Refine Search

Can the War on Drugs Be Won?

WINNING the war on drugs is a laudable goal, but it is no easy task. Two powerful engines drive the illicit drug train—supply and demand. For nearly a century, governments and police forces have concentrated on cutting back the supply. Their assumption was simple: No drugs, no drug addicts.

Attacking the Supply

Toward this end, police drug squads have confiscated large consignments of drugs, and international collaboration has led to the detention of prominent drug traffickers. But the harsh reality is that while effective policing may force some drug traffickers to move elsewhere, seek other markets, or become more ingenious, it does not stop them. “We will never be a match for the drug dealers as long as they have unlimited funds and we have to fight budget wars,” admitted one narcotics expert.

Joe de la Rosa, a crime-prevention officer of the Gibraltar Police Force, spoke to Awake! about the difficulty of controlling drug trafficking between Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. “During 1997 we impounded nearly 400 kilos [880 pounds] of cannabis resin,” he said. “Most of this wasn’t actually confiscated from drug traffickers; it was found floating in the sea or washed up on the beaches. That gives you some idea of the huge quantity of drugs that cross the Strait of Gibraltar every year. What we confiscate is just the tip of the iceberg. The haulers who do the run from Africa to Spain have speedboats that can run rings around our customs launch. And if they sense that they are in danger of being apprehended, they just throw the drugs overboard, so we have no evidence on which to charge them.”

Police face similar problems in other parts of the world. Ordinary-looking travelers, light airplanes, container ships, and even submarines smuggle drugs across oceans or through porous frontiers. One United Nations report calculated that “at least 75 percent of international drug shipments would need to be intercepted in order to substantially reduce the profitability of drug trafficking.” At present, the rate of interception is probably not much higher than 30 percent for cocaine—and considerably less for other drugs.

So why don’t the governments attack the problem at its source and destroy all the cannabis crops, opium poppies, and coca bushes? The United Nations has recently recommended that step, but it is not an easy one. Cannabis can be grown in almost any garden. One major coca-growing area in the Andes is located in a region described as “outside state control.” Similar situations exist in remote areas of Afghanistan and Burma, which are principal sources of opium and heroin.

To complicate matters further, drug traffickers can easily switch to designer drugs, for which there is a growing demand. And clandestine laboratories can manufacture these synthetic drugs almost anywhere in the world.

Could more effective policing and stiffer prison sentences curtail the drug trade? There are just too many drug pushers, too many addicts, and too few policemen to make that method workable. The United States, for example, has close to two million people behind bars—many of them for drug offenses. But the threat of prison has not hindered people from taking drugs. In many developing countries where drug sales are booming, undermanned and poorly paid police forces find themselves helpless to stem the tide.

Can the Demand for Drugs Be Reduced?

If efforts to control the drug supply have proved futile, what about reducing the demand? “The war on drugs is really a battle for hearts and minds, and not merely an issue for police and courts and jails,” states Time magazine.

Joe de la Rosa, quoted earlier, likewise believes that education is the only way to combat illegal drugs. “Drug addiction is a social problem created by society, so we have to change society or at least change people’s way of thinking,” he says. “We are trying to involve schools, parents, and teachers so that all will be aware that the danger is there, that drugs are available, and that their children could fall victim.”

What Jehovah’s Witnesses Have Done

For many years Jehovah’s Witnesses have been actively involved in educating people to avoid drugs. They have prepared information designed to help parents teach their children about the dangers of drugs.a Furthermore, their ministry has helped rehabilitate many drug users and traffickers.

Ana, mentioned in the previous article, was introduced to Jehovah’s Witnesses because her sister had heard of their success in helping drug addicts. Ana was not particularly interested in the Bible, but she reluctantly went to an assembly held by the Witnesses. There she spotted a man who had been a notorious drug pusher but who had totally changed both his appearance and his life-style. “I thought that if he could change, I could too,” Ana says. “His transformation convinced me that I should accept the offer of a Bible study.

