A group of experts from International Harm Reduction Program, leading by Mr. Daniel Wolfe, Deputy Director (New York) arrived to our republic with working visit.
During past few years professionals in anti-drug activity came to the understanding that purely punitive approach to the problem of drug-abusing cannot result in effective solution and started to implement preventive programs, aimed to reduce the drugs-tailored harm. Decriminalization of abusers allows directing the cutting edge of narcopolicy on illicit drugs producers and narco-traffickers. The substitution therapy and syringes exchange programs, aimed to restrict the HIV/AIDS spreading, also proved their effectiveness.
Kyrgyzstan started to implement the Harm Reduction strategy in mid 1990th. It is believed that the republic escaped till now the rapid epidemic course of AIDS spreading via injected drug-users mainly because of these timely taken preventive measures. The specialists from New-York office - major advocates and sponsors of HR arrived to see the practical results of the program implementation.
... "Here I learned how to read and write", -said a 25-years old(!) patient of the Rehabilitation Center under the Republican Service on Addictive Substances Abuse. "I was on the "tip" for years, so was not in the mood for reading. I tried to hide myself in Siberia - heroin caught me up there. This is my third month in the Center. I even quit smoking..."
The guests also visited the non-governmental association "Socium" and its leader - Batma Estebesova. To reach the most suffering people, volunteers of the association ready to go to the "very bottom" of drug abusing community. The majority of volunteers here have their personal or family tragic history of fighting with the "white death"... "Socium" initiated and successfully running number of new, really unique programs. The effectiveness of these programs had been stressed especially.
The experts had an opportunity to visit the program of syringes exchange in penitentiary facilities, successfully running almost during 3 years. To start this program it was necessary to overcome lots of barriers and obstacles within and beyond the system and to confess that, in spite of all taken contra measures, drugs penetrate into the "barbed wired facilities". "As soon as we realized the necessity to take practical preventive steps along with routine "regimen" measures before AIDS killed the prison inhabitants and staff, the decision to start the syringes exchange had been made! Thus we cut off the major route for infection spreading - with dirty needles shared. As the result of 2.5 years of program running in eleven penitentiary facilities no one participated drug-abuser had been infected.Soon, after some formal arrangements, we are going to implement the next "revolutionary" project for the penitentiary system - methadone programs. I must admit, we are the only state among CIS countries implemented these preventive measures in our practice. And we never felt sorry about it" - said Marat Djamankulov, the Chief of the Department of the Ministry of Justice.
The substitution treatment with methadone is accepted and successfully works in the number of western countries, Kyrgyzstan started to implement this method since 2002. Recently the World Health Organization added methadone to the list of essential drugs. Although practicing of methadone treatment in the republic facing some tension, the experts stressed their hope that common sense and strong political will keep Kyrgyzstan on the course so the country will keep serving as a "model of narcopolicy". It worth to say that our experience appeared to be interesting and useful also beyond the CIS borders - in China ...
In order to share and coordinate plans for future cooperation the team from New-York visited Osh, had business meetings with senior officials from the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Justice, State Agency for drugs control, Ministry of Health and participated in the international conference on HIV/AIDS problem in Bishkek.