Author: Dallandyshe Xhaferri
"Drug consumption by high school students has become a normality. There have been no shortage of cases where 9-year-old children have come to the hospital. They are special cases, coming from families with numerous economic and social problems." Miga Mataraku-Toxicologist
EY was only 13 years old when he took drugs for the first time. Driven by curiosity, why his friends were happy after consuming narcotics, he decided to try them, not knowing that after 15 years he would fight against their addiction.
"Losing my mother when I was 12 alienated me. I transformed, as I lacked control. I didn't miss anything from my family, but I always kept to myself and didn't tell them that I had started taking drugs. At the age of 15, I started using cannabis, and at the age of 18, that of heroin", he said.
EY has failed to educate itself. After finishing the eighth grade, he did not continue high school after being expelled.
"Until the 7th grade, I was a student with high results, I even received a letter of commendation, but the lack of accountability at home, my mother's departure from this life and being on the street more than at home took their toll," he added. .
The 28-year-old admitted during the interview that he has also turned into a drug dealer, since at that time he was still a minor and could not have a secure job.
"Narcotics were distributed to minors and adults. "The client" was not differentiated by age", he said.
The consumption of narcotics increases significantly
The consumption of narcotic substances by minors has increased significantly, which was ascertained from the interaction with them in 4 9-year-old schools of the city of Elbasan.
In the interviews conducted with 36 ninth-grade students (18 girls and 18 boys), from 4 9-year-old schools in Elbasan, it turned out that each of them was aware of the use of narcotics at school, while 70% of them admitted that they know other students who consumed narcotic substances. In the response to the request for information, addressed to ZVA, Elbasan, it is accepted that during the year 2021, only 2 students were identified as users of narcotic substances, a rather low figure compared to what is claimed by the students themselves.
One of the reasons why cases are not identified earlier is the lack of students' confidence to express their problems and concerns to psychologists and teachers.
"If I had a problem, I would not turn to the school psychologist, nor to the teacher", - answered 90% of the students interviewed. According to the psychologist, Elona Mustafaraj, one of the reasons why students do not turn to the school psychologist is related to the fear that, if the psychologist knows the problem, she will tell the teacher.
"Within the school environment, it is easily evident that they are consulting a psychologist and are afraid of the fact that they may be bullied by their peers. Also, this approach to the psychologist is related to reliability. Children think that, the fact that psychologists are near teachers and other students, their data may not be saved and others may be aware".
Mustafaraj admits that while he was working in one of the 9-year-old schools in Elbasan, he conducted consultations with students who had tried narcotics.
"Was not a regular user. He came to the first stage of use and during that time he had experienced anxiety, panic. More than with drug users, I have conducted treatments with minors who gambled. Mostly these were cases referred by family members, but they may have done the first sessions and then resisted, not following the treatment due to the high level of addiction, but also because it was left to them to choose the moment right to return to sessions", she added.
The drug-using age group is decreasing
According to the toxicologist, Miga Mataraku, the age group that consumes narcotics is decreasing, which has made the consumption of drugs by high school students to be seen as acceptable.
"There have been no shortage of cases when 9-year-old children have come to the hospital. They are special cases, coming from families with numerous economic and social problems."
The mixture of drugs and the poor quality has led to the fact that not infrequently, patients are found to have overdosed by the police.
"There are patients who come from families with good economic conditions and buy cannabis, while poor consumers buy substances that are provided with less money. The quality of the drug remains a problem, which consumers are aware of, but they still consume it mixed, which increases the possibility of overdose", she added.
Elbasan does not have a rehabilitation center
There is no rehabilitation center in the city of Elbasan, and the only point where consumers turn for help is Methadone Center or otherwise known as Action Plus.
Genc Muçollari, director of the humanitarian association Action Plus, has shown that in the points of this center, which are distributed in Tirana, Elbasan, Korça, Durrës, Berat, Fier, Shkodër and Saranda, 920 people receive daily treatment.
