Glue sniffing is the preferred substance of abuse for children in Cambodia (Photo credit: Creative Commons)By Rachel Pollock
[MediaGlobal]: In response to a recent Human Rights Watch report on violent abuse in drug treatment centers in Cambodia, human rights activists are urging United Nations agencies to speak out on the issue. On 16 February 2010, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Phnom Penh issued a report stating that the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) has requested that UN Country Team in Cambodia support a provision that would limit the number of compulsory treatment centers in Cambodia by 2015. The RGC is currently working on a proposal to provide community-based drug treatment centers in the Cambodian communities. While progress is encouraging, several UN organizations are still denying these claims of violent abuse and continue to provide monetary support for these drug treatment centers.
Last month Human Rights Watch issued a 93-page report on the atrocities being committed in drug detention centers in Cambodia. The report outlined torture in the form of beatings, whippings and electric shock in 11 drug treatment centers in Cambodia. Drug dependence in Cambodia has seen a dramatic increase over the last decade with the escalating rates of methamphetamine use and the increasing number of children addicted to drugs. Exact figures for drug prevalence in Cambodia differ greatly among UN agencies and government organizations, but the UNODC estimates that 4 percent of the entire population suffers from drug addiction, which is approximately 500,000 people.
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