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• Young Asians Fired-Up Against Drugs

Young Asians Fired-Up Against Drugs

1 July 2004

A rock concert and fire-spinning show to raise awareness about drug abuse was organised in Shillong, Meghalaya, India, on 26 June 2004 by two Commonwealth Youth Ambassadors for Positive Living (YAPL) of the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) Asia Centre.

Fire-spinning is a modification of the art of Poi, which originates from the Maori in New Zealand.

The two Youth Ambassadors, Hasina Kharbhih (President, Impulse NGO Network) from India and Dr Ashique Selim (member of fire-spinning group Naur) from Bangladesh, organised the event to mark the International Day against Drug/Substance Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

The innovative programme was designed to reach out to young people and students of local schools and colleges. Music by local rock group 'Revel Souls' and a band from Kripa Foundation Drug Awareness, Counselling and Assistance Centre set the tune for the fire-spinning dance by Naur. Fire-spinning is a modification of the art of Poi, which originates from the Maori in New Zealand. Dr Selim works in Bangladesh to show young people that there are more positive ways of enjoying life and having fun other than through drugs.

The evening included talks by Emilia Timpo, South Asia Inter-country Team, UNAIDS; and Manjul Khanna, United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, Shillong.

The Governor of Meghalaya, M M Jacob, said: "Every responsible citizen and NGO must tackle the menace of drug abuse. There should be more work and less talk in this sector."

The high prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the north-eastern Indian state of Meghalaya has been attributed to large numbers of drug/substance abusers. This event marked the first inter-country collaboration between the Youth Ambassadors of the CYP Asia Centre.

Ms Kharbhih said: "The best outcome of the event was that school and college principals have contacted Impulse NGO Network to organise a camp with students and the Youth Ambassadors. The camp will include film screenings, talks and sports like parasailing, trekking, horse riding and others. There will also be training for selected youth representatives of various colleges. Sessions will be held on the YAPL programme and how the young people can take it forward in their respective communities."

"Drug abuse is a serious issue confronting many young people in the Commonwealth and its ramifications are manifold," said Ignatius Takawira, Head of CYP. "It destroys young lives, ruins their ability to achieve their full potential and its impact on the spread of HIV/AIDS further deepens the crisis.

"We at CYP work in a development partnership with young citizens and believe that no initiative can be successful without their active involvement. Consequently, the socio-economic development of the entire Commonwealth is threatened by this issue which can potentially deprive us of our crucial young partners and their skills, energy and enthusiasm.

"In this context, the work that our Youth Ambassadors for Positive Living are doing is invaluable. As young people themselves, there is no one better than them to work with their peers to raise awareness about issues of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS."      

The YAPL programme is a CYP innovation that supports youth participation in the fight against drug abuse and HIV/AIDS. Many of the Youth Ambassadors are themselves former drug addicts or HIV positive. They work with their peers to educate them about such issues and to provide them with support and counselling.

The YAPL programme was initiated in Africa in 1993 and its success has led to it being replicated in other regions. It was launched in Asia in January 2001 and in the Caribbean in 2002.