A seminar was held last Friday at the Zabbar local council as part of the week-long activities organised by Caritas. All local councils were invited but attendance was very poor, much to the disappointment of the organisers and speakers. The local councils present at the seminar were Zabbar, Marsascala and Senglea. The main speaker was Mario Mifsud, forensic pharmacist and court expert with 23 years of experience in the field. Other speakers at the seminar were Charlot Mifsud and Alfred Agius from the Marsascala local council who raised some interesting points.

Mr Mifsud, who was clearly disappointed at the low turnout, emphasised that illegal drug abuse issue is not just a local one, but international. He pointed out several details that could help parents discover whether their children have a substance abuse problem. Parents seem to be oblivious to the far-reaching problem of drug abuse in Malta, and only become aware when it hits them. Parents influence their children’s attitude to drugs, and the change has to start from the culture itself, with its concept of having a drink if you’re feeling down.

Yesterday morning at 8.30am, the New Hope Challenge Cup five-a-side tournament took place. Organised by Caritas, it kicked off at Zabbar Pitch, and was organised with the co-operation of the Zabbar local council, which sponsored the trophy and medals awarded to the players. In the evening a solidarity walk was held at Marsascala, after which a concert was held featuring various local singers.

Dr Gavin Gulia, Labour’s spokesperson for the Interior, voiced his respect for all the entities involved in the prevention of local and international drug trafficking, and the rehabilitation of the victims of drug abuse and their families. Marie Louise Coleiro, Labour MP, spokesperson for Social Solidarity emphasised that we have to support all the families who have a relative who is a victim of drug abuse, and urged all those who are in need of rehabilitation to do so.

This year sedqa marks its 10th anniversary with continuous development in the field of substance abuse. The main theme chosen for this year is “10 snin ta’ hidma favur il-hajja”. (10 years working in favour of life).

Although it is difficult to estimate the exact number of drug abusers, sedqa registered a slight increase in the number of people making use of the Drug Community Services in 2003. The number rose from 535 to 540 in 2002, and 415 in 2001. The total number of clients attending the Substance Misuse Out-Patient Unit (Detox) increased from 929 to 958 in 2002, increasing slightly from 2001, when 935 clients were registered. In April 2004, the majority of clients receiving support from sedqa’s Drug Community Team had heroin as their main substance of abuse.

In the World Drug Report 2004 published by United Nations Office on Drug and Crime, Malta’s annual prevalence of abuse as a percentage of populations aged 15-64 for ecstasy was 0.2 per cent in 2001, compared to Spain (2001), with 1.8 per cent and 0.4 per cent for Ireland in 2002. The percentage for the misuse of cannabis was 0.3 per cent for Malta (2001), 2.4 per cent for Ireland (2002) and Spain with 2.6 per cent in 2001. One must keep in mind that it is difficult to be sure of the real situation since substance abuse is an illegal issue, however the 1999 ESPAD (European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs) notes that lifetime use of any illicit drugs among Maltese 16-year olds attending secondary schools was eight per cent, with only Cyprus having a lower rate out of the 29 participating European countries, and the UK having the highest percentage at 36 per cent.