Just before the last scholastic year ended, some 30,000 information leaflets were sent to secondary schools in Malta and Gozo as part of the national information campaign to educate young people on the harmful effects of underage drinking and the implications of the new law to regulate it.
The exercise took place right before summer, when most students have more time on their hands, spend more nights out with their friends and could have more temptation to start experimenting with drinking alcohol. Therefore, it was the best time to raise more awareness about the growing problem of underage drinking among youths at a time when they could be more vulnerable.
Malta does not have a good record in this regard. Statistics show that many of our youths fall into the trap of drinking alcohol excessively – what is known as binge drinking – at a relatively young age, and soon this becomes a habit.
Most do so because others are doing it, so as not to feel left out and to be part and parcel of the fun. Some parents do not help either, as there are many of them who introduce their children to drinking alcohol from an early age, encouraging them to taste wine or have a sip of whisky at a family party.
In the past, adults could have bought drinks and passed them on to underage people, but now this has become illegal. Underage people used to get away with drinking alcohol because an adult had bought it for them, but now adults caught giving alcohol to underage people, and the minors caught drinking alcohol, will be prosecuted.
Agencies such as Sedqa demanded tougher steps, such as the raising of the legal age for drinking from 16 to 18, but this is a battle that Sedqa has not won yet, although it is to be presumed that it will continue pressing the government about it.
Still, the amendments are a step in the right direction. However, as in anything else, it is much easier to introduce laws than to implement them, and although it must be admitted that such a law is hard to enforce because one cannot have policemen everywhere, the authorities should make sure that the law is applied. It will have been a futile exercise to go all the effort involved in enacting a law if it then is not implemented.
What is important is that, apart from enacting laws and implementing them, the authorities should work towards the culture change that is needed to curb alcohol abuse – and not only among young
people but also among adults who have unfortunately fallen into the trap.
And this is where education comes in. The leaflets that were distributed among secondary school children before summer are certainly a good way to make them more aware of the consequences of their actions. This exercise must, however, be complemented by a strong campaign, via the media, to constantly remind people of the harmful effects of excessive drinking, and to make them exercise some self-control before it is too late.
The leaflets form part of a current campaign that includes the formation of a permanent focus group within the Family and Social Solidarity Ministry. Group members are participating in television and radio programmes – perhaps newspapers could also be involved more in such a campaign – billboards have been erected and advertisements have been screened in all cinemas.
While this is in itself positive, it must also be pointed out that educators – and this includes teachers, parents and other people with whom youngsters are in touch on a daily basis – have their own important part to play. And the best thing they can do is to lead by example.