Towards a Drug Free Generation-- Roles and Responsibilities

of the Youth Organisations

By Mr.Wang Mingxue & Mr.Du Dong All-China Youth Federation (ACYF)

27 June, 2008

Part Ⅰ

Challenges

the number of drug abusers become larger in recent years

the officially recorded number of the drug abusers in China was 148,000 in 1991

1.16 million in 2006.

accounting for around 70% of them are young people below 35

Two serious problems among Chinese young drug abusers

the fast increase of young abusers in primary and high schools. gather in a regular place , incline to form groups.

high relapse rate of drug abuse. Statistics shows that 90% of the recovered retake drugs.

The kinds of drugs taken by young abusers are verified

The abuse scale of traditional drugs like opium, heroin, etc, tends to be stable, while the abusers of some newly developed drugs, such as ecstasy, marijuana, ice drug tablets, rises rapidly in entertainment venues.

Part Ⅱ

Government’s role

Chinese government makes narcotics control as basic policy takes preventing young people from drugs as the foundatio

n of the whole narcotics control work. educate them to treasure the life and to reject drugs.

views narcotics control as a complex and systematical social project and a long-term strategic mission

utilizes measures in the areas of the laws, administration, economy, culture, education and medical service and so on, mobilizes and organizes the entire society to participate in narcotics control.

In 1997, the State Education Commission officially brought the narcotics control education into the curriculum outline of moral education courses in elementary and middle schools,

and requested universities, middle schools, elementary schools, citizen schools to provide lectures and courses on narcotics control education..

Steps of the narcotics control legislation

In 1995, the State Council issued Compulsory Detoxification Rules.

In 1999, the Law on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency was passed, on the foundation of the Law on the Protection of Minors in 1992. The law emphasized once again that young people must be protected from the harm of narcotics.

In 2003, the government started to draft the Law on Narcotics Control. It was proved by National People’s Congress in Dec,2007 and came into effect on June 1st 2008.

Law on Narcotics Control

Important milestone, human centered

Forced narcotics control model to community based narcotics control model

Law on Narcotics Control-- 3 phases Durg abusers under 16 and initial abusers will receive

treatments in communities instead of sent to drug abuse treatment centers

Retakers will be sent to drug abuse treatment centers which separated from their own communities

Community recovery phase, their will be sent back to their communities for psychological treatment and living assitance given by social workers and volunteers

Part Ⅲ

Roles and Responsibilities

of the All-China Youth Federation

1. Strengthen the education on drug prohibition, build an anti-drug atmosphere in society Anti-drug work is a complex social project system with publicit

y and education as its core ．

The local youth organizations of all levels use all means of publicity to explain the danger of drug, and establish education mechanism unifying the centralized publicity and the regular education. During the ‘Anti-drug Month’, the youth organizations visit schools, communities, villages, towns and streets to remind the youth to keep away from drug by exhibitions, performances, knowledge competitions and ceremonies.

In recent years, the local youth federations are actively participating the building of ‘drug-free community’ with the theme of ‘Youth, Keep Away from Drug’.

Continue to promote drug-free community. The local youth organizations utilize the Youth Centers, Youth Law Schools, Youth Palaces, 12355 Youth Service Hotline and Youth Rights & Interests Protection Service Station as platforms to carry out perennial anti-drug publicity and training, informing the youth with drug rejecting and preventing knowledge, improving their ability of drug resistance.

Some organizations open anti-drug lessons and anti-drug training classes in the youth law schools to improve the teaching level of anti-drug teachers and to popularize anti-drug knowledge.

2. Continue to cultivate anti-drug volunteer teams, ensure a persistent development of anti-drug work

Volunteers are the main force of youth anti-drug publicity and education. The local youth federations recruit lots of volunteers from the civil society to promote the anti-drug volunteer movement, which put great vigor into the anti-drug battle.

The volunteers are divided into small groups and sent to communities to introduce anti-drug work and new type drug prevention method to young people and the public.

Teachers, doctors, lawyers, media and social workers are also recruited as volunteers to carry out ‘one-helps-one’ program. The program aims to help the youth involved in drug abuse or misbehaved to realized the harm of drug, and to feel the warmth from the society by a series of activities, such as providing living assistance, learning environment and psychological tutorship.

Since 2005, Guangxi Autonomous Regional Youth Federation has been cooperating with Lang Son and Cao Bang provinces, Vietnam to carry out joint anti-drug volunteer movement along the border.

3. Enrich the content and improve the quality of anti-drug publicity and education

ACYF, National Anti-drug Leading Group together with China Youth Online have opened ‘Youth Away from Drug’ website in 2003, and established an ‘Online Museum on Youth Anti-drug Education’.

With its authority, rich content, interactive mode and shocking facts, the website has attracted great amount of youth, and became a perennial online anti-drug classroom. Up till now, the visit quantity has exceeded 1.4 million person-times.

local youth federations hold essay competitions, knowledge competitions, cultural performances, visiting to Drug Abuse Treatment Centers and ‘Anti-drug self-educate’ activities to form the self-protection consciousness and drug-resist ability among youth.

local Youth Federations have also conducted activity of choosing the ‘Campus Anti-drug Ambassador’.

4. Participating in the consultation of narcotics control legislation

In 1992, Law on the Protection of Minors.

In 1999, Law on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency.

In 2007, Law on Narcotics Control.

Thank you!

E-mail: acyf@263.net