Syabu (Methamphetamine) in Malaysia: Harm Reduction, Health, and the Environment
The nation's biggest methamphetamine trial recently hit the news and I was pretty shocked at the amount of meth that was seized in this bust. May 2 last year, just over 753 kgs of meth was seized from an individual who is now facing charges for trafficking. He's likely to hang. The thing about this is that this is not a victory in the drug war; it is a failure. We've been implementing this death penalty/incarceration policy for a while now in the WAR ON DRUGS and drug quantities in busts just keep getting bigger. So would this mean that are we getting to be more effective in keeping drugs of the streets? Or does it mean that more and more drugs are entering the country, more people are learning the skills for the cooking of methamphetamine, and that there is an increased demand for methamphetamine? The fact that this man was in possession of such a large amount of meth, shows that there is an enormous demand. The problem that Malaysia has is really rooted in the approach taken by governmental authorities. Drug problems are seen as solely a criminal justice issue as opposed to a health issue, making us vulnerable to the same drug problems that America has faced and is facing today. It kills me to think that we are heading in the same direction, and that we may even end up in a place worse than the US.
We've got a terrible meth problem. And to strategize better drug policy that addresses health concerns, we've got to understand how meth works, what are the demographics of meth users and the health and environmental effects of meth. Methamphetamine and Amphetamine-Type Substances (ATS) stimulate the central nervous system by increasing the release of neurotransmitters and other chemicals such as dopamine, noradrenalin, adrenaline and serotonin. So basically, a user would have a reaction whereby nerve impulses travel much faster than usual (basically at unnatural speeds). Louisa Degenhardt et al in their 2010 article illustrate: ' (They) have a range of effects including increased energy, feelings of euphoria, decreased appetite, and elevated blood pressure, heart rate, and other physiological effects.' Louisa Degenhardt, Bradley Mathers, Mauro Guarinieri, Samiran Panda, Benjamin Phillips, Steffanie A Strathdee, Mark Tyndall, Lucas Wiessing, Alex Wodak and John Howard, 'Meth/Amphetamine Use and Associated HIV Implication for Global Policy and Public Health' (2010) 21 International Journal of Drug Policy 347 at 348
The thing about methamphetamine, or 'ice' as is commonly known, is that regular users suffer from a multitude of effects, psychological, social and physical. There's the picking at the skin, resulting in open sores and scabs, alienation from family and friends, financial problems, psychological problems (research has shown that there is co-morbidity between drugs and mental illness), et al, and last but most definitely not least, the problem of HIV among intravenous methamphetamine users, which is an area of concern here because we've got a HIV epidemic among intravenous drug users of mammoth proportions.
Treatments are not very accessible because no one wants to talk about it and drug users are scared of prosecution. As a result, public awareness is not there, or rather, public perception is centred around meth as a demonic substance used by demonic people to commit demonic acts. The fact is, these people may be my aunt, your brother, your sister's best friend, who somehow slipped along the way and grew dependent on meth. In my view, much more has to be done towards perceiving drug users as people requiring medical treatment instead of people requiring incarceration. It's doubly risky for local meth users who have contracted HIV as a result of unsafe injection practices and have little or no access to healthcare, cessation services, and HAART (highly active antiretroviral therapy) facilities. Degenhardt et al recommend that these persons 'should be encouraged to address their M/A (meth/amphetamine) and other drug use'. (Id at 354) But how do we encourage this and at the same time protect drug users from incarceration and other forms of stigma that may impede their recovery?
The fact that we've managed on a one-off sort of occasion to seize 753 kgs of meth is scary for the fact that we don't know exactly how many meth labs are out there. And it's actually been proven that meth residue sticks in walls and carpets and other surfaces for decades after a 'cook'. Carol Potera illustrates: 'Cooking generates a variety of noxious solvents and gases, such as hydrogen chloride, phosphine, and meth itself. According to an 8 August 2005 Newsweek article, for each pound of meth produced, five pounds of toxic waste are left behind.... Even six months after a staged cook... found meth levels of 300 µg/100 cm³ on surfaces. Carpets trap meth and other pollutants, yet vacuuming raises airborne meth levels.' Carol Potera, 'Meth's Pollution Epidemic' (2005) 113(9) Environmental Health Perspectives A589 at A589
So we've got environmental issues and health issues to tackle which I feel are much more important than hanging traffickers. The arresting of one trafficker just shows that there are thousands more out there who are more than happy to handle the demand for methamphetamine and other ATSs. In my view, increased involvement by harm reduction advocates and environmental scientists in balancing out the heavily retributive criminal justice approach may be just what we need to tackle not only increasing methamphetamine usage and dependence, but also health issues caused by other drugs.
