A SEARCH is under way for an appropriate site for a new bi-communal rehabilitation community to cater for the increasing number of addicts on the island.
There are an estimated 1,000 hard drug users in the free areas of Cyprus, of which 60 to 70 are in desperate need of in-house treatment. The only facility on the island that is currently able to offer this type of service is in the Machairas mountains, but it does not have the capacity to cater for the rising demand.
Now Kenthea, a Larnaca based education and treatment centre, is seeking funding for the project, which it says is long overdue. “We needed this new centre yesterday – we have a very big drugs problem here in Cyprus and the number is rising daily,” said Dr. Kyriacos Veresies, a neurologist psychologist and the Director of Kenthea.
He pointed out that the latest statistics revealed five per cent of young people were using drugs. The results were gathered through interviews with 1,500 people, of whom 75 per cent were aged between 15 and 35 years. Of these, one per cent are hard drug users, and only a small proportion are approaching medical professionals for help.
The statistics for school age children are also shocking, revealing that children as young as 11 are experimenting with drugs. For the first time ever, Eastern Sovereign Base Area police are working alongside Kenthea to combat the problem.
Previously, SBA officers concentrated on prosecuting users, but they have now altered their approach after studying statistics that show imprisonment does not help people overcome their addiction. “We must now be proactive rather than just reactive,” said Sergeant Evagoras Limistiras from the Support Department.
Now whenever they find an addict they will be pass them on to Kenthea for treatment. Statistics show that out of every 1,000 users just three to five are ever truly rehabilitated. This, Limistiras said, was evidence the traditional approach was failing badly. “We are taking this issue very seriously, and together with the drug centre we are looking for a site for a new complex accessible to people from both the occupied and the free areas,” he added. Pergamos was originally considered as a possible location, but it was decided it would be inappropriate because of political sensitivities.
Now all sides are reconsidering and have asked British Forces in Cyprus for permission to use an area of British retained land elsewhere within the buffer zone. The exact site has yet to be revealed, but a senior MoD official has confirmed that they have received an application from Kenthea, proposing the establishment of a drug rehabilitation centre.
He said the MoD was considering this proposal but that as yet no decisions had been taken. Limistiras said once a site had been chosen they would have to consider various other factors, such as electricity and water supplies, sewerage facilities and the degree of political intervention.
They must also guarantee long-term funding for the project – one source has been identified, but they are still awaiting confirmation that this will be guaranteed. He envisages an ambitious future project, with the new facility consisting of a small community. “I would like to see a tennis court, basketball court and football pitch, such as can be found in parts of Europe and the United States.
If we can use British retained land, that will allow us to invest all the funding we receive directly into services.” Kenthea’s Veresies is meanwhile confident that a ‘Closed Therapy Unit’ will soon be established at the old leper hospital in Larnaca, with the help of a £50,000 donation from Bishop Chrysostomos of Kiti, the Chairman of Kenthea.
This will be used to hep treat serious addicts, while those less at risk can benefit from ‘Open Therapeutic Groups’. A liaison meeting, to discuss further proposals is being held near Dhekelia next Friday. Local head teachers, community leaders, pharmacists and chairmen of school parents committees will attend the event, to talk about the creation of additional support groups.
