Those People are Taking Drug

Ever since the first case of HIV was reported back in 1989, AIDS has been a quietly growing but deadly problem in Bangladesh - and in particular in Dhaka. Although the country as a whole is deemed by the UN to be "low-risk", the disease is spreading at a worrying rate among one section of society: intravenous drug addicts who reuse dirty needles in the urban slums of the capital. According to UNA IDS statistics, the number of HIV-positive drug users more than doubled between 2001 and 2005. Health experts warn that the risk of an epidemic is increased by that fact that many of the addicts also admit paying for sex - and only 10 percent say they always use a condom. Our Observer in Bangladesh has been documenting the plight of these people for the past three years. Here is what he found: a "deadly game" on the streets of Dhaka.

Situation After Takaing Drug

Most of these people are young, homeless and unemployed. Some of them don't know anything about the disease they've got. Their frustration with life has led them to become drug addicts, and when you talk to them you realize they are just waiting for death because they have nothing else. Drug abuse is a growing national concern in Bangladesh. We have millions of drug-addicted people and most of them are between the ages of 18 and 30. And in Dhaka HIV is widespread too. The government and NGOs are doing very little - at least, not enough to help those who are infected."

Drug Addiction

Drug addiction is a growing problem in Bangladesh. Many people are taking a drug called yabba, which comes from Thailand and is similar to speed. It’s an expensive drug so it’s the well-off young people who are doing it. A lot of those I met while researching the book didn’t realise they were going to get hooked. None of them knew how harmful it is. I grew up in Canada and Saudi Arabia, and had learnt about drugs from an early age, but in Bangladesh, talking about drugs is taboo. Young people have no access to knowledge here.As I was speaking to people, common threads started emerging. Many addicts had previously attempted to detox, they had trouble with the police, parental relationships that had completely broken down, and had been being kicked out of home at least once. So I wanted to string these threads together in my book.My masters thesis, which was on happiness, was also related to my book. I interviewed really, really poor women in slums about how they defined happiness. That research became the voice of the character Falani, a single mother who sells drugs from her slum.

Addiction grips women more and more

Sushama (not her real name), who had once tried to make her husband quit drugs, herself took on the vice after the birth of their daughter. From frustration, anger and desperation, she started drinking Phensedyl.Initially, my husband would offer me Phensedyl to make me addicted. I didn't realise his real intention was to eventually use me for earning money. Even our daughter couldn't sway his mind," said Sushama, now an inmate of a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts in the city.At one point, I was forced to divorce him. But, by that time, I had become completely dependent on Phensedyl," she said, adding she later shifted to heroin as it was less expensive.In my 14 years of addiction life, I committed many sins to get money for drug. Now I want to get rid of it," said Sushama.

Bangladeshi garment workers Struggle

“Bangladeshi garment workers blocked roads and attacked factories on Monday as protests over the level of a new minimum wage spilled into a fourth day.Around 10,000 workers in Fatullah, south of the capital Dhaka, pelted police with rocks as they demanded a minimum monthly wage of 5,000 taka (73 dollars), rejecting a 3,000 taka deal offered by the government last week.They attacked factories, set up barricades in the road–we had to use tear gas and batons to disperse the workers,’ district police chief Biswas Afzal Hossain told AFP.The government said last Tuesday that the minimum monthly wage for garment workers would rise to 3,000 taka from 1,662 taka, but the new wage will not be implemented until November.Some major unions have accepted the 80-percent hike, but a string of smaller unions have rejected the deal, and violence erupted in Dhaka on Friday with workers blocking roads, vandalising factories and shops and looting goods.”

Street Boys are Taking Food

The worst form of discrimination can be seen against street children, who are forced to wander the urban streets of Bangladesh due to various reasons. An ongoing insurgency in the country as well as the growing migration rate is forcing children to live on the streets.About 5,000 children work and live on the streets.To make ends meet, children beg, shine shoes and steal, among other activities, Kathmandu estimates about 800-900 street children live in the city. Street children are mostly found in areas like around cinemas, city centers, bus stops and airports.

Changing lLife Style of Slums Children

The alternatives are bleak. Families in slums have troubles with security, safety, health, homes, food, clothes and money. They have little support and no way to change their opportunities for their future or that of their young.Having said this, the people of Bangladesh still amaze us - every time we go to the slum areas we are met by great warm and hospitality. For people that have so little, they offer so much.If we did not do this work, the people would continue to battle on and I am sure they would succeed to survive - they are strong hearted and courageous. We are not here to preach that some people need help more than others We are simply offering a 'step up the ladder' in hope that with a little support, the future can be that much more solid for the people from the slums today.