Police anti-drug office declares NGO drug testing at festivals “illegal”

Illegal recreational drugs have long been a part of the Czech music and dance scene, not least at many of country’s summer festivals. But until now, at least on occasion, NGOs focusing on drugs awareness were able to offer testing of drugs such as ecstasy on site. The aim was to check purity levels to be able to warn users of increased hazards and to make at least some of them think twice. Such initiatives now appear to be at an end: on Wednesday the police’s National Anti-Drug headquarters suggested such testing was not only inappropriate but also illegal.

Ecstasy

NGOs focusing on drug abuse have long tried to maintain a presence at Czech festivals and the dance scene by offering to test drug samples: drugs such as ecstasy, which specialists say have been cut more and more with different substances in recent years, making them even more of an unknown danger and an unknown quantity. Czech TV reported on Wednesday that of hundreds of samples of ecstasy tested by NGOs last year, only around ten percent actually substances that users expected, meaning a dominant percentage contained chemicals possibly even riskier to health. Above all, testing provided users with a chance to talk with professionals on site and to receive assistance if needed. But that is now likely to change. A little earlier I spoke to Viktor Mravčík, the head of the National Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, who criticised the police decision:

“The main purpose is not to perform analysis and such, or to verify the content, which is why it has come under criticism: that is not the main reason why it is performed. It should be seen as a part of prevention and harm reduction intervention at parties and events. Yes, it does provide a kind of orientation or indication about whether MDMA – the active substance in ecstasy – is or isn’t present. But it doesn’t provide information about whether the tablet contains other drugs too. With this information, services on the spot are simply able to work further, able to provide counseling, and able to provide information. This is what is important.”

Specialists and assistance workers have charged that steps taken to stop testing will push advances and continued impact by social workers in the field. If anything, Viktor Mravčík and others say, the dialogue between workers and drug users should not be stifled but significantly increased.

“It’s a very important point for momentum for intervention. If people are coming it means they are interested and it means that they have some doubts about the use of these drugs. That is the right moment to intervene: simply, to pass on the message and so on. Why this measure isn’t spread more widely, is due to a negative attitude by law enforcement for several years.”

According to Dr Mravčík and other specialists, back in 2004 NGOs in the field had more initiatives and support which included numerous projects in recreational settings. But such approaches were gradually scaled back. Now, many specialists worry that the stopping of drug testing at festivals will make keeping channels open to users that much more difficult, although it remains unclear if all will comply with the police on the issue or if any will defy their stance and still try to offer tests at festivals in the coming months.