“From my very first Bible study, I decided to stay at home, since I knew that if I left the house, I would meet other drug users and go back to taking drugs. I already knew that drugs were wrong and that God did not approve of this habit. I had also seen the effect that drugs have on people and the harm that I had done to my own family. But I needed spiritual strength to break free from my drug-imposed prison. Detoxification was tough. For a time I just slept all day while the effects of the drugs wore off. But it was worth it.”

Real Hope and Meaning

Ana’s husband, Pedro, also mentioned in the previous article, had a similar escape. “One day while smoking hashish in my brother’s home, I spotted a book with a title that intrigued me,” Pedro recalls. “It was entitled The Truth That Leads to Eternal Life. I took it home, read it, and checked the scriptures. I was sure that I had found the truth.

“Reading the Bible and speaking to others about what I was learning made me feel better and diminished my craving for drugs. I decided not to go ahead with my planned armed robbery of a gas station. A friend was studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses, and I soon followed his example. In nine months I reformed my life-style and got baptized. During this time, many former friends offered me drugs, but I immediately began to talk to them about the Bible. Some responded favorably. One even overcame his addiction.

“To break the drug habit, you need to have hope. The Bible gave me that hope, gave meaning to my life, and showed me clearly God’s view of drugs and violence. I noticed that I felt better as I learned about the Almighty—and there were no negative side effects. Later, association with clean-living people at meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses helped me to continue in this course.”

From Drug Trafficker to Bricklayer

José, the drug trafficker mentioned in the previous article, is now a bricklayer once more. He did not find it easy to quit his lucrative business. “Drugs move a lot of money,” he admits, “but it is not a good way to earn money. I see young kids with handguns and flashy cars. Families get broken up, crime is rampant on the streets, and many drug addicts break into cars, steal from shops, or mug people to get money for drugs. Many start with hashish, progress to ecstasy or other pills, and then try cocaine or even heroin. I realize that I was involved in getting many started in this cycle.

“As I studied the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses, I became more and more convinced that my involvement with drugs was wrong. I wanted to have a clean conscience, and my wife, who was likewise studying, desired the same. Of course, it’s difficult to stop dealing in drugs. I explained to my clients and my traffickers that I was studying the Bible and had abandoned the drug trade. At first, they just didn’t believe me, and some still don’t. Nevertheless, I stopped nearly two years ago, and I haven’t regretted it for one moment.

“For the past year, I have been working as a bricklayer, which is my trade. Now in a month I earn a quarter of what I could earn as a drug dealer in one day. But this is a better way of life, and I feel happier.”

A Global Solution That Will Work

A few courageous traffickers have abandoned the drug trade. And various forms of rehabilitation have helped thousands of users to overcome their addiction. But, as the World Drug Report acknowledges, “for the long-term, heavy drug user, sustained abstinence is the exception rather than the rule.” Sadly, for each addict who is rehabilitated, several new victims are ensnared. Supply and demand keep on growing.

If the war on drugs is to be won, there must be a global solution because the problem is already a global one. In this regard the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs notes: “While drug abuse, drug trafficking and the criminality connected to the drug problem were in most countries perceived as one of the main threats to security, the public was less aware of the fact that illicit drugs were a global problem that could no longer be solved by national efforts alone.”

But will the governments of the world band together to eradicate this global scourge? The results so far have not been encouraging. The Bible, however, points to a heavenly government that will transcend national boundaries as the definitive solution. The Bible assures us that God’s Kingdom, ruled by Jesus Christ, will last “forever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15) Hence, under God’s Kingdom, divine education will ensure that the demand for drugs will disappear. (Isaiah 54:13) And the social and emotional problems that now provide fertile soil for drug abuse will be gone forever.—Psalm 55:22; 72:12; Micah 4:4.

Are You in Need of Help?

Even now, hope in God’s Kingdom in the hands of Christ is motivating people to say no to drugs. If you would like more information, please contact Jehovah’s Witnesses in your area.

[Footnote]

[Picture on page 11]

A drug arrest under way

[Credit Line]

K. Sklute/SuperStock

[Picture on page 12]

Pedro and his wife, Ana, studying the Bible with their children

[Picture on page 13]

Pedro installing security devices