We've got a terrible meth problem. And to strategize better drug policy that addresses health concerns, we've got to understand how meth works, what are the demographics of meth users and the health and environmental effects of meth. Methamphetamine and Amphetamine-Type Substances (ATS) stimulate the central nervous system by increasing the release of neurotransmitters and other chemicals such as dopamine, noradrenalin, adrenaline and serotonin. So basically, a user would have a reaction whereby nerve impulses travel much faster than usual (basically at unnatural speeds). Louisa Degenhardt et al in their 2010 article illustrate: ' (They) have a range of effects including increased energy, feelings of euphoria, decreased appetite, and elevated blood pressure, heart rate, and other physiological effects.' Louisa Degenhardt, Bradley Mathers, Mauro Guarinieri, Samiran Panda, Benjamin Phillips, Steffanie A Strathdee, Mark Tyndall, Lucas Wiessing, Alex Wodak and John Howard, 'Meth/Amphetamine Use and Associated HIV Implication for Global Policy and Public Health' (2010) 21 International Journal of Drug Policy 347 at 348
The thing about methamphetamine, or 'ice' as is commonly known, is that regular users suffer from a multitude of effects, psychological, social and physical. There's the picking at the skin, resulting in open sores and scabs, alienation from family and friends, financial problems, psychological problems (research has shown that there is co-morbidity between drugs and mental illness), et al, and last but most definitely not least, the problem of HIV among intravenous methamphetamine users, which is an area of concern here because we've got a HIV epidemic among intravenous drug users of mammoth proportions.
Treatments are not very accessible because no one wants to talk about it and drug users are scared of prosecution. As a result, public awareness is not there, or rather, public perception is centred around meth as a demonic substance used by demonic people to commit demonic acts. The fact is, these people may be my aunt, your brother, your sister's best friend, who somehow slipped along the way and grew dependent on meth. In my view, much more has to be done towards perceiving drug users as people requiring medical treatment instead of people requiring incarceration. It's doubly risky for local meth users who have contracted HIV as a result of unsafe injection practices and have little or no access to healthcare, cessation services, and HAART (highly active antiretroviral therapy) facilities. Degenhardt et al recommend that these persons 'should be encouraged to address their M/A (meth/amphetamine) and other drug use'. (Id at 354) But how do we encourage this and at the same time protect drug users from incarceration and other forms of stigma that may impede their recovery?
The fact that we've managed on a one-off sort of occasion to seize 753 kgs of meth is scary for the fact that we don't know exactly how many meth labs are out there. And it's actually been proven that meth residue sticks in walls and carpets and other surfaces for decades after a 'cook'. Carol Potera illustrates: 'Cooking generates a variety of noxious solvents and gases, such as hydrogen chloride, phosphine, and meth itself. According to an 8 August 2005 Newsweek article, for each pound of meth produced, five pounds of toxic waste are left behind.... Even six months after a staged cook... found meth levels of 300 µg/100 cm³ on surfaces. Carpets trap meth and other pollutants, yet vacuuming raises airborne meth levels.' Carol Potera, 'Meth's Pollution Epidemic' (2005) 113(9) Environmental Health Perspectives A589 at A589
So we've got environmental issues and health issues to tackle which I feel are much more important than hanging traffickers. The arresting of one trafficker just shows that there are thousands more out there who are more than happy to handle the demand for methamphetamine and other ATSs. In my view, increased involvement by harm reduction advocates and environmental scientists in balancing out the heavily retributive criminal justice approach may be just what we need to tackle not only increasing methamphetamine usage and dependence, but also health issues caused by other drugs.
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