Broadly speaking, drug use reduction programme 2013-2016, unveiled yesterday by Ministry of the Interior, is worthy of support. Still, to claim it begins in 2013 does sound like slight exaggeration, as half of the year is gone – and the programme still in draft shape. As the previous programme wound up last year, the question now arises: whence the delay?
The Ministry of the Interior only coordinates drug fighting since end of last year, so we may guess the programme got stuck between ministries. Even so, with a «power ministry» now in charge, better results and bigger political support are to be expected.
Nothing notable was achieved by Ministry of Social Affairs: Estonia continues to have high levels of young drug tasters aged 15-16 (32 per cent in 2011) as well as injecting addicts.
For a simple reason: social ministry embracing such a vast variety of help-seekers, it is politically very hard to protect the drug prevention budget while, at the same time, there sounds a public outcry about small support for the disabled. This is not meant to pit problems against one another; this is just to show that no minister can ask and offer «all to anybody».
This is an issue of priorities of ministries. Action plans, strategies and programmes have been compiled for reduction and prevention of drug use; even so, the good ideas have stalled due to lack of money and cooperation of agencies.
Again, even approximate budget figures are lacking in the freshly published programme. In numerous areas, anti drug fight competes with other budgetary items; financing it is a political decision – to be taken in the fall.
As opposed to Ministry of Social Affairs, interior ministry needs not to pick and choose between those in need; even so, it is also faced with questions a la why drug prevention and not fighting sea pollution... this being a well-founded question, answers require clear priorities.
With Ministry of the Interior now tackling the issue, there are fresh hopes for a good outcome. Also, official cooperation ought, from now on, to be easier.
Let us admit: a vast share of the programme’s target group is on the police radar anyhow: drugs not equalling only the ragged addict, but also crime, criminal groupings, and dirty money.
The other priority, however, is prevention. And, to put it plainly: a policeman in uniform must be much convincing, to kids and parents alike, than a female physician in a sweater. By end of 2016 it will be seen if interior ministry possessed the stamina and political limelight to finish the fight well.