DOCTORS VOW TO FIGHT DRUG ABUSE

JAKARTA: A group of doctors marked the International Day Against Drug
Abuse here Tuesday by establishing Indonesian Society of Addiction
Medicine (Indosam) to help promote services in fighting drug addiction.

The group hoped to improve drug counseling services and disseminate
information on harmful addictions to the public.

Psychiatrist Al Bachri Husin, who heads the group, said drug users
needed more help to end their addictions.

"We also have to handle their emotional instability, even after they
stop using drugs," he said.

Data from the National Narcotics Agency estimates that 3.2 million
people, about 1.5 percent of the population, consumed illegal drugs in
2003.