Drug Problems
Guyana has a rising problem with drug use. Locally grown and imported marijuana has been a part of local culture for many years. Marijuana smoking has been anecdotally reported as rising particularly among young people, but the most significant impact has been the increase in consumption and distribution of cocaine. Georgetown has been on the smuggling route for Columbian Cocaine for many years but recently this has increased significantly as has been evidenced by rising seizures particularly in the USA and Europe. The effects are also felt in Guyana itself with rising and increasingly violent crime. Heavily armed, organised gangs involve themselves in the distribution of drugs often using violence to protect territory and exploit those who find themselves dependent. Acquisitive crime has increased reflecting, as in this country, the rising number of drug dependent individuals.
Recent studies have identified that almost 80% of prisoners in Georgetown prison are cocaine dependent and that there is a direct correlation between the use of Crack cocaine and female sex workers contracting HIV. These are all the familiar indications of drug dependence increasing.
In Guyana cocaine possession attracts a mandatory 3 year prison sentence but no services offered to enable prisoners to address their problems. There has been some discussion with the Department of Health concerning a possible clinic response in New Amsterdam but these are still in their early stages.Primarily Cocaine is smoked in the form of Crack or Bazooka (a base form of Crack Cocaine with a strong smell of kerosene). There is almost no indication of injecting. Pipes or bongs are usually home made from glass or cans with no evidence of effective filtering and so problems present related to inhalation, respiratory and ENT symptoms.
