National Campaign on the Force of the Land to Defeat the Drug Problem

(06/02/2012)

The Government has stressed the need to intensify its proactive campaign against drugs, based on the strategy “Force of the Land to Defeat the Drug Problem.” Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra called on all provinces to enhance the efficiency of drug suppression and control along the border and to seek cooperation from local residents to help reduce the number of drug addicts. The call was made at a meeting on the national anti-drug campaign, chaired by the Prime Minister on February 4 at Government House, with the participation of 800 officials responsible for anti-drug operations. The meeting was the second of its kind after the Government on 11 September 2011 kicked off the anti-drug drive as part of the national agenda, known as the Force of the Land to Defeat the Drug Problem. She said that people across the country pinned their hopes on the Government’s campaign against drugs in order to ease the problem and bring about peace and happiness. The Prime Minister said that the drug problem had spread to various communities nationwide and that the Government needed to prevent vulnerable groups, especially young people, from getting involved with narcotics by harnessing the efforts of members of society, who will join hands in fighting the drug menace. She asked Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Ubamrung, in his capacity as Director of the Center for the Force of the Land to Defeat the Drug Problem, to take special care of the families of officials who lost their lives in anti-drug operations. Within one year of the national anti-drug campaign, the Government aims to reduce drug abuse, which has spread to 60,000 villages nationwide. It will bring down the number of drug addicts in the country by at least 400,000, and about 80 percent of the drug addicts will be provided with treatment and rehabilitation. Moreover, the campaign seeks to reduce risks in all provinces, crack down on drug smuggling along the border, and bring all relevant agencies to work together in an integrated manner, in order to tackle the problem more effectively. The Prime Minister hailed all people involved for their efforts in the fight against narcotics during the past four months after the Government had kicked off the national anti-drug campaign in September last year. The number of drug addicts has so far dropped from 400,000 to 60,000. She wanted educational institutions, religious organizations, and public health offices to play a greater role in the proactive campaign against drugs. The Prime Minister urged the Royal Thai Police and the Ministry of Interior to work in parallel on drug suppression and control, and asked the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Public Health to encourage vulnerable groups to turn away from drugs and drug users not to return to drug use. She also wanted to see Thailand step up anti-drug cooperation with neighboring countries.