AIDS control among users of injectable drugs is one of the aspects that distinguishes Brazil in the UN’s 2005 World Drug Report, released yesterday, June 29.
Whereas the index of HIV carriers among drug users attains 80% in South America and 66.5% in Western Europe, in Brazil it is 50%.
AIDS can be spread through sharing contaminated syringes. The representative in Brazil of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Giovanni Quaglia, explained that the Brazilian achievement, while it is not ideal, is already reason for commemoration.
“The Brazilian government did a job of social inclusion. It is very interesting. This wasn’t done in other countries. It worked in Brazil through campaigns, the offer of syringes, educational programs, and universal treatment for all Brazilians,” he said.
According to Quaglia, Brazil was one of the first developing countries to adopt this public health policy. “It is a policy that worked and is an example today for the entire world,” the UN representative remarked.
The report also notes that the Brazilian police were fifth in the world in marijuana seizures in 2003. According to the report, Brazil confiscated 166.2 tons of the drug.
In terms of official cocaine busts, the country occupied eighth place, with 9.7 tons.
Quaglia says that the police have done a good job in Brazil.
ABr – www.radiobras.gov.br