Cambodia’s young users
Injecting methamphetamines is on the rise in Cambodia, particularly among younger addicts, as recreational users have begun to switch from smoking and pill-popping to mainlining, a report by the Australian National Council on Drugs suggests.
The report, released yesterday, details how amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) and their precursors are manufactured – primarily in Myanmar – and transported through the region, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. …
It found a general trend towards the increasing use of ATS among the under-25 population in Cambodia, one of only three countries in the study where the trend existed. …
The government has estimated that up to 75,000 people, mostly young people, use illegal drugs in the country. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime has said this is of particular concern, as more than half the population is under the age of 25.
Keo Kim Dara, deputy secretary-general of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, said he was not aware of meth being a significant problem among students. …
Despite the increasing prevalence of injecting ATS, consuming meth in pill form remains the primary method of taking the drug in Cambodia, the report added.
Compared with other capitals in the region, it found that ATS-taking levels in Phnom Penh were on par with Kuala Lumpur and slightly lower than Yangon and Bangkok, but higher than in Beijing, Vientiane, Brunei, Jakarta, Manila, Singapore and Hanoi. …
Daniel Pye
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/cambodia%E2%80%99s-young-users
