ReageraMera

Vienna International Centre, Österrike 12 mars 2009

Speech by Ms Maria Larsson about "The role of parents and families in drug demand reduction", at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs Roundtable on Demand Reduction

Thank You for giving me the opportunity to speak to you all today.

Let me tell you about Sofia. She is 10 years old and is a healthy girl. She works hard in school but she never talks about her family situation. No friends are ever brought home to play and her parents dont come to parents meetings in school. The hidden secret in the family is that her father is a drug addict and her mother works hard to keep the family together.

Sofia is not alone. In Sweden almost 400.000 kids grow up in families where alcohol or drug abuse is a problem. These children have a significantly higher risk to develop problem behaviors, such as addiction or criminality, beside the risk of being abused and mistreated. Growing up in circumstances like this affects their whole life.

These children need to be identified. We need to learn how to identify these kids in school for example. And we need to find ways for them to reveal their secrets in order to get help.

Sweden has for a long time been very active in the field of demand reduction.  And, if I may say so, we have had some successes along the way. But we have also learned that this work needs to be an ongoing priority for society. Consequently, Sweden has invested heavily in addressing the drug problem at all levels, not least in prevention.

Among the top priorities are children and young people. That focus is also present in the political declaration as well as in the draft plan of action to be adopted by this meeting. The ability to identify and to give appropriate support to girls like Sofia, requires education, knowledge and working methods of cooperation at local community level. And last, but not least, that we trust and support local NGO:s in their work. They are often better equipped and have their ears to the ground.

In my country we can see that psychosocial or mental health among young people, especially girls, is increasingly becoming a cause of concern. I am convinced that one of the most effective ways to prevent ill-health among children is to support their parents. The parents and the family are the most important people in a childs life. And the parents are the ones with the biggest impact on the health and welfare of the child.

Research confirms that the family unit is the single most important protective factor for health and wellbeing of young people. Also when it comes to preventing risk taking behaviors, we know that upbringing is crucial. There is ample evidence that zero-tolerance within the family to the use of tobacco, alcohol and, of course, narcotic drugs, is important. It delays the debut. And we know that the longer young people abstain from starting to use drugs, the smaller is the risk that they will ever try.

The Swedish government has therefore decided to invest in what we call positive parent support. It must be based on the foundation that it is easily available and offered voluntarily to all parents who want it. This is not a Super Nanny approach, dealing with the "difficult children". And the intention is not to take over the role of the parents. Parents are, and must continue to be, fully responsible for their children. But when they need support or advice there must be a way to provide them that.

This general parental support which is available to all parents is complemented with more directed measures. We all know that certain families need special support, families with on-going problems or families where children demonstrate problem behaviors.

Much of this family-based work is best carried out regionally and locally, through local communities and institutions. But many efforts are preferably organized through the civil society. NGOs are extremely good at detecting new social problems which the government agencies are unaware of. And NGOs can often more easily meet the different and specific needs of people. In the political declaration, to be adopted by this meeting. NGO:s are mentioned several times as a partner to work closely with.

Now, turning to another issue of great importance, especially for young people; Internet is a genuine global phenomenon and also a global tool which most of us use every day. And it is also an effective marketplace and drugstore for different kinds of psychoactive substances which must be tackled. It used to be only a forum for drug liberal views and ideas - now it has become much more.

Therefore the work done with regard to cyberspace by INCB is very welcome. The latest report contains Guidelines for Governments to deal with this issue. I see a risk that we may overlook the Internet as an important provider of different kinds of drugs for young people, whether the substances are legal or illegal. Therefore I want to encourage you all to take this questions very seriously.

In Sweden there is now a discussion that government more systematically should monitor which substances are being sold over the Internet. And be able to buy in drugs for testing purposes. One proposal is that the police may confiscate a substance that has been used for purposes of intoxication, before it has been legally classified as a narcotic substance. They can do this provided that there is evidence if psychoactive effects and that legal action is foreseen in the near future to classify the substance. I look forward to a discussion about this question, among others.

Demand reduction is a crucial element in the work we do to protect our young people. Often the resources available for this do not match those that governments spend on supply reduction measures. This imbalance should be addressed. Personally, in the area of demand reduction the role of families and the Internet are two of the questions that are very close to my heart.

Thank you.