Controversies about Drug Rehabilitation Facilities

Controversies about Drug Rehabilitation Facilities

The Mirror, Vol. 14, No. 650

Note:

Apologies, for technical reasons we do not have a translated article from the Khmer press today.

We bring, however, references to a hotly contested issue from these days.

Norbert Klein

Humanitarian News and Analysis, a project of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, recently carried a report from Phnom Penh [3] dated 29 January 2010, quoting that a climate of “sadistic violence” exists in government-run drug rehabilitation centers in Cambodia.

“It works on the wrong assumption that what helps people with drug dependency problems is being tough, using hard work and discipline. But there’s no quick fix.” Mr. Graham Shaw, a World Health Organization (WHO) technical officer based in Cambodia, says that persons in charge of running such drug centers openly admitted some time ago that they did not have the skills to conduct proper drug assistance.

However, operators of drug rehabilitation centers denied the accusations that patients are held against their will and subjected to “sadistic violence” such as torture, rape, and humiliations. Mr. Nean Sokhim, the director of the My Chance Drug Detention and Rehabilitation Center, Phnom Penh, is the director of the civilian-run My Chance drug rehabilitation center in Phnom Penh. in a report [4], he says patients are treated well, receive three meals a day, and have job training opportunities, and nobody is forced to be in his center. But then:

* Interviewer: So if someone tries to run away you give them drugs so they can’t escape?
* Nean Sokhim: Yeah, yeah yeah.

The World Health Organization did an assessment and they said in their report that they estimated that it was close to 100 percent relapse for the people who have been in these centers.. “It’s just the wrong way to approach drug addiction. Drug addiction is a chronic relapsing condition. It’s not helped by a period of military drills and forced exercise.”

This article was first published by The Mirror, [5] Vol. 14, No. 650 - Tuesday, 2.2.2010
Have a look at the last editorial - you can access it directly from the main page of The Mirror. [5]

Norbert Klein is the Editor of The Mirror [6] – The Mirror is a daily comprehensive summary and translation of the major Khmer language press - More about The Mirror [7]