Colombia vice president warns of drug dangers

The vice president of Colombia will tell senior police officers today (Thursday) how the growing use of cocaine in Scotland and the rest of the UK is contributing to the deaths of young children and the destruction of the environment in Colombia.

Francisco Santos Calderon will be speaking at the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) National Drugs Conference at Turnberry Hotel, Ayrshire.

Mr Calderon will visit schools in Ayrshire and speak to young people not only about the immediate dangers of drug taking but also the often unseen damage to the thousands of children caught up in the South American trade. This includes the plants and animals which are destroyed to make way for illicit coca crops.

Children are forced to help in the harvesting of coca plants and are used as drugs mules, often being caught in the crossfire and becoming one of the 18,000 murder victims in Colombia every year.

Along with government colleagues, the vice president, who was considered so dangerous to the notorious Medellin drugs cartel that they held him hostage for eight months, has pledged to fight tirelessly against drugs across the world and to bring an end to kidnapping and extortion in his country.

He said: “We have launched the ‘Shared Responsibility’ initiative to get across the message to people across the world that cocaine is bad for your health and bad for the environment.

“We want to make the silent environmental catastrophe caused by illicit crop cultivation heard, seen and felt around the globe. We believe that in order to minimise the impact of illicit drugs, it’s essential to reduce not just their supply, but also their demand and that if more were known about the ecocide linked to cocaine consumption, this drug’s allure would sharply decrease.

“Each gram of consumed cocaine is soaked with the blood of Colombians who have died as victims of landmines, terrorist attacks, kidnappings and violence.”

This year’s drugs conference has attracted delegates from law enforcement agencies at home and abroad as well as a wide range of colleagues from the private, public and voluntary sectors.

The keynote speech will be delivered by Minister for Community Safety Fergus Ewing who said: “As the minister with overall responsibility for taking forward Scotland’s new drugs strategy it is a tremendous honour to be addressing this year’s conference and to be meeting with the Vice President of Colombia.

“Living in safe and strong communities is an important part of the Scottish Government’s vision for a positive future. For too many people that vision is impaired by the fear of crime and antisocial behaviour, and by the pervasive effects of drink, drugs, and deprivation.

“If we are to meet our aspirations for a safer, stronger and healthier Scotland it is critical that as a nation we succeed in tackling one of the biggest social challenges of our time: the misuse of drugs. This is a challenge we can only meet by acting together. Police efforts to tackle the drugs menace are as successful as they have ever been but it is vital that this is not just viewed as an enforcement issue.

“A greater emphasis on prevention will also run throughout our new drugs strategy. From better drugs education, to more choices and chances for young people, to better outcomes for children and young people in substance misusing households we must stop the situation where young people fall into drug taking and opt out of life.

“One young person taking drugs is one too many and more needs to be done to stop them getting involved in drugs in the first place. That is why young people are offered positive alternatives through a major expansion of sports, arts and leisure activities in Scotland. This is being funded by the seizure of the assets of those whose criminal activities ruin so many lives.”

Detective Superintendent Willie MacColl, National Drugs Co-ordinator, said: “We welcome the Vice President`s decision to come to Scot