[Initial Reaction] To Shed the Stigma of Being a 'Drug-Consuming Nation'

‘Drug manufacturing country, drug-free country, drug-consuming country.’ The country described by these epithets is none other than South Korea. In the 1970s and 1980s, it was identified as a major manufacturing country alongside Taiwan (raw material supplier) and Japan (consumer market), earning the notorious label of the ‘White Triangle.’ During that time, manufacturers known as ‘drug kings’ produced over 2,000 kg of drugs over a decade. Since the 1990s, the government launched large-scale drug crackdowns, and by the 2000s, with 20 drug offenders per 100,000 people, South Korea earned the reputation of a drug-free country. However, this pride was short-lived, and South Korea is now called a ‘drug-consuming country.’

In the Gangnam academy district, there have been incidents where ‘drug drinks’ were distributed to teenagers under the guise of beverage tasting events, and cases where club-goers secretly slipped drugs into drinks to commit sex crimes have frequently occurred. Teenagers learn how to use drugs through social networking services (SNS) and easily purchase them. In the past five years (2018 to July 2023), drug smuggling detected at Incheon Airport amounted to 1,706,061 grams (worth 810.6 billion KRW). This year, smuggling through travelers increased by 66.4% in just seven months compared to last year’s volume. As the amount of drugs entering South Korea has increased, so has the number of people exposed to drugs. From the beginning of this year to August, 18,187 drug offenders were caught, nearly matching last year’s total arrests. If this trend continues, the number of drug offenders this year will exceed 27,000. During the same period, 875 teenagers were exposed to drugs, more than double last year’s total of 481.

To win the war against drugs, it is not enough to punish drug offenders; treatment and rehabilitation must follow. The Presidential Decree on Drug Addiction Treatment and Protection Regulations has limitations in reflecting budgets and policies for improving addiction problems. Institutional support for treatment and rehabilitation is needed separately from existing laws. Earlier this year, Nam Gyeong-pil, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, reported his son on charges of drug use. Even after punishment, his son could not quit drugs. Eventually, they reached an agreement, and the father personally called the police. Drug addiction is a type of mental illness. When drugs stimulate the brain, dopamine secretion, which induces pleasure, surges. When blood dopamine levels drop afterward, hypersensitivity symptoms may appear. Drugs can cause brain damage even from a single use and induce strong addiction.

The treatment environment for drug offenders is insufficient. Among 21 specialized drug addiction treatment hospitals nationwide, only two?Incheon Chamsarang Hospital and Changnyeong National Bugok Hospital in Gyeongnam?primarily treat addicts. The others fail to fulfill their roles due to a shortage of specialized medical staff. There are also centers like the Drug Eradication Movement Headquarters’ Addiction Rehabilitation Center and the drug addiction treatment community Darc, but they are insufficient. What about next year’s government budget? Of the budget requested by the Ministry of Health and Welfare for addiction treatment next year, 85% was cut, leaving only 416 million KRW allocated, the same as this year.

Nam Tae-hyun, a former member of the idol group WINNER, who was indicted on charges of methamphetamine use, is currently living 24/7 at Darc in Incheon and receiving drug treatment at Incheon Chamsarang Hospital. Nam said, “There are fewer than 20 people staying at the current rehabilitation facilities,” and added, “From what I experience daily on the ground, the number of drug addicts is increasing a lot, but honestly, support is very insufficient.”

Along with this, a control tower is needed for a consistent delivery system. Currently, government ministries and agencies implementing drug response policies each voice their own opinions, making it difficult to effectively address the drug problem. To prevent the spread of drugs shaking society as a whole, proper measures must come first.