"Education is the best way to protect against drug abuse," said Pehin Dato Paduka Haji Abdul Ghani bin Pehin Datu Pekerma Dewa Dato Paduka Haji Abdul Rahim, the Managing Director of Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah. He said this during the prize presentation ceremony for several anti-drug competitions for Primary and Secondary schools. With the cooperation of the Narcotics Control Bureau, Royal Brunei Police Force and other government bodies, a unit has been established under the Ministry of Education to tackle the scourge of drug abuse amongst students. [continues 189 words]
A prize presentation ceremony was yesterday held at the SOAS College in the capital to award the winners of the Anti-Drug Campaign 'Sculpture' competition. Gracing the event was Managing Director of Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah cum guest of honour Pehin Orang Kaya Putera Maharaja Dato Paduka Awg Hj Abd Ghani bin Pehin Dato Pekerma Dewa Dato Paduka Hj Abd Rahim, who presented recipients their prizes. The competition was held with the objective of allowing the nation's youths to express their understanding of drug abuse and its effects through artistic channels. [continues 70 words]
KUALA LUMPUR: Waiting constantly for free handouts of food and personal items was what eventually turned Ma Kong Loi away from a life of drugs and wrongdoing. Ma, 44, from Bentong, Pahang, started smoking at 14 while still in school. Soon after, he was involved in gangsterism and was expelled from school when he was 15. He was on marijuana by then. When he was 33, he was sent to the Pusat Serenti rehabilitation centre in Raub. There, he met a visiting pastor who asked him if he needed anything. [continues 476 words]
IKIM Views With Mazilan Musa First of all, I would like to wish all readers a Happy New Year. May 2004 bring peace and prosperity to the world and this country. Thus far, in addition to physical development, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is also serious in wanting to enhance the quality of life, physically and spiritually, for all Malaysians. One of his priorities is to create a safer environment for the populace. However, I think it is also the wish of the nation to see the Government more involved in cracking down on a more serious problem - the drug addicts and the danger they bring. There is evidence that drug addicts are still terrorising the country. They are everywhere, from the peaceful villages to the busy cities. [continues 719 words]
I READ the article, "Get tough with drug addicts" by Mazilan Musa, Senior Fellow and Director of the Institute of Islamic Understanding (The Star, Dec 24) with an equal degree of interest and alarm. Interest in the emotional appeal and the proposals forwarded for solving the problem associated with drug addiction and alarm at the lack of basic knowledge and information on the problem. Let us first be very clear on the scope of the drug addiction problem. There are both the demand and supply dimensions. [continues 358 words]
SITIAWAN: Drug addicts are now resorting to injecting drugs into their heads for faster effect, said Deputy Home Minister Datuk Zainal Abidin Zin. The private parts are another area where addicts inject drugs to enable them to escape undetected by the authorities, he added. "These are two new methods of injecting themselves with drugs apart from the conventional way of injecting the arm which the authorities have discovered," he said in his speech when closing the anti-drug awareness campaign at Felcra Lekir here yesterday. Zainal Abidin, who is also National Anti-Drug Agency chairman, said following the discoveries police had been directed to carry out full body checks on all suspected drug addicts. [end]
KUALA LUMPUR: Police have crippled two syndicates which have been distributing drugs in the Klang Valley with the arrest of seven people and the seizure of 120 slabs of ganja earlier this week. The suspects, aged between 23 and 52, were detained under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drug Act 1952, for having 117.01kg of ganja, with a street value of over RM163,814. The suspects have been remanded for 14 days. Initial investigations revealed that the suspects got their supply from the same supplier in the northern region. [continues 220 words]
DRUG addiction is like a roller-coaster ride into hell. It launches addicts into an orbit of illusions and of false euphoria and then plunges them back into the cold abyss of reality. When the "joyride" comes to a halt, it is replaced by withdrawal symptoms that often lead to disruptive behaviour. For example, addicts will experience extreme anxiety, restlessness, nausea or vomiting, diarrhoea, fever, cramps, violent kicking and insomnia. Despite continuous efforts by the country's 28 government rehabilitation centres to nip drug addiction in the bud, this social menace is becoming a garden of weed. In the first quarter of 2003 alone, there were 13,519 drug addicts recorded in the country. Of that number, 48.6% were relapse cases. Statistics from the National Drug Agency showed that heroin users total 5,162, which is the highest tally among the different substance abuse users. [continues 924 words]
KOTA BARU: A 57-year-old fisherman was sent to the gallows after he was found guilty of trafficking in more than 500gm of cannabis two years ago. In passing the sentence against Mijan Mohd Deros yesterday, High Court Justice Sulaiman Daud said the prosecution had proven beyond reasonable doubt that Mijan had the intention to sell the cannabis and he had exclusive control and knowledge of the drug. He added that the court could not accept Mijan's testimony that he was a drug addict and the cannabis was for his own consumption. [continues 154 words]
KUALA LUMPUR -- Police busted three drug distribution syndicates in the Klang Valley with the arrest of 13 suspected traffickers and seizure of 11.5kg of heroin in separate operations recently. The dadah could fetch almost RM5 million. Federal Narcotics Department deputy director Senior Assistant Commissioner (I) Datuk Mangsor Ismail said the suspects, aged between 19 and 40, were arrested on May 12 and 13. In the first raid, police inspected a Perodua Kancil at the Hotel Maluri car park in Cheras about 10pm on May 12. Police seized 6.8kg of heroin and detained its two occupants. An hour later, police detained another man in Taman Sri Batu Caves. [continues 98 words]
