THE SCOURGE OF HEROIN

Sir, - Paul Delaney (June 13th) claims there is "growing evidence" of the
"recreational" use of heroin by "well-heeled people" in what he describes as
"a relatively safe manner". We would be interested in perusing this evidence
but doubt that he can refer us to any particular study.

He also asserts that what are required to address the heroin problem in
Dublin are intervention strategies that prevent "recreational" users of the
drug in marginalised communities progressing beyond occasional use to
dependency. Heroin use is not a problem, it appears, it is just that
working-class kids cannot handle the drug as well as their more affluent
counterparts.

We would direct Mr Delaney to the 1999 report of the European Monitoring
Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, which points out that "the relationship
between prevalence and socio-economic factors is complex.

Not all socially deprived areas have high levels of problem drug use and
high-prevalence pockets are also found in some of the richest cities or
regions." Mr Delaney is surely familiar with the extent of the heroin
problem in Switzerland, hardly renowned for its ghettoes.

Many people there from "wellheeled" have had problems constraining their
drug use to a "recreational" extent.

In the US, there has been a marked upsurge in heroin use In recent years,
fuelled by the increasing popularity of a very pure product in white,
middle-class circles.

Unfortunately, class background has eliminated neither addiction nor death.
- - Yours, etc.,

Andre Lyder,
Coalition Of Communities Against Drugs (COCAD),
Cork Street,
Dublin 8.