Pubdate: Thu, 08 Sep 2005
Source: Dispatch (South Africa)
Copyright: 2005 Dispatch.
Contact:  http://www.dispatch.co.za/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2942

CLOSING THE DOOR TO DRUGS

Over the past few days this newspaper has covered a tragic and
gruesome story which began last Friday with the discovery of skeletal
remains in a Gonubie back garden.

As this story unfolds it has been suggested that the body belongs to a
young man from Durban who has been missing for the past seven months.

Earlier this week his parents told us the sad account of how their son
Nevin, only 18, had become a drug user and ultimately, they believe, a
dealer to service his addiction. It is a choice they believe led to
his demise.

Their account is chilling not only in its detail but in how it reminds
us of a cold truth about our community.

East London and its surrounds might comprise a small community by the
standards of many other urban centres in South Africa, but we can no
longer ignore the reality that we are faced with the same social evils
as larger cities.

This sinister world does not exist in some remote inner city. It
exists in our suburbs and it is enveloping our children.

Earlier this year we reported on a 40th birthday party in suburban
Beacon Bay where police raided and found Ecstasy tablets, cocaine and
dagga and arrested five people.

We have exposed the existence of the deadly new drug called tik in our
neighbourhoods. Drug counsellors reported how several teens pleaded
for help in quitting this frighteningly addictive drug, which can hook
a user with a single R25 dose.

We described the twisted marketing ingenuity of drug dealers who offer
free samples of this substance to their buyers.

Let's face the facts. These examples tell us there is a dark
underbelly to this beautiful place.

So often when a social problem such as drugs enters the spotlight, we
are quick to point the finger of blame at the authorities.

Not doing enough, we huff. Better policing, more officers, throw more
money at the fight, we insist.

But this is not enough.

We need to ask some uncomfortable questions about this problem in East
London.

How have these drug suppliers, runners and dealers managed to
insinuate themselves so easily into our homes?

Can we continue the hackneyed blame game which says the police are not
doing enough? No, we must argue. It is because we are not.

It is easy to look the other way when reading about evidence of this
drug evil around us, but in doing so we open the door to these
peddlers of pain and ruin.

It is time we stopped dusting off the welcome mat and stood
shoulder-to-shoulder with the authorities to vanquish this scourge.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin