NCJ Number
132365
Journal
Slavic Review Volume: 49 Issue: 1 Dated: (Spring 1990) Pages: 19-31
Date Published
1990
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This article examines the extent of drug abuse in Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, and the USSR as well as measures to counter it.
Abstract
There are no data on the actual incidence of drug abuse in Eastern Europe because there is no common definition of drug abuse; all States have difficulty identifying drug abusers, and the nascent state of empirical research on drug abuse in Eastern Europe prevents the compilation of comprehensive national statistics on the problem. The available material, however, does permit some generalizations. First, official statistics, which typically include only those persons registered with the police or medical institutions as addicts, substantially understate the extent of drug abuse. Second, young urbanites apparently predominate among those who abuse drugs; however, abuse exists among all socioeconomic groups and educational levels. Third, the acquisition and consumption of drugs in Eastern Europe have a pattern similar to that in the West. The consumption of narcotic drugs, however, is apparently far less prevalent in Eastern Europe with the possible exception of Poland and Yugoslavia. There is a reluctance to address the causes and dimensions of drug abuse in Eastern Europe, and facilities are inadequate for the treatment of drug addicts and abusers. In common with the rest of the world, international efforts in Eastern Europe to control the drug trade have been insufficient. 58 footnotes