Law and Practice of Drug Addiction in Bangladesh

Addiction means the condition of being an addict. Addict is a person who is unable to stop taking drugs, alcohol etc.iii Addiction includes all kinds of addictive substances like drugs, alcohol, tobacco, heroin etc. All kinds of addiction are dangerous and severely detrimental to health, hygiene and society. It finally results in death of the addicts. According to source at least three million lives are taken every year by this deadly poison. Bangladesh, the third largest Muslim state, is not free from such social problem. Every year a certain number of people die from this deadly poison. The conscious people are seized with panic observing this situation. Because, the youths are the victims of this deep conspiracy. While the youths are the symbol of Justice in the way of truth against any wrong, they are being compelled to be addicted in disguise of modern civilization by the international morphia circle. It is obviously an international conspiracy to break the backbone of the nation by indulging the youth in addiction. Now hundreds and thousands persons are suffering from this disease and the addicts have lost their hope of coming out of this drug-trap.

Legislations to combat addiction in Bangladesh:

Bangladesh became independent in 1971. After independence the laws, enacted during British and Pakistan period, remain in force in Bangladesh. So naturally Opium Act, 1857, Opinum Act, 1878, Excise Act, 1909, Dangerous Drugs Act, 1930 and Opium Smoking Act, 1932 are enforced in Bangladesh. But these are not sufficient to make the country free from addiction. That is why “Intoxicant Control Ordinance, 1989” a more effective law, was declared. Subsequently it was passed in the parliament as “The Intoxicant Control Act, 1990. This Act came into force on 2 January, 1990. The earlier laws were suspended. The main provisions of this Act are as follows:

To meet up the objectives of this Act, there shall be ‘National Intoxicant Control Board’ which will make necessary rules and regulations to control possible bad effect created by intoxicant and will take proper steps to implement those. To make the people aware of bad effect of intoxicant use and to facilitate the treatment and rehabilitations of the addicts, the Board can make fund to collect excess money in addition to general budget allocation. To meet up the objectives of this Act, the Government shall establish “Intoxicant Control Bureau” which will assist the Board to discharge its all functions.

Classification of Intoxicants: The intoxicants are also classified in the following manner

A Class Intoxicants- This class includes- Opium, Poppy, any Afim, Opium     Derivatives-(viz- Morphine, Codeine, Thebaine, Noscapaine, Norco tine, Papavarine etc), any artificial intoxicants like Afim  ( viz- Pethidene, Meperdine, Methadone, Dextromoramide, Dilydrocodeine, Meperdine Fentanyl, Pentaxocaine, Hydrophine, Omnepone, Alphaprodine, Demeral, Oxycodone, Etrophine, Lofentanyl, Alfentynyl, Alphamethy Fentanyl, 3-Methyl Fentanyl, Asscetrophine, Acetylmethadol, Alphacetyl-methadol, Betaprodine), Cocaine, Cocaine derivatives, Tetrahydrocanbinal, Cannabis resin, Charas, Hashish, Acetic anhydride, Mescaline etc.

B Class Intoxicants- This class includes- Hemp plant, Herbal cannabis, Vang Vang tree or such other trees used as source of addiction, Alcohol, All types of wine, rectified spirit, Beer, LSD, Barbiturates, Amphetamine, Methyl Amphetamine, Phencyclidine, Psilicybin, Nicocodine, Methaqualone.

C Class Intoxicants- This class includes Tare, Pochuie, Denatured spirit, Methylated spirit, Chlordiazepoxied, Diazepam, Oxazepam, Lorazepam, Flurazepam, Clorozepate, Nitrazepam, Triazolam, any other Cidetive, Tranculyzer or Hypnotic medicine not mentioned in class B or other stimulants, Deprezant medicine not mentioned in classes A & B.

Rules of prohibition regarding prescription of intoxicant:

Without written permission of Director General, Doctor cannot prescribe any of the intoxicants mentioned in classes A & B as medicine. Any one other than the Doctor cannot prescribe any of the intoxicants mentioned in class C as medicine.

Punishment under this Act

If any one violates any provision of section 9, he will be punished amounting to minimum two years to maximum life imprisonment for committing crime for A class intoxicants, minimum 6 months to 15 years imprisonment for B class intoxicants and not more than one year imprisonment or fine of TK 10,000/= or both for C class intoxicants.xxv If any one keeps any instrument, which is used to produce intoxicants, he will be punished for 2 to 15 years imprisonment with fine as additional.xxvi Punishment for letting houses or vehicles to use in commission of crime is imprisonment of not more than five years or fine or both.xxvii If any one does anything mentioned in Section 9 or 10 without license, he will be punished for minimum two years to maximum 10 years imprisonment.xxviii For violation of any condition of license, not more than 5 years imprisonment or fine-TK 10,000/= or both will be imposed upon the violator.xxix Besides,, the abetment to commit such crime is also included as crime under this Act.

Islamic Penal Law about addiction:

Islam has finally stood against any sort of addiction. It prohibited addiction through different phases:

 1st phase :

             “They ask you concerning wine and gambling. Say- in them there is great sin and   some                                      profit for men but the sin is greater than the profit”.

Here wine literally is understood to mean the fermented intoxicating juice of grape and dates. Analogically, it includes all fermented liquor and any intoxicating liquor or drug.

2nd Phase :

                “O, you, who believe don’t approach to the prayer in a state of intoxicating until you can                      understand all that you say”.

3rd Phase:

                  “O, you who believe, intoxicants and gambling and sacrificing to stones and divination by arrows are acts of Satan. So abstain from such that you may prosper’’

The prophet (Sm) also gave a strict ruling prohibiting wine supporting the last Phase. Abdullah Ibn Omar ® narrated that the Prophet (Sm) said –Allah’s curse will be on (i) wine (alcohol), (ii) Producers of wine, (iii) the persons who order for wine, (iv) seller, (v) buyer, (vi) carriers, (vii) to whom it is carried, (viii) the person who enjoys its price, (ix) drunkard, (x) the persons who administer wine.

From the above discussion it is clear that in first phase addiction was discouraged and in 2nd phase the Muslims were ordered not to approach to prayer (Salat) in a state of intoxication and finally it has been prohibited. Here wine (Khamar) includes all sorts of addiction. This is the provision of Islam, violation of which is a punishable offence. According Shari a law addict shall be scourged eighty strips on the back.l Even if the addict takes wine for the 4th time, he will be sentenced to death.

Finally along with the restriction there should be an increasing awareness campaign against all kinds of addiction. Let  there be a culture of dislike for this multifaceted evil. Particularly let the young generation develop distaste for the destructive habit. However in most cases, no matter how long or how heavily a person take drugs, quitting drugs reduces an addict’s risk of disease and increases life expectancy.

The bold step taken by the government by introducing this historic law is highly commendable. It is hoped that the law will be implemented effectively concerning  humanity  and will not be flouted or ignored. In present the govt. take hard initiative against the drug dealers and the addict person. We appreciate the steps which are taken against the drug dealers. But the govt. misuses the law by arrest the addicted person. Because there is specific provision under section 16 of the Narcotics Control Act 1990 about the method apply to an addict in detail. We should not treat them as a criminal but as a patient. As because their in a disease, they need proper treatment which is interpret in sec-16. The law give emphasis on their treatment not to send them in the prison. So the authority need to be more conscious for applying the law……………