Australia: Drug capital

AUSTRALIANS use more ecstasy than any other nationality and are the world's second-heaviest users of amphetamines.

A day after experts denounced the use of the term "party drugs" as lessening the impact of illicit substances, the state's top drug police attacked Australia's "culture of acceptance" as driving the disturbing statistics.

A federal parliamentary inquiry in Sydney yesterday heard a United Nations study put Australians at the top of the international list for the consumption of MDMA – also known as ecstasy. Australia also had the highest use of amphetamines in the Western world and was second only to Thailand.

"Even though we are isolated we have developed a culture of acceptance of these types of harmful substances," NSW drug squad Detective Inspector Paul Willingham told the inquiry into amphetamines and other synthetic drugs.

The National Drug and Alcohol Reseach Centre estimates 500,000 Australians have used amphetamines – including ecstasy – in the past year.

Of those, 73,000 are dependent on the drug, with up to 66 per cent using ice – a more potent crystalline form of methylamphetamine.

Insp Willingham said while ecstasy was more expensive here compared with Europe and the US, users continued to take it due to an increased supply from Asia and a culture of acceptance.

Drug squad Detective Superintendent David Laidlaw said a drop in heroin use had increased the market for amphetamines.

"To us it wasn't a heroin drought. They (users) just decided to go with an amphetamine type," he said.

"We as a law enforcement agency have to educate people (that) it is illicit." He said this should begin with students as young as those in Year 6.

A UN report released in 2003 estimated 2.9 per cent of Australians aged over 15 were using ecstasy. That rate was the world's highest, with Ireland the next highest (2.4 per cent), then Britain (2.2 per cent), Spain (1.8 per cent), Belgium (1.7 per cent) and the US (1.5 per cent).

Australia also had the second highest rate for amphetamine use at 3.4 per cent, behind Thailand (5.6 per cent).

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org
Pubdate: Wed, 17 May 2006
Source: The Daily Telegraph (Australia-Web)
Website: http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au