Jakarta Globe, Bayu Marhaenjati, June 13, 2013
Indonesian officials with the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) test methamphetamine during a press conference in Jakarta on Feb. 7, 2013. (AFP Photo/ Adek Berry). |
In a stark
contrast to current judicial trends in Indonesia, the chief of the National
Narcotics Agency (BNN) has advocated for rehabilitation-based treatment for
drug users rather than incarceration.
“Abusing
drugs is illegal and clearly prohibited, but the proper punishment a judge should
hand down [to drug abusers] is not prison, but rehabilitation,” Anang Iskandar,
the head of the agency, said on Thursday.
Anang said
there were still judges who preferred to punish drug abusers by ordering them
to undergo jail time, even though the Supreme Court issued a regulation
stipulating that a drug abuser should be rehabilitated.
“A judge
may order a drug abuser to check into a rehab as long as they are not a
trafficker, but unfortunately, there are still some judges who do not want to
do that. It’s a shame, because it could help reduce the number of drug
abusers,” he said.
Anang said
that the BNN has been trying improve the competence of its staff in order to
help more drug users.
“We want
our staff to understand that their job is to bring the drug addicts in
voluntarily and not by force,” he said.
According
to a 2011 survey by the BNN, there are between 3.8 and 4.2 million illicit drug
users in Indonesia.
Deputy
Justice Minister Denny Indrayana previously said that sending drug addicts to
prison hinders their chance of recovering and also crowds prisons and detention
centers.
According
to the deputy minister, drug offenders make up more than 40 percent of the
150,000 people detained in Indonesian jails.
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