Narcotics dangers at highlight of APC-organised workshop in Ghor Al Safi

AMMAN — Jordan’s long-held classification as a corridor country for drug smuggling has shaken over the past 10 years due to wars, chaos and turbulence in the region, as well as the wide spread of terrorist groups involved in the illicit drug trade, an expert has recently said.

During a workshop organised by the Arab Potash Company (APC), President of the Arab Society for Public Awareness from Dangers of Drugs (ASPADD) Abdullah Oweidat said that more than 20 warring groups in Syria are involved in drug trafficking “to finance their terrorist activities and build fortunes”.

“The widespread of drug traffickers in Syria has coincided with Jordan suffering from high unemployment and poverty rates. Those illicit drug traders have unfortunately found their way to Jordan with the help of local collaborators and dealers,” Oweidat said. 

Citing official figures, Oweidat said that more than 30 per cent of the cases looked into by the judiciary are related to drug trafficking. “In 2018, a total of 21,458 drug-related cases were examined by the court and 20,000 people were arrested.”

“For each illicit drug trafficker and abuser arrested, there are up to seven still on the loose,” Oweidat said.

Oweidat added that the rising number of suicide, rape, thefts and murder are all “just the daily outcomes of the spread of narcotics and indicators that illicit drug trafficking has reached alarming rates in the country”.

A 28-year-old man is standing trial for allegedly murdering and decapitating his mother in Amman. The defendant, who has a criminal record, was reportedly wanted in connection with a number of drug-related cases and was believed to have been using synthetic cannabis (known locally as “joker”).

Opening the workshop, Chairman of the APC’s Board of Directors Jamal Al Sarayrah said that “narcotics first hit families and turn homes into crises rather than places for creativity and innovation”.

In addition to the collaborative efforts of all concerned parties, Sarayrah said that parents and schools remain the first line of defence in the war against narcotics.

The chairman said that the country’s leading mining company will be extending all forms of assistance to the ASPADD’s efforts and campaigns against drug use and abuse and will form a special task force for that purpose. 

The Public Security Department’s (PSD) Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) said that, in 2018, its personnel seized 47 million Captagon pills, 2,093 kilogrammes of hashish, 155 kilogrammes of “joker”, 74,738 kilogrammes of marijuana, 10,557 kilogrammes of heroin, 1,693 kilogrammes of cocaine and 820,790 various pills.

The workshop, which was held in the APC’s plant in Ghor Al Safi, included Power Point presentations on types of illicit drugs and videos about narcotics dangers and efforts to eliminate them. Citizens, community leaders, educators and police officers were engaged in brainstorming sessions on their efforts to combat illicit drugs in the Southern Ghor region.