MOSCOW, October 21 (RIA Novosti) - The Australian island of Tasmania is facing an epidemic of methamphetamine use, with health authorities in the state estimating that in places up to 10 percent of the population are using the drug, according to a report by ABC News Australia.
"It is a disaster waiting to happen if we don't do something about it now and I don't think we've got time to wait," the agency quoted the Director of Rural Health Tasmania, Robert Waterman as saying.
Tasmania is not the only rural area experiencing such problems with the drug. Investigative TV news program “Four Corners” on Monday reported on the situation, telling “the story of a generation that is being condemned to a life of drug abuse, crime and ultimately early death,” and noting that those hooked on the drug are becoming younger and younger. One nurse reveals to the program that “there's been reports of 10 year olds presenting at the Emergency Department here."
Local authorities are calling on the government to fund a specialized drug rehabilitation service to tackle the issue, and are documenting the problems of drug use in the area with a view to presenting the data to the government. The increase is reported to be driven by drug cartels engaging in operations to transport the drug into rural areas and to expand their market from the cities.
Use of the drug, also known as crystal meth or ice, has been on the increase in Australia as a whole since the 2000s, with the Australian National Drug and Research Centre noting a 10 percent increase in its use since 2011. Arrests for amphetamine use in general have more than tripled since 1996.
Australia is a particular target for drugs gangs due the high prices crystal meth commands there. According to Australian Crime Commission statistics, its market value in the country is three times its US value, and 46 times the price on the Chinese market.
Amid this escalation in drug use, a debate has been continuing about the drug problem the country faces, with police chief Graham Ashton admitting to ABC News that the drugs they seize represent only “the tip of the iceberg”, while Australian PM Tony Abbot acknowledged the scale of the problem when he told Radio 3AW in April that the war on drugs “is fought as fiercely as we humanly can,” although he believes it is ultimately unwinnable.
