Seventh-day Adventist Church health leaders in the Southern Asia-Pacific region have established 19 new regional and national branches of the International Commission for the Prevention of Alcoholism and Addictions (ICPA) as part of an effort to stem rising rates of illegal drug use in Southeast Asia.

Each of these regional branches will take the anti-drug message where it is most needed—to the young people, explains Dr. Allan Handysides, health ministries director for the Adventist Church worldwide. He believes that prevention today is the key to building a drug-free society for the future.

The new ICPA branches have been established in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. Each branch will work to develop and implement drug prevention programs aimed at young people. This includes conducting training seminars for adults who work with youth, establishing local youth clubs, producing educational literature, and visiting local schools.

Drug production, trafficking, and consumption are all on the rise throughout Southeast Asia, according to recent United Nations statistics. These increases are disproportionately affecting the young—in Vietnam, for instance, a recent government survey showed that some 80 percent of drug addicts are under the age of 35.

But it’s not only the drug users themselves that are impacted. Studies show that drug use wreaks devastation on society in other ways; including increasing both crime rates and rates of HIV/AIDS infection. In Vietnam, more than 75 percent of newly reported cases of HIV infection are directly linked with intravenous drug use.

Amphetamine use is also up in Southeast Asia. The powerful stimulant—sometimes known as the “party drug”—has become the drug of choice for many so-called recreational drug users. 

As well as combating hard drug use, the ICPA branches will also work to raise public awareness about the dangers of alcohol and tobacco and will lobby governments to tighten control of these substances.

The ICPA, a United Nations chartered organization, works cooperatively with governments, businesses, the media, and religious and education leaders, for drug-use education and prevention. It has become known for its innovative International Youth to Youth program, a network of local clubs that encourages young people to reach out to other young people with the drug-free message.