KUALA LUMPUR: Persatuan Pengasih Malaysia (Pengasih) have given its full support to the Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail proposal to amend the law to offer treatment for drug addicts instead of punishment.
The non-governmental organisation (NGO) stressed that the existing approach of punishing people who consume drugs and are struggling with addictions has garnered no positive results.
According to Pengasih this is because addiction, much like chronic conditions such as diabetes and asthma, can be effectively managed over the course of a person's lifetime.
Thus, incarcerating individuals for exhibiting signs of this illness is akin to suggesting that people living with diabetes should be imprisoned merely because they occasionally indulge in cakes and frappuccinos.
Pengasih acknowledges the pressing need to address this issue promptly, given the rapidly evolving trends in substance abuse in contemporary times.
"Initially, people took a liking to stimulant drugs such as methamphetamine. However, in recent years, more and more people are attracted to new psychoactive substances (NPS), which are also commonly known as designer drugs.
"NPS are undetectable in urine testing and are easily available in vapes and even in cordial juice forms, like Ribena.
"This increases the appeal among the youth as they can be walking around in holding an NPS vape, unassuming to everyone else," said Pengasih when contacted today.
Pengasih emphasised how civil society organisations (CSOs) and NGOs both play a huge role in this effort, given its main role in providing community-based treatment and early parole release of people serving time for minor drug offences.
The NGO listed several qualities, including the capacity building, through training, monitoring and evaluation that are crucial in ensuring the success and quality of outcome.
At the same time, Pengasih suggested that the amendment should include evidence-based approaches such as multidisciplinary treatment in order to make this new approach successful.
"There needs to be a team that assesses the severity of the substance abuse on the individual.
"Substance abuse occurs along a spectrum, not everyone who abuses substances develop an addiction and require long term residential treatment. Only 10 per cent of all individuals who abuse substances have an addiction"," said the NGO.
"It is important to conduct a clinical assessment before determining the intensity of treatment which can vary from weekly outpatient, intensive outpatient or one to three month-long residential treatment," said the NGO.
It was previously reported by the media that if the proposed legislation by the Home Minister is adopted by parliament, it would prioritise the rehabilitation and treatment of drug addicts within a legal framework and actively support the transformation of prisons and detention centres.
The proposed law suggests that drug offenders will be examined by medical officers, and if proven certified, they will be taken straight to rehabilitation centres instead of being punished in prisons.