NALZARO: TREATING DRUG ADDICTS

Patients in a drug rehabilitation center are not criminals. They are
victims of the drug menace, unlike prisoners languishing in various jails
and who have either been convicted or have pending criminal charges in
courts. Parents are often the ones who bring their children to the centers
to rehabilitate them so they can eventually go back to the mainstream of
society. So they must be treated humanely.

But such is not the case with drug dependents undergoing rehabilitation at
the Cebu Center for Ultimate Rehabilitation of Drug Dependents (Curedd). A
fact-finding investigation conducted by Task Force Curedd found out that
the center's personnel maltreated many of their patients.

Acting Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama created the task force after 24
patients escaped from the center last All Saints Day claiming physical abuse.

Actually, this is not the first time I heard of such allegations inside
Curedd, formerly known as the Drug Rehabilitation and Aftercare Center.
Several years ago, relatives of a female patient complained that a male
official of the center sexually harassed her. They reported the matter to
me but were not planning to file an official complaint for fear of retaliation.

Others sources said that female drug patients were sometimes told to strip
naked in front of "program directors" and other "cellmates." They were
slapped and kicked if they didn't follow instructions. There were even
reports some female patients got pregnant inside the center. And by whom?
Surely, not by the male patients because they were not allowed to see each
other in private.

The claim that patients were punished with 1,000 push-ups, aside from being
physically abused if they violated some of the center's rules, is also true.

Even security guards witnessed this kind of corporal punishment. Also,
personal supplies given by the parents to the patients usually ended up in
the hands of corrupt center personnel.

I agree that, to reform them, drug addicts should undergo certain programs
that include physical exercise, religious activities, etc. The withdrawal
period, according to some experts, is the most difficult. During that time,
the craving for drugs is very intense.

But those handling the program should be reminded that treating patients
like criminals or animals will do more harm than good. Consider that they
are but victims. They have their own reasons why they got hooked to drugs,
like peer pressure, family problems, the environment, curiosity,
pakikisama, etc. So, again, treat them humanely.