Report on alcohol and drug prevention in Iceland
Yfirlit
Report on alcohol and drug prevention in Iceland
(ii) Illicit use of drugs and psychotropic substances (Article 33)
400. Act. No. 10/1997 introduced some changes to the provisions of the General Penal Code, No. 19/1940, on the treatment of preceeds from crime, and also amended the Drugs of Abuse Act , No. 65/1974, as regards the definition of drug offences. Thus importation, exportation, sale, purchase, exchange, delivery, reception, preparation and possession of equipment, parts and materials for use in unlawful cultivation, production or preparation of drugs of habituation and dependence is now prohibited. These changes preceded Iceland's ratification of the UN Convention of 1988 against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotrophic Substance and the Council of Europe Convention of 1990 on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime of 1990.
401. A new Alcoholic Beverages Act, No. 75/1998, was enacted as a part of more comprehensive strategy in matters relating to the sale of alcohol and tobacco products in Iceland.
402. Since 1997 a national survey on the lifestyles of pupils in the last three classes of primary school (age 13-16) has been conducted every year by the Icelandic Center for Social Research and Analysis. The surveys reach the whole target population i.e. every child, in the particular agegroup, present at school on the day of the survey answers a questionnaire, resulting in a very high response rate. The overall results show a downward trend in the use of alcohol, tobacco and cannabis in 10th grade (age15-16) since 1995, as shown in fig. x
Figure xx shows the percentage of 15-16 year old children who have used cannabis, ecstacy, amphetamin, or sniffing volatiles (f.ex. glue) three times or more according to these same surveys once or more during their lifetime.
403. The Icelandic part of The European School Survey project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD), initiated by the Council of Europe is managed by The Icelandic Center for Social Research and Analysis, and financed by the Prevention Fund. The survey has been carried out twice, in 1995 in 25 countries and in 1999 in 30 countries, involving approximately 100.000 15 - 16 yeear old students. The third ESPAD survey is planned to take place in the spring 2003. The results of these multinational surveys give information about trends in alcohol and drug use among young people in the countries involved along with the cultural perspectives on drug use. That, as well as the possibility of comparison between countries, is important for the development of prevention strategies.
404. The offer of alcohol and drug abuse rehabilitation facilities for children and young people under the legal age of 18 in Iceland answer demand. In 2000, a new ward for young people opened at the treatment facility Vogur under the auspices of The Laymen's Society on Alcoholism (SÁÁ) to answer then increasing demand for such survices. The number of individuals under the age 20 seeking treatment at the new ward grew from 257 in 1999 to 288 in 2000. The number of children in treatment for alcohol and drug abuse at the longterm treatment facilities of The Government Agency of Child Protection increased from 31 in 1999 to 43 in 2000, average age was 15.
405. The Laymen's Society on Alcoholism (SÁÁ) made a co-operative agreement with the Ministry of Health in 1998 about a community based drug prevention program in Iceland. The aim of the project was to harness the efforts of the municipalities, national authorities, private associations, schools, pupils, parents and any other concerned parties for prevention work within each municipality, involving professional counselling, assistance and support. The then existing prevention department of SÁÁ made agreements with a number of municipalities for the implementation of the program. In 2000 the implementation and effect of the program was evaluated with the assistance of The Icelandic Center for Social Research and Analysis. The main results show that most of those who were interviewed in relation to the evaluation expressed satisfaction with the program, especially it's ideology. The main disadvantages mentioned were the lack of follow-up, halting management and leadership, unclear objectives and ambivalence in the role of the local managing groups. Survey data show that the development of dayly cigarette smoking, prevalence of drunkenness and the use of cannabis was similar in most of the participating communities compared with the national average. Despite varied success, the prevention program, fuelled discussions and organisation of drug prevention in all the participating communities. Since the prevention department of SÁÁ was closed in 2000, the program was discontinued.
406. In December 1996, the Government approved various measures in the field of defence against the use of drugs, alcohol and tobacco. The Government decided to take a firm initiative to co-ordinate the actions and efforts of ministres and public institutions, law inforcement and customs agencies in co-operation with municipalities, parents' associations, private associations and others, with a view to eradicating drug abuse among children and significantly reducing their use of alcohol and tobacco. According to this policy declaration, the points of emphasis in this field until 2000 were, as follows:
- to strengthen prevention, particularly in relation to high-risk individuals;
- to restrict the access of children and young persons to drugs, alcohol and tobacco;
- to enhance public security by a reduction in the frequency of drug-related offences;
- to strengthen society's resistance against the use of illicid drugs, alcohol and tobacco by children:
- to improve the treatment possibilities available to young persons who have become dependent.
407. Implementation plans were prepared by the ministries and the institutions subject to them for defining the policy further with regard to the roles of the individual ministries. We refer in particular to the points previously mentioned in this Report relating to this matter, such as paragraph 79 on the Family Council, paragraph 243 on treatment homes under the auspices of the Child Welfare Office, paragraph 294 in the Ministry of Health's Prevention Council, paragraph 300 on health improvement, paragraph 302 on the new co-operation council of the Ministry of Health and Social Security and and paragraph 397 on tobacco prevention. ATH HVORT TILVÍSANIR ERU RÉTTAR!
