Drug Questions in Focus for One Day

NORAD’s Director General, Tove Strand, opened the conference. She said: "There is no doubt about the need to fight alcohol problems in many developing countries".

Tove Strand pointed to the history of Norway where the labour movement included the struggle against drunkenness as an important part of their efforts to uplift the society. She pointed to FORUT as one of the very few agencies involved in this type of work, appreciating that FORUT wants to strengthen its competence in this sector.

Anne Skjelmerud of the Centre for Health and Social Development deliberated on how alcohol and drugs contribute to the spread of HIV/AIDS. Ms. Skjelmerud, a sociologist and social worker, has worked with social aspects of the AIDS epidemic for more than 10 years. She has done research on women and alcohol in Africa.

The direct link between intravenous drug use and transmission of the virus should be well known. This was dominating in the early spread of the disease in many countries, especially in Asia (e.g. Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, India). The Russian Federation and some Latin American countries have seen the same thing happen. Since the virus, which is very fragile, survives inside the needle, sharing of needles is very dangerous. Many drug users are not aware of the risk of transmitting HIV, or they lack access to clean needles. In addition many drug users also have sex, and some are involved in prostitution.

Cluster of Party, Alcohol and Sex
Whether there is a indirect link depends on the answer of the question: "Do drug use and drinking lead to more unsafe sex?". "Is drinking used as an excuse to have unprotected sex?" Skjelmerud pointed out that anecdotally we all know this is true. An American saying goes "Candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker" when the aim is to get her in bed. In the social context alcohol is disinhibiting shyness and alcohol may be used as an excuse to act irresponsibly. On the other hand alcohol also has a disabling effect on sexual performance – this might decrease the willingness to use a condom, suggests Skjelmerud. She points to what seems to be a cluster for factors where party, alcohol and sex is interrelated.

"Alcohol does perhaps increase HIV, but the problem may not be solved by removing alcohol. As alcohol only is something people use to allow themselves to do forbidden acts. Education about sex and about the effects of alcohol, not least for girls and women as well as increased communication skills might be some possible ways forward", says Ms. Skjelmerud.

Preview of Nepal Results
Further in the conference Gauri Pradhan of CWIN in his presentation "The Influence of Alcohol and Drugs on Childrens Living Conditions in Nepal" presented the preliminary findings of a survey conducted by CWIN in cooperation with the Tribhuvan University of Kathmandu. The report from the study was launched a few weeks later in Kathmandu.

Øystein Bakke of FORUT asked the question "Alcohol and Drugs – Hindrance to Development", while Derek Rutherford from the International Institute of Alcohol Studies in London presented "The Drinks Industry – Thirsting for New Markets.

After lunch a discussion was facilitated by introduction from a panel of four. SINTEF Unimed Research Director Arne Eide introduced his findings from the 1999 survey in Senegal. Ibrahima Thioub, FORUT Local Action co-manager, Pamodinee Wijayanayake, Director of Alcohol and Drug Information Centre (ADIC) in Colombo and P. Lakshapathi, Director of Association for Promoting Social Action (APSA) also spoke.