Pubdate: Sat, 04 Sep 1999 Source: Jakarta Post (Indonesia) Copyright: The Jakarta Post Contact: P.O. Box 85 Palmerah Jakarta 11001 Fax: (62) (21) 5492685 Website: http://www.thejakartapost.com THE FIGHT AGAINST DRUGS Jakarta's Governor Sutiyoso is right to be concerned about the rising trend of drug abuse among young Indonesians in his city. He is correct to appreciate the part private citizens can play in fighting the growing menace. And given the fact that drug peddlers have begun targeting Indonesians as young as elementary school age as their victims, nobody can dispute his wisdom in recognizing that housewives should be on the front line of the campaign against drug abuse. Sutiyoso should be careful, however, in encouraging private citizens to initiate raids or take part in police raids on suspected drug pushers and consumers as he did last Tuesday at City Hall. Hundreds of residents in Kayu Putih subdistrict, East Jakarta, last Saturday helped police arrest at least 30 men whom residents suspected of selling drugs in houses in the area. Police confiscated one kilogram of marijuana, 35 grams of shabu-shabu (crystal metamphetamine) as well as Rp 13.5 million in cash. Quite understandably, Jakarta's police officers, from ordinary field officers up to the city's highest police chief, Maj. Gen. Noegroho Djajoesman, were happy with the result of the raid which, apart from the success of busting one of the many drug pushing rings operating in the city, also appeared to have proceeded orderly and without incident. "I welcome people telling us that there were drug trafficking activities in their neighborhood and helping in the arrest of dealers and traffickers," Noegroho said. The trafficking and abuse of drugs in Jakarta -- and possibly most other big cities in Indonesia as well -- has indeed assumed levels which have become a cause of real concern for parents. Whereas in previous years the illicit trade was mostly limited to certain areas in the city already notorious for various forms of delinquency, drug pushers seemed to have become more aggressive lately and have moved closer, or even into, respectable residential neighborhoods and schools. Police authorities have in recent months confirmed reports that Indonesia seems at present to be no longer a mere transit point for the international narcotics trade, but has become a full-fledged market for drugs, soft and hard. The police are taking the reports of increased drug trafficking in schools seriously enough to plan sending supervisory squads to some of the most vulnerable establishments in an effort to protect pupils and deter pushers. Besides having become more ubiquitous, traffickers, especially those operating in and around schools, have also become more aggressive in pushing their trade. At some schools in Jakarta, pushers are reported to have begun intimidating pupils and students into buying and using their merchandise. A number of parents have reported that their children were threatened with injury or even death by the pushers. In brief, the moment seems indeed to have come for Jakarta's citizenry to take a more serious view of the drug menace in their city. More so than in most big cities in Indonesia, vulnerable young Indonesians -- students and elementary school children in particular -- are exposed to the dangers of drug abuse. Under these circumstances, the full involvement of citizens to fight the danger is indeed essential for the greatest possible degree of success in this difficult battle against drugs. The main task of fighting the trade, however, must always remain with the police who are, after all, professionals trained for the job. Public participation must have its limits, since it can all too easily degenerate into people taking justice into their own hands. In this sense, Jakarta's growing public awareness of the importance of their role in the battle is indeed something to be lauded. Our hope is that by encouraging such positive participation the drug menace can be forced back to a minimum, or even be entirely wiped out. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D