408. One of the measures taken by the Government was to join the City of Reykjavík and the ECAD (European Cities Against Drugs) in the programme Ísland án eiturlyfja (Iceland without drugs). A co-operative agreement was signed in February 1997, to remain in effect until 2002. The chief objectives of the programme were to unify the nation's efforts against illegal drugs, to promote prevention, and to organize projects and measures to achieve this end. The implementation and effect of the programme was evaluated with the assistance of IMG-Gallup. The encouraging results were: 1) The marketing of the programme with the slogan Iceland without drugs proved successful as 86% of a random sample responding to a telephone survey recognised it. 2) Messages, aimed at parents, about curfew hours for children and the importance of parents showing interest in their childrens activities seem to be influential according to attitudesurveys among parents. 3) Many prevention projects were started under the auspices of Iceland without drugs and some will continue even though the program has been halted. 4) The program Iceland without drugs played an important role in the co‑ordination of the efforts of those involved in alcohol and drug abuse prevention in Iceland. 5) The planners and implementers of the program stressed, from the very beginning, the importance of evidence based work. The effort they put into research and data collection has proved to be fruitful. The less encouraging results were: 1) the main target group was adolescents but the general public needs to be addressed as well for prevention work to be successful. 2) The name Iceland without drugs was criticized for being unrealistic as it may propose an impossible objective. 3) Some professional groups were not reached, s.a. health care professionals and educators. 4) The program was not visible enough in the media.
Gr. 409
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Council was funded in 1998 according to an act No. 76/1998. The purpose of the Council's foundation was to improve and strengthen defence mechanism against alcohol and drug abuse, and to reduce the harm of their use. The effects of the Council shall be directed towards all age groups, but alcohol and drug abuse among children and adolescent persons shall be given particular attention. The objective of the work of the Council is to eradicate drug abuse and reduce significantly the use of alcohol. The Council is to lay particular emphasis on co-operation between all parties concerned and the co-ordination of their effors, such as those of the health care services and health institutions, municipal social authorities, police agencies, the educational system, the criminal justice system and non-governmental associations. The Council has now been at work for four years. It's policy is to work evidence based. The functions of the Council include taking care of the Prevention Fund, promoting community based activities against drug use, enhancing research, and unifying the effort of all those working against abusive alcohol and drug use in the country. The Council worked jointly with Iceland without drugs from 1999 until 2002. Numerous prevention projects, managed by both governmental organisations and non-governmental organisations, as well as the lifestyle surveys among young people and program evaluation projects mentioned in this report are partially or exclusively financed by the Prevention Fund.
410. Among the most resent activities of The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Council are:
· The publication of a report containing various available statistics related to alcohol and drug use in the country. It contains diverse information that gives an overall picture of the use of alcohol and other intoxicants in Iceland and the harm it causes from various perspectives. The title of the report is "Alcohol and other drugs: Statistical information" and it is 72 pages. An English version is available on the website www.vimuvarnir.is. The plan is to publish a revised version of this report every year.
· An effort has been made to strengthen prevention work among health care professional in accordance with the priority tasks of The Icelandic Health Implication Plan to 2010. Refresher courses held for public health professionals were well accepted, a new pamphlet on the dangers of alcohol and drug use during pregnancy was published in co-operation with The Maternity Care Centre in Reykjavík and The Directorate of Health and a new informational brochure on the effects of alcohol for the general public is planned.
· The Council has signed a three year co-operation agreement with The Association of the Local Authorities in Iceland on a community based prevention project. The project is planned to start in January 2003 and will be based on the experience of Iceland without Drugs and the SÁÁ program (see paragraphs 405 and 408).
· The Council co-operates with the police, social services, youth workers, Icelandic Red Cross and other NGO's on an ongoing media campaign project called "Together". The group agrees on an agenda every year. This year the agenda was to draw the public attention to the legal age of 18 years and to stress parents responsibility of caretaking until their children are mature.
· The Four Island Project is a co-operation project between Iceland, Åland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The target group are first year highschool students (age 16-18) who have to move away from home to attend school. The project includes a support program for the participants. It is planned to finish in december 2003.
· The council co-operates with the Icelandic Center of Research and Analysis, The Icelandic Red Cross, The City og Reykjavík and the Directorate of Health on a research project on the life-styles of young people age 16 - 20 who are not attending school. Methodologically it will be based both on qualitative and quantitative data.
411. Presently a governmental bill on a Public Health Center is being processed at the Icelandic legislasive assembly Althingi. If the bill passes the The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Council will move into the new center with other health promoting institutions, s.a. the Icelandic Nutrition Council, the Anti-Tobacco Council and the Program on Child and Youth Injury Prevention.