Fatwa Council To Discuss Proposed Supply Of Syringes, Condoms, And Methadone To Drug Addicts

PUTRAJAYA, July 28 (Bernama) -- The National Fatwa Council will discuss the government's plan to provide free syringes, condoms and methadone to drug addicts to check the spread of HIV/Aids.
Johor Mufti Datuk Mohd Nooh Gadot said state muftis and Islamic scholars would look at the programme from the perspective of Islamic law in an effort to avoid confusion and misconception among Muslims.
A comprehensive study on the programme was needed besides thinking of the alternatives to overcome the drug abuse and HIV/Aids problems, he told reporters after attending a dialogue on the controversial issue at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC).
The dialogue, organised by the Islamic Development Department of Malaysia (Jakim) with the collaboration of the Health Ministry, was attended by state muftis, syariah judges, religious officers of government departments, officers of statutory bodies and representatives of non-governmental organisations.
They were briefed by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Dr Abdullah Md Zin and Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Abdul Latif Ahmad.
The methadone supply programme is scheduled to begin in October while the provision of syringes in exchange for used ones and condoms is to start next January.
Perak Mufti Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria was supportive of the programme if it were to be carried out properly to prevent the supply of syringes, condoms and methadone from being misused and regarded by the drug addicts as an encouragement for them to continue with their habit.
"If the implementation is done correctly, say for example a husband has HIV and he is given condoms - it's not wrong," he said.
"Similarly with the supply of methadone. I agree because it's a way of treatment, like giving insulin to people with diabetes under the supervision of doctors," he added.
He also welcomed the briefing and said that it was the first time he was briefed on the programme.
At the briefing, Dr Abdullah said the supply of syringes, condoms and methadone to HIV/Aids sufferers for free did not mean that the government was encouraging drug addiction.
Rather, it was aimed at curtailing the spread of the HIV/Aids virus and saving the lives of the innocent members of the public, especially the families of people infected with the dangerous disease, he said.
"The government feels compelled and responsible to do something to overcome the problem," he said.
Dr Abdullah said the programme had received criticism from various quarters, prompting the government to deal with the issue intelligently and equitably in the interests of the public without raising negative perceptions among them.
He said each disease had its remedy, so the government would not lose hope in efforts to help HIV/Aids and drug victims.
"The government hopes the decision or action taken can be understood by the people," he said.
Dr Abdul Latif said in his speech that public perception that the programme would only raise the number of drug addicts and people testing positive for HIV and promote free sex was incorrect.
He said the World Health Organisation (WHO) had concluded after a 20-year study that there was no strong evidence to show that such a programme had brought about an increase in the number of new addicts or increased the frequency and period of addicts taking drugs.
The "harm reduction" approach was a new approach to prevent HIV infections which had risen many fold since it was detected in 1986, Dr Abdul Latif said.
"If the problem is not checked comprehensively from now, the number of HIV-Aids victims will reach 300,000 by 2015," he said.
He said the current rate of 18 new HIV cases daily would double as long as people kept sharing needles when taking drugs and had sex with partners whose HIV status was unknown.
Up to last year, 65,000 Malaysians were detected to have been infected with HIV and almost 9,500 of them were diagnosed to have Aids and 7,500 deaths were reported.
"The most saddening part is that 47,000 or 72 per cent of the HIV/Aids sufferers are Malays," Dr Abdul Latif said.
Chairman of the Health Ministry's HIV/Aids Programme Datuk Dr Faisal Ibrahim said the ministry was in the process of drafting a set of guidelines to ensure that syringes provided to the addicts were not abused.
"We are not going to distribute the syringes and go home. We will give out the syringes and at the same time give them counselling and advise them to return to the right path," he told reporters after the briefing.