs in Mexico differ from those in other

countries as Mexico is a hotbed of manufacture and export of opium, heroin

and marijuana and a major cocaine trafficking transit point to the United

States. Some Mexican states have traditional plantations of opium poppy,

marijuana and Indian hemp. Economic hardships often force the farmers into

dealing with drug dealers and prompt the growing of illegal crops, which

produce profits higher than the earnings from lawful businesses. The anti-

drug programs, therefore, focus on mass destruction of narcotic crops from

the air or manually and the involvement of army units in such operations,

harsh penal sanctions, intensive investigation of drug cartels and

trafficking channels, and dissemination of information among the public.

Growing cooperation with the USA on the basis of bilateral agreements

and a treaty of juridical assistance is an important element of the anti-

narcotic policy. It facilitates the identification of drug-related money

laundering in the financial and commercial institutions both in Mexico and

the US. The Advance Guard program presupposes operations to detect and

destroy the plantations of drug-bearing crops. Starting from 1986, units of

the Mexican Army and of the US Coastal Guard have been conducting

operations to detain suppliers of drugs in the Mexican territorial waters,

to confiscate their cars and arms, and to control flights in the border

area as part of the American Mexican operation Alliance.

Spain:

The national program against drug abuse in Spain deserves notice as the

Spanish laws permit soft narcotic substances. Despite the expectations and

arguments of the proponents of drug legalization, drug abuse in Spain does

not subside. Neither does the crime rate. The number of violent assaults to

obtain money for drugs is on the rise. The law-enforcement agencies' task

has been set as eradicating drug abuse, opening specialized medical centers

for the addicts who volunteer to undergo treatment, and combating drug

addiction and prostitution as the factors increasing the risk of AIDS

infection.

The main goals of the Spanish program against drug abuse are to halt

the proliferation of the most heinous drugs like heroin and cocaine,

organize prophylactic measures among the young people of 16-to-18,

promulgate popular knowledge about medicine and treatment of drug addicts

by way of educational lectures, and advance public organizations'

activities.

France:

The French national program against narco-business sponsored by the

Ministry of the Interior and Public Safety focuses on curbing the illegal

trade in drugs, and, in particular, the street vending of narcotic

substances. The document provides for the creation of special-task police

units and a national center to coordinate all police operations against

drug abuse. Narco-business-suppression training courses have been

introduced at police schools. Large police commissariats now have

specialized branches to monitor drug abuse. These branches render practical

and financial assistance to various organizations engaged in fighting

against the abuse of narcotic and toxic chemical substances.

The experience of foreign anti-narcotics programs can be adapted to the

requirements of the Russian Federation and help work out a feasible

National Program of Comprehensive Counteraction to Narcotics

Par. 2. Organization of Medical Counteraction to Narcotics

The primary aspect of the entire anti-narcotics effort is a series of

medical treatment measures. They are carried out by different medical

institutions as actions against narcotics is inalienable from the

activities of public health services of all levels, including the medical

service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In 1975 the former Soviet

medical authorities detached the addictions treatment service from

psychiatry. Thus the treatment of drug and other addicts became a separate

branch of medicine known as narcology.

The efforts of the medical institutions make up a significant part of

the anti-narcotics strategy. Their goal is to bring about a decrease in the

demand for drugs. This is achieved by the treatment and rehabilitation of

abusers and, in the final run, is a positive factor of a general

improvement in the drug abuse situation.

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