Contradictory to say the least

FE Team | Published: June 28, 2011 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

Mahmudur Rahman
Amongst the boring procession of 'days', the anti-drug and illicit trafficking 'day' passed with everyone calling for a joint effort by all strata of society and at national and international levels to combat the menace. Honestly speaking does anyone really, really care? Some countries are actually hobnobbing with the idea of legalising the trade, if only in a few versions of the hallucinating highs. Others actually cannot do much about it. Every country has periodic busts that the media has field days over and the occasional person jailed. It is baffling how in this day and age when countries and organisations can militarily pound away at sovereign countries they can't do the same with all the drug manufacturing units and the poppy fields. Missiles miss their targets and cause havoc among civilians for which apologies are red-facedly made. How come none of those missiles ever reach the poppy fields and such? One loses count over the years that the Afghans have been seeing conflict over the way it should govern itself but no one seems bothered about the rich poppy fields that produce opium. The Central American countries that play host to the major drug cartels continue to flourish even though a certain General Noriega could be plucked out of his own country and sent to jail elsewhere. And when it comes to Bangladesh drugs and substances are quite freely available and always have been. Whether it is illicit liquor or stronger chemical stuff, the youth and the middle aged indulge happily enough with supplies a 'no problem boss' scenario. There are some organisations that are fighting a losing battle first to control the supply chain and then to create the awareness so that the market is lost but like most social movements the progress is painfully slow. The reality is that money and muscle, intellectual or physical talks 'heap loud'. The powers that be, as in smuggling are powerful and strong enough to shrug off such attempts almost as if to shake the breadcrumbs off the cuff. Frustration and a lack of family values appear to be the main trigger for affluent drug users while a lack of purpose the main contributor among the poor and poorly educated. The fairly free availability of intoxicants thanks to easy over-the-counter sales, the ample supply of country made liquor and the dubious supply of the stronger stuff makes it all too easy for the uninhibited wanting to try a 'new fix'. A sense of purpose is often touted as the most effective way. If that were so why does the US with all its affluence feature so strongly as a market for drugs? As long as there is want, the market will thrive. It's a combination of proper parenting and appropriate education that might just do the trick. How to get there is another question altogether. (The writer can be reached at mahmudrahman@gmail.com)