"In 2020, approximately 6.6% of (minor) students have tried narcotics at least once, compared to 1% in 4.4," he said.
Muçollari has accepted for ACQJ that drug users have become massive, even cannabis and cocaine users have increased significantly in recent years.
According to the center's official data, from 2018 to 2021, the number of people receiving treatment at the center has increased by 25%.
The police of Elbasan, after confirming that the persons are addicted to narcotics, dismisses their case and refers them as cases to this center. According to the police, there is no database of users and distributors of narcotics, although their number remains high.
During the January-June period of 2021, the police have dealt with 33 cases of distribution of narcotics by 54 perpetrators, based on police data.
Although the number of minors who consume and distribute narcotics has increased, the Prosecutor's Office at the Court of First Instance in Elbasan during the period January-December 14, 2021 has registered a criminal proceeding regarding a minor citizen. The procedure continues to be in the investigation phase.
Also, based on the center's study Speak in Tirana for the year 2021, only 1 citizen was criminally prosecuted for committing the criminal offense of "Encouraging the use of drugs", provided by Article 286 of the Criminal Code, but in this case the victim of the criminal offense was a minor.
Poverty, the main drive to turn to distributors
Unemployment is the main reason why minors in Elbasan turn into distributors of narcotics, while the massification of hard drug users has recently been noticed.
Economic factors remain the main influencers that send minors and young people towards the distribution of narcotics. According to INSTAT, Elbasan is ranked in 1 of the 3 poorest counties in the country.
"A good part of patients at a young age have shown that they start distributing narcotics only to earn money "easier", without taking into account the risk of returning to consumers", - added toxicologist Mataraku.
The number of unemployed people in Elbasan district has increased mainly during the pandemic year, according to the Regional Employment Office.
From 9.117 unemployed in 2019, 10.892 were registered in 2020, otherwise, unemployment increased by 17% during the pandemic year.
According to data from INSTAT, GDP per capita in Elbasan for the period 2015-2018 is among the lowest in the country, leaving behind only Kukës, the poorest county in the country. Also, according to official figures, only in the first half of 2019 the "rate of laziness" in the city increased by 5%.
center Action Plus remains the only rehabilitation center in the country, as there are no state ones. In order to carry out their work better, helping drug users even more, the center needs support from the state.
settlement
"In order to have a proper treatment with results, a more concrete support from the state in monetary, human and infrastructural resources is required. Better motivation of personnel engaged in this sector is needed, as well as closer cooperation between actors involved in providing treatment for people who use substances. We are at the stage when the quality of the service needs to be improved, as well as the establishment of a multi-functional center, with all the possibilities and all the protocols, adapted to the needs of individuals seeking a rescue from a certain addiction", said Genc. Mucollari.
Also, the lack of employment or finding activities that people who seek rehabilitation can engage in increases the chances of being tempted again or coming into contact with other consumers.
ZVA, Elbasan has announced that in cooperation with other institutions, such as Elbasan Police and Community Policing Specialists (SPZ), it has organized sensitization meetings with focus groups determined by school psychosocial service workers, leaders and teachers in some of the AIs, according to a calendar plan for the implementation of the program Education, Awareness and Reduction of Demand for Hazardous Substances.
These meetings are held by community policing specialists for education in schools and work with young people, by area inspectors, by representatives of the school directorate, by psychology and by social workers in schools. According to ZVA, Elbasan, until this period, the topics "Alcohol" and "Drugs" were worked on in all schools in Elbasan.
According to EY, the city needs a state-run rehabilitation center, as drug users do not know who to turn to once they admit their addiction.
"The center gives the best for us, the patients, but again the intervention of the state with a large center, which is known by everyone, is necessary. In my opinion, the real pandemic of this city is drug addiction. We need to get back to our old lives, but we need a structure to help us rehabilitate, to employ us, to lose our minds and make it."
