Cases of drug traffickers targeting youth on the rise

Dubai: The number of drug traffickers targeting juveniles with narcotic pills is on the increase, a police official has said.

The years 2007, 2008 and 2009 showed a steady increase of drug abuse and trafficking amongst juveniles, according to Major-General Abdul Jaleel Mahdi, director of the General Department of Anti-Narcotics at Dubai Police.

In the year 2007, 14 juveniles were arrested for possession, abuse and trafficking of drugs.

Another 14 juveniles were arrested for the same crime in 2008.

The year 2009 witnessed a great increase with 31 juveniles arrested on the same charges.

"We are facing cases of specific kinds of drugs targeted mainly at juveniles, drugs such as narcotic pills. These pills can be easily addictive and are very accessible to juveniles," Maj Gen Mahdi said.

"Some drug dealers trick the juvenile by telling him that these drugs may help in concentration and studying for the exams, which is just a method a drug dealer uses to attract customers," he added.

The first half of this year witnessed the arrest of seven juveniles accused of possession, abuse and trafficking of drugs.

All seven juveniles were either 17 or 18 years old and are from neighbouring Arab or Gulf countries.

While six of the offenders were male, one was female. In 2009, 30 of the offenders were males while only one female was arrested.

Dubai Police recently arrested an Emirati drug user and trafficker who targeted juveniles in Bur Dubai.

Another case involves two drug traffickers and users, one from an Arabic country and another from one of the Gulf States, who had been targeting minors in Al Rashidiya area.

Another man who didn't have identification papers was arrested with 4,400 narcotic pills of different kinds that he used and also trafficked.

"These narcotic pills are very dangerous," explained Maj Gen Mahdi.

"Parents can recognise heroine, hashish and other kinds of drugs. But narcotic pills look like any kind of medicine and aren't as easy to detect as other drugs."

While some of these narcotic pills are issued using doctors' prescriptions, a lot of these narcotic pills do not require a doctor's prescription and are not manufactured as medicinal pills.

"We at the Department of Anti Narcotics at Dubai Police believe that the problem will be solved by 50 per cent of awareness and 50 per cent of combating," Maj Gen Mahdi said.

Effective monitoring

"It's important for parents to know about their son's social life, about his whereabouts [and] about the kinds of friends he has, to monitor them and their social life in an indirect way."

There has been a steady increase in the number of juveniles between the ages of 15 to 18 that get affiliated with the abuse and trafficking of drugs. The phenomenon is so endemic that the number of awareness campaigns targeted at that age group is on the rise.

The latest drug awareness campaign, which will take place after Eid with the beginning of the new school year, will exhaust all methods of technology and mass communication to reach out to affected youths.

Seminars, presentations and workshops will take place in schools, universities and youth clubs in Dubai. Parents, school counsellors and faculty staff will also be targeted as part of the new awareness campaign.

"We concentrate on two aspects to address the problem of drug abuse. One aspect is minimising the possibility of a juvenile coming across these drugs, and the second aspect is minimising the rate of demand for these drugs," Maj Gen Mahdi said.

"International and local cooperation that leads to the arrest of the main suppliers and traffickers solves the first aspect," he added.

"Increasing awareness campaigns in the community, excessive patrolling and monitoring of areas where these problems are on the increase, and rehabilitating whoever comes forward with a drug problem solves the second aspect."

The Department of Anti-Narcotics promises complete confidentiality and protection of individuals who come forward to the police if they are drug abusers.

"There are plans to develop a specialised rehabilitation centre for drug and narcotic abusers," Maj Gen Mahdi said.

According to Article 43 of the UAE Federal Laws, a drug user is not prosecuted if he or she voluntarily comes forward to the treatment centre at the Department of Anti-Narcotics at Dubai Police or the Public Prosecution.

The article applies if the treatment period does not exceed three years. The waiver does not apply if the drug abuser owned drugs that he or she did not deliver to the police at the time of coming forward to the authorities for treatment.

Appeal

The Department of Anti-Narcotics at Dubai Police urges the public to cooperate in order to solve the problem of drug abuse, dealing and smuggling.

To contact the authorities call the toll-free number 800 400400 or email dan.admin@dubaipolice.gov.ae.