Minister of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities Natalia Elena Intotero in Iasi on Friday stressed the need to set up addiction centres for young people and teenagers addicted to drugs, while mentioning that people who have gone through such situations must be listened to and supported more, both by state institutions and civil society.

Natalia Intotero, who was in Iasi to participate in a debate organised within the framework of the „Campaign for information and prevention of drug use, other forms of addiction, violence, bullying and human trafficking,” told the press that the aim of the action is not only to send messages directly to the public, but also to stimulate dialogue and awareness of the dangers that young people are exposed to when they resort to drug use.

In this context, the Family minister stressed that „it is very important for the Romanian state to urgently create addiction centres,” so that young people are no longer treated in psychiatric clinics or hospitals.

She gave the example of a young man who managed to give up drugs with the support of specialists from Teen Challenge Romania, an NGO that offers support to those who have problems with such addictions, but who also benefited from the support of his family.

„In our country we have young people and parents who do not have this possibility. We believe that these addiction centres should be built urgently, because it is not a solution that the rehabilitation and recovery of these young people should be done in psychiatric hospitals. In psychiatric hospitals, the first part of the treatment is important, for a short period of time, and then all the psychological counselling should be done in these specialised centres,” explained Natalia Intotero.

The Family minister also said that it is very important that young people are listened to in this campaign, especially those who have managed to go through the experience of drug addiction.

„I think it is very important to listen to young people, to let them get the message across. They are the best ambassadors, and we, the representatives of central and local institutions, should create this possibility, support them, improve themselves and learn to listen, not just make decisions from the office. The ‘No Barriers’ campaign aims to tell the whole truth about drugs, and aims to raise awareness among young people and beyond, parents, all citizens of Romania about the harmful effects of drug use and other forms of addiction,” said Minister Natalia Intotero.

Asked by journalists about the statistics of this phenomenon, the minister answered that they show that about 20% of young people in Romania who were surveyed had the courage to admit that they had used drugs at least once. „But there may be young people who have not admitted. So it is very difficult to have concrete data,” Minister Natalia Intotero added.

The campaign „The whole truth about drugs” is run by the Ministry of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities (MFTES), as co-funder for the implementation of the grant „Romania – the European Year,” funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Commission.

AGERPRES