Mgr Grech was speaking at a press conference held to announce activities that Caritas will be organising in collaboration with a number of local councils on the International Day against Drug Abuse on 26 June. Marsascala local council, taking part in this yearly event for the third time, will be spearheading the activities together with the local councils of Zabbar, Senglea and Gudja.

Mgr Grech said that he was alarmed by the situation which was precipitated by the fact that users seem to be starting off with the so-called “hard drugs” such as heroin and cocaine.

He called for a concerted effort on the part of everyone and stressed the need for a preventative approach. “Not enough is being done in this area,” he said. “It seems that those falling prey to the vice are not being detected in time.”

Caritas official Claudine Mifsud explained that the organisation has been holding educational campaigns in schools for 14 years and has felt the need to extend the programme to the primary level.

Saying that parents need to be part of the campaign, Mgr Grech pointed out that many times it was Caritas or the schools that drew attention to the problem which goes largely unnoticed by the parents in question.

The police are doing their utmost, he said. However, there are many unfortunate instances in which people know about some drug-related wrongdoing and keep quiet out of “omerta”(conspiracy of silence).

There had been four fatal overdoses since the beginning of the year, he said, but these were merely the tip of the iceberg. “The way drug use has shot up in recent years will probably lead to a spillover of problems into other areas such as HIV.”

The events to be held on the International Day against Drug Abuse will include seminars, talks with parents, exhibitions and film forums, all related to drug education. However the highlight is expected to be The Caritas Malta New Hope Challenge Cup, a five-a-side football tournament being held on a synthetic turf pitch at Zabbar organised in collaboration with Zabbar local council.

Senglea and Gudja local councils will also be organising activities. For more information call Marcette Busuttil 7942-4518 or Claudine Mifsud 9924-5364.

Mgr Grech was speaking at a press conference held to announce activities that Caritas will be organising in collaboration with a number of local councils on the International Day against Drug Abuse on 26 June. Marsascala local council, taking part in this yearly event for the third time, will be spearheading the activities together with the local councils of Zabbar, Senglea and Gudja.

Mgr Grech said that he was alarmed by the situation which was precipitated by the fact that users seem to be starting off with the so-called “hard drugs” such as heroin and cocaine.

He called for a concerted effort on the part of everyone and stressed the need for a preventative approach. “Not enough is being done in this area,” he said. “It seems that those falling prey to the vice are not being detected in time.”

Caritas official Claudine Mifsud explained that the organisation has been holding educational campaigns in schools for 14 years and has felt the need to extend the programme to the primary level.

Saying that parents need to be part of the campaign, Mgr Grech pointed out that many times it was Caritas or the schools that drew attention to the problem which goes largely unnoticed by the parents in question.

The police are doing their utmost, he said. However, there are many unfortunate instances in which people know about some drug-related wrongdoing and keep quiet out of “omerta”(conspiracy of silence).

There had been four fatal overdoses since the beginning of the year, he said, but these were merely the tip of the iceberg. “The way drug use has shot up in recent years will probably lead to a spillover of problems into other areas such as HIV.”

The events to be held on the International Day against Drug Abuse will include seminars, talks with parents, exhibitions and film forums, all related to drug education. However the highlight is expected to be The Caritas Malta New Hope Challenge Cup, a five-a-side football tournament being held on a synthetic turf pitch at Zabbar organised in collaboration with Zabbar local council.

Senglea and Gudja local councils will also be organising activities. For more information call Marcette Busuttil 7942-4518 or Claudine Mifsud 9924-5364.