RP blocks plan to hand out free syringes to heroin addicts

MANILA, Philippines - Chairman Vicente Sotto III of the Dangerous Drugs Board has blocked a plan of European nations to hand out free syringes to heroin addicts to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS.

Speaking to The STAR after attending the United Nation’s 57th special session on drugs and crime in Austria, Sotto said the United States and Russia supported him when he stood up to block the European proposal to tolerate drug addiction to fight a deadly disease.

“I will urge President Arroyo to come up with a very strong stand on this Harm Reduction Program being pushed by European nations,” he said.

Sotto said the so-called Harm Reduction Program was discussed in the high-level segment of the UN’s special session, where he represented Asia.

“It will tolerate addiction,” he said.

“I told them that there are many poor countries like India, Africa, and even the Philippines where there are days that people go hungry because of poverty.

“Why not use the money to fight poverty instead of spending it for syringes that will be given away for free to drug users?”

Sotto said his firm objection to the program made UN-member countries halt its approval, though it will still be restudied and discussed before a final decision is made.

Pampering drug users is not the proper way to fight HIV or AIDS as it sends the wrong signal to drug addicts, he added. – Michael Punongbayan