Czech drug scene declared stable
The Czech Republic was once grappling with a drug epidemic that was steadily on the rise in the 1990's. According to the annual report on drugs in the Czech Republic the situation may be stabilizing or - at the very least it seems more people are becoming inclined to take lighter drugs - as opposed to drugs such as heroin or pervitin.
However, there has been an increase of marihuana and hashish use, and the numbers are relatively high - every tenth Czech has tried one or the other at least once. Still, that is not a necessarily alarming figure. Jiri Richter is the executive director of Sananim, one of the first and largest NGO anti-drug foundations in the country. He says that many who are trying lighter drugs are the youth who are just experimenting. He agreed with the report in that he considers the drug situation in the Czech Republic stable. But drugs which are less known about, like the rave party staple known as ecstasy, is still an area of concern.
"We must think much more about things we don't really know so much - ecstasy and the dancing scene - those kinds of things." The report on ecstasy usage revealed an increase. The drug is easily available and very much part of the party scene. Taken in tablet form, it is also available in a liquid form on the local black market and is said to be cheaper than tablets but less predictable in risk of overdose.
