Drug addiction rises in Mexico

When the dope thugs beat him with a pistol, Rodrigo Sonck decided enough was enough. He cleaned the gashes on his face and went to his father to plead for help: The cocaine life was killing him, writes Ken Ellingwood:

Once mainly a smuggling corridor for drugs heading to the United States, Mexico is grappling with the effects of a fast-rising addiction rate as relatively cheap versions of cocaine and methamphetamine find a market south of the border. Experts say the supply has increased as U.S. enforcement on the border has made it more difficult to move illegal drugs north.

A recent government survey of drug use shows Mexicans are trying drugs, and getting hooked, earlier in life and more frequently. The number of people who said they had tried drugs rose by more than a fourth, to 4.5 million, since the last survey in 2002. More than 460,000 Mexicans are addicted to drugs, a 51% jump from six years ago, according to preliminary results of the survey released last month.

Read the rest of the report on drug addiction in Mexico here, and go to our "Mexico Under Siege" page for more coverage of Mexico's drug-related problems.

Click here for more posts on Mexico.

-- Deborah Bonello in Mexico City

Comments

[trisha]

he new border fence and intensified patrols by both Mexican and U.S. federal agents have made it harder for Mexican cartels to get drugs into the USA. As a result, more narcotics remain in Mexico where they are sold to local consumers, says Marcela López Cabrera, director of the Monte Fenix clinic in Mexico City, which trains drug counselors.

The number of new patients at Mexican treatment centers has more than quadrupled since 2000. The health ministry has announced plans to build 300 new rehab centers, triple the current total, to deal with the overflow.

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[southoc]

Of course this is all America's fault. (we always get blamed for the worlds problems)

[Jackie]

Let's be clear. He was beaten for not paying the dealer. The reason he did not pay the dealer was because he could not afford to. The reason he could not afford to was that this drug is 'prohibited'.

In other words, if this drug were legal (putting aside health and safety concerns), he could probably buy it at the local drug store for a very cheap price and these disgusting violent street incidents would not be happening. Of course he would still be an addict but maybe a much happier one.