Czech Cabinet Approves 2005-2006 Anti-Drug Policy

Excerpt from report in English by Czech news agency CTK

Prague, 13 July: The government today approved the anti-drug policy for 2005-2006, drafted by the Government Council for Anti- Drug Policy Coordination, Jindrich Marek from the Government Office press department told CTK today.

The action plan for the next year is a part of the National Anti- Drug Policy Strategy for 2006-2009.

The plan’s main aims are to fight against organized crime and drug distribution and to decrease the use of all types of addictive substances. It also wants to stop the increase in experimental and occasional use of both legal and illegal drugs. The plan reckons with prevention of heroin and pervitine use. It recommends to take steps reducing the availability of legal and illegal drugs.

The state would like to stabilise or even decrease the number of problematic drug users by 2009. There are about 30,000 of such addicts. [passage omitted

International institutions nevertheless regard the drug situation in the country as positive. The number of heroin and pervitine users has been decreasing as well as the number of overdoses. Moreover, the number of HIV and hepatitis infection cases is low.