The Trafficking of Illegal Drugs - Essay Example

Trafficking of drugs generally means the transfer of ‘illegal’ drugs from one hand to another. According to me it is the method through which the drugs, specially the dangerous drugs reach the hands of the innocent who gradually become victims of these drugs. All drugs are dangerous; they only vary in the degree to which they cause danger. In fact, some of the legal drugs are not as dangerous as the illegal ones. Legalizing the sale of a drug does not render it safe either. Drug trafficking or the corruption in this trade is going beyond the control of the law. It causes not merely political corruption but leads to social disintegration as well. It turns the youth into rebels, causes bloodshed, enmity, and violence. It is in fact, an organized crime and operates through the underworld. Hence, people feel that legalizing drugs could perhaps improve the situation to some extent. In my opinion, no drugs should be given the legal status. The trafficking of illegal drug takes place as mentioned, through the underworld. It is exchanged through the land and sea transport between countries. An international law is necessary where all countries concerned get together to catch the players of this game. If drugs are legalized then the trade and its activities, the mode of operations cannot be classified a crime and no remedial action can be taken. At this point it must be noted that the trade can exist only if there you users. The drug users are the backbone of the business. This means to combat the business of drugs one has to start at the grass root level. Education has to be imparted at the school level. This education does not merely mean educating on the dangers of drugs. It should include, rather stress on the nexus between drugs business and the underworld crime. This is a mammoth task, which cannot be tackled by the government or law alone. It is a chronic problem in the society and the society as a whole has to handle it. Teachers, parents, school authorities, church, all have a role to play. It can be supported by legal recourse or punitive action if warnings are not adhered to. Feeding information, right and timely information to the children is very important. Keeping alarming news on drugs away from them or suppressing information can cause more harm than good. Today children want to be a part of all that happens. For instance, if any trafficking has been brought to light and the victims arrested, the children should be made aware of all the details and asked to reflect on the consequences it can have on the individual, on his family, children and on his country. Let this come from the children themselves rather than suggesting to them. This would arouse their consciousness to evils; it would make them think how their abstinence or even a small contribution from them can help towards a better society. The family’s role is important here when parents have to be friends rather than being dictators. Media portrays a lot of such evils and this should be discussed with the child. He should be allowed to express his views and corrected wherever necessary. He should be made to read and listen to the harmful effects such trade causes. Schools and universities are the place where most students get into the use of drugs and hence the educational institutions have a significant role to play in combating this menace. Strict rules and laws have always been laid down but have never worked. Under cover, all activities are carried on as usual. It has been seen that at most institutions drugs are ‘freely’ available through local stores or vendors and sometimes even boys who are engaged in such business for petty benefits. In such cases, the school has to take firm steps. Fear has to be instilled in the children. Punishment, fear of embarrassment can help dissuade children from this path. Apart from this, the school has to organize frequent awareness drives, seminars, campaigns, discussions and debates so that students’ mind is constantly hammered with the dangers. The awareness has to be constant. Once the basic idea sinks in, then the child would never touch the drugs no matter what temptations. The adolescents reel under the myth that drugs are stimulants, which help them to concentrate better or perform better. Such thoughts have to be thrown out from the system through lessons on positive thinking. It is basically lack of love or frustrated childhood, added to peer influence that takes a child towards use of drugs. He starts finding temporary solace and gradually becomes an addict. When he or she is given love, time, attention and understanding, they would not fall pray to such attractions. This ultimately will affect the entire trade of drug trafficking. I feel my solution of combating at the grass-root level would work because every trade is a game of supply and demand. The price too is dictated by the demands of the market. When the youth is educated, conscious, and alert, they would abstain from the use of drugs. The moment this happens, the demand in the market crashes. When the demand crashes, the prices fall. Fall in prices means lower margins for the traders or traffickers. Lower margins would distract the traders to some other trade. Opinions may differ here that prohibitive costs may reduce the sale of drugs but in my opinion, this would only lead to more thefts and corruption to procure drugs by any means. When the demand reduces, one day the supply and thereby the manufacture, trafficking will all have to come to a halt. Some people are of the opinion that knowledge of drugs could lead a child to experiment with them. According to me, lack of knowledge would urge him to experiment; education would keep him miles away. The country has laws to prevent manufacture or sale or abuse of drugs but they should also include awareness and education laws at the school level. It should be mandatory on the educational institutions to educate the children about the harm that such trafficking brings to the society as a whole. An individual is not enough; the society has to work in unison to combat this problem. Read More