Jakarta/Medan – Indonesia marked International Anti-drug Day 2003 on Thursday with grave concerns about the rapid growth in the drug trade.
National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said the fact that half the prisons across the country were housing large numbers of drug convicts proved that drug abuse was a serious challenge facing the police.
In general, he said the level of drug abuse in the country was increasing as shown by the rise in the numbers of cases and suspects, and the quantity of evidence seized.
"Now that the suspects include foreign citizens, we have to be careful as it is clear that international drug syndicates have entered the country," said Da'i.
Meanwhile, National Anti-drug Day was marked at the Vice Presidential Palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta. The executive chairman of the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), Insp. Gen. Togar Sianipar, said that drugs had become a lifestyle for some people, giving a boost to the use of illegal drugs.
He regretted that some law enforcers were thwarting the anti-drug movement. He said some police officers and prison guards had even become part of the drug trafficking rings, as well as users.
Marking the commemoration, Vice President Hamzah Haz conferred awards on 14 individuals, and representatives of institutions and non-governmental organizations, for their leading roles in curbing drug abuse.
In Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, local government officials and police officers burned over one ton of various illicit drugs seized as evidence during raids since last year.
The event took place in the grounds of the gubernatorial offices in the city.
Governor T. Rizal Nurdin and provincial police chief Insp. Gen.
Eddy Sunarno expressed their concerns about the involvement of state employees in the use and trafficking of illegal drugs.
"There will be no mercy for civil servants who are found guilty," Rizal told the audience.
The Drugs Information Center revealed that 71 percent of the 1,174 drug suspects recorded in the first half of 2003 were state employees.