Singapore's vital weapon in the anti-drug war: Youths

by IAN CHOI WEI EN

HANNAH AW XUE YI

MOVIDA KATRIZIA ERIKA PAREJA

TEO SHAO NING

15 August 2020

With the growing number of youth drug abusers in Singapore, organisations are shifting their approach to encourage youths to be more involved in the fight against drugs.

Photograph of hands joining together representing youths united in fight against drugs in Singapore. Taken by: Movida Katrizia Erika Pareja

After years of rising cases of drug abuse among youths despite anti-drug efforts, perhaps the key to winning the battle against drugs is the youths themselves.

In 2019, The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), Singapore’s primary drug enforcement agency, found an 8% increase in new drug abusers compared to 2018. Additionally, three of five arrested for drug-related incidents were under the age of 30. Even with efforts by Singapore’s anti-drug organisations, this growing trend of youth drug abusers has not shown signs of slowing.

These shocking statistics could be an indicator that change is required in Singapore’s Preventative Drug Education (PDE). Samuel Choo, 26, an ex-drug abuser, commented on his experience with anti-drug education in the past, saying, “Maybe there [were anti-drug campaigns], but I don’t think I was paying attention.”

As the drug scene among Singapore’s youths becomes an increasingly significant concern, anti-drug organisations are adapting to the evolving trends and behaviours of the younger generation, with one such trend being the popularity of social media.

A HYPE survey of 102 participants found that 86.2% of respondents believe that youths have an important role in spreading anti-drug awareness in Singapore.

The same survey revealed that 45.1% of respondents spend three to five hours on social media daily, while 47.1% spend six or more hours on social media. 80.4% of respondents agreed that the media’s role in encouraging anti-drug efforts is important.

With greater recognition of the impact of youths and social media in the anti-drug conversation, more engaging anti-drug projects have emerged to foster greater involvement among youths by catering to their interests.

CNB has embarked on several media and technology related projects targeting youths, such as the “DrugFreeSG” Video Competition, Augmented Reality (AR) exhibitions and collaborative projects with Higher Learning Institutions on PDE.

Additionally, the National Council Against Drug Abuse (NCADA) launched an interactive anti-drug film, “High”, online in early 2020 to cater to social media-oriented youths.

Screenings also took place at ITE College East, ITE College Central, and Singapore Polytechnic, to bring more anti-drug awareness to youths.

In order to provide inspired youths with a platform to engage in and advocate against drug abuse, CNB initiated the “Anti-Drug Advocate (ADA)” programme in 2016 for youths aged 17 to 25, which provides them with opportunities to learn more about the local drug problem through visits to a CNB enforcement unit, CNB’s Heritage Gallery and in a sharing session by an ex-drug abuser.

On top of that, CNB also started engaging more youth-led campaigns to allow for the message to be spread by youths themselves.

“#DrugsAffectThemToo”, a 2019 campaign led by Temasek Polytechnic students, featured campaign videos that were posted on CNB’s social media platforms to educate youths on the impacts of drugs on an abuser’s loved ones.

More recently, CNB launched “YouUseYouLoseSG”, a digital campaign by 12 Ngee Ann Polytechnic students, which targets other youths through frequent anti-drug posting on popular social media sites such as Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. As of Aug. 20, 2020, the campaign has garnered over 1,500 pledges from youths to be drug-free.

Javier Ng, 18, a youth advocate with CNB, spoke on how youths could join Singapore’s anti-drug movement, saying, “Start small. Even [if it is just] a small social media campaign or a post, it's already a message that is sent across [to the community].”

As anti-drug efforts are re-invented to better cater to an increasingly media-savvy demographic, and with more youths stepping up to spread anti-drug sentiments to fellow members of their generation, perhaps Singapore will one day finally win its long-standing battle against drugs.