RIYADH, 25 June 2007 — As part of a major campaign to increase public awareness on drugs, Saudi school and college curricula will soon be updated to include information about the dangerous effects of drugs, Interior Minister Prince Naif announced yesterday.
Speaking to the Saudi Press Agency on the occasion of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Prince Naif disclosed plans to set up a fund to help drug addicts and their families.
“Efforts are under way to update the curriculum at the general and higher education levels in order to educate students about the harmful effects of drugs,” the prince said, adding that experts are currently working on the project.
Speaking about the fund, he said, “It will be a charitable fund to support people recovering from drug addiction...to make them productive citizens.”
Prince Naif also called on experts, preachers, professors, parents and the media to play a role in the fight against drugs by making people aware of its dangers. The interior minister said drugs was not a problem confined to Saudi Arabia. The national campaign reflects anxiety about the vulnerability of Saudi Arabia’s large young population.
According to a recent report presented at the Shoura Council, about 150,000 young Saudi men and women use various types of drugs.
Saudi Arabia imposes capital punishment on drug smugglers, traffickers and cultivators as part of its efforts to confront the problem. It has also signed a number of regional and international treaties and agreements for combating drugs.
International drug barons exploit pilgrims coming for Haj and Umrah to smuggle drugs into the Kingdom. A huge expatriate population, a strong economy and the Kingdom’s long porous borders are other factors that encourage illicit drug traders to target the Kingdom.
A number of Shoura members have urged the government to establish specialized medical centers to treat drug addicts. “We have to set up specialized hospitals to provide necessary treatment to drug addicts and bring them back to society as useful citizens,” said Shoura member Shuwaish Al-Motairy.