PENANG -- Penang has become a hub for syndicates trafficking drugs from the Golden Triangle to markets in northern parts of Malaysia, south Thailand, Indonesia and Europe, according to police. Federal police anti-narcotics director Deputy Commissioner Datuk Mamat Talib was quoted in the Malay Mail as saying that Penang's strategic position and rapid urbanisation had propelled it as an ideal centre for the syndicates to store and distribute drugs in the region. Police believe syndicates in Penang also serve as conduits for drugs from the Golden Crescent. [continues 261 words]
KEPALA BATAS: After 20 years of fighting the drug menace, the country has to start the war all over again in the face of new synthetic drugs like syabu, Ecstasy and amphetamines. Acting Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the fight against drug abuse must now involve all quarters, including non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the private sector as well as community leaders and parents. He said the Government had yet to achieve its objective of wiping out drug abuse despite ongoing campaigns since 1983. [continues 198 words]
THE goal to rid your schools and country of drugs by 2013 and 2015 sounds noble, "Zainal: All should say no to drugs'' (The Star, Feb 19). The United States adopted a similar goal 90 years ago when 1.3% of our population was addicted to drugs. Ninety years ago, all types of recreational drugs were legally available at local US pharmacies for pennies per dose. Ninety years ago, deaths from recreational drugs were very rare because the drugs were of known quality, purity and potency. [continues 140 words]
WASHINGTON: Malaysia's anti-narcotics officials and police officers have received the thumbs-up from the Bush administration. The annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report for 2002, released here on Monday, speaks of them as "competent" and noted that they "have the full support of senior government officials." Malaysian police, it says, have continued to investigate and prosecute narcotics crimes vigorously, identifying abusers and traffickers, and limiting the distribution, sale and financing of illicit drugs in the country. The report points out that Malaysia does not produce a significant amount of illicit drugs. [continues 143 words]
KUALA LUMPUR -- It may be a different war, but all Malaysians are called to arms in the battle against Malaysia's number one enemy, drugs. Launching a campaign to rid all schools of drugs by 2013 and the whole country by 2015, Deputy Home Minister Datuk Zainal Abidin Mat Zin said the fight was the responsibility of all Malaysians. "The campaign against drugs should be made an on-going war by everyone, from the schools and parents, to government institutions and NGOs. It should also be included in discussions of national security matters," he said. [continues 129 words]
KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia has pledged to free the country of drug addiction by 2015, following reports that 70 per cent of addicts admitted to drug rehabilitation centres returned to the habit afterwards. Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi said that the campaign against the drug menace - seen as a major threat to the country's security - would involve all sections of society and be undertaken by the National Drugs Council.Advertisement He admitted that the government's efforts to combat drug abuse among Malaysians had not been entirely successful. [continues 373 words]
IPOH: The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) should address the problem of drug abuse at workplaces as records show that 60% of drug abusers were workers, said National Drug Agency deputy director- general Rashid Mat Adam. He said the agency was in the midst of discussion with Human Resources Ministry officers to include the awareness of drug abuse at workplaces through the Act. Now, he said, the Act did not specifically touch on the need to inculcate an awareness or prevention of drug abuse at workplaces. [continues 259 words]
JOHOR BARU: Drug abuse among Malaysians is seeing a new trend with amphetamine-based drugs infiltrating the middle-class group now as compared to heroin affecting the poor in the past, said the police. Narcotics Department director-general Datuk Mohd Sedek Mohd Ali said "soft drugs" such as ganja and Ecstasy pills had made an impact among professionals and youngsters from the middle class. "In the past, drug addicts hooked on heroin were mainly from the lower strata of society who used drugs as a form of escapism. [continues 183 words]
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - World anti-doping officials have drafted new rules that distinguish between true drug cheats and athletes who test positive for substances that don't help them perform better. The move by the World Anti-Doping Agency comes in response to cases where athletes have been stripped of medals after positive tests for recreational drugs or substances in cold remedies. WADA officials briefed the Association of National Olympic Committees on Thursday on draft proposals for a world anti-doping code, which Olympic leaders hope will be enacted before the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. [continues 149 words]
10,000 Are Trapped In The Spiral, Expert Reveals KUALA LUMPUR - Drug abuse is no longer confined mostly to the lower reaches of society; it has snared at least 10,000 upper-class Malaysians as well, according to an expert. National Association for the Prevention of Drug Abuse (Pemadam) deputy president Idris Ibrahim described the situation as 'worrying'. 'Do not think that drug abuse only concerns people from the lower rungs of society and that the upper society is immune,' he said. [continues 155 words]
Inside Malaysia
