"We have to say the truth that [drug usage] has increased. People have started learning how to use [drugs]," Head of the Anti-Drug Bureau within Erbil's Directorate of Asayish (Security), Kaywan Tofiq, told Rudaw.
The most common drugs in the region are opium/heroin, theriac, hashish, and stimulants like methamphetamine.
Tofiq detailed that in the last year about 415 kilograms of drugs have been confiscated in Erbil, leading to 941 individuals being arrested for drug dealing. About half of the number is females.
Erbil province has the highest number of addicts to drugs within the Kurdistan Region, detailed Tofiq.
He blamed the increase on neighboring countries with many addicts and drug traffickers.
Another reason for the recent increase, he claimed, has been the end of fighting against ISIS. The fight against ISIS had made people "busy," but with a return to normalcy, some people have started to "engage in this meaningless trade.”
Tofiq blamed a lack of awareness among the offenders for relapsing after their release.
The Kurdistan Region lacks real rehabilitation centers for addicts and specialized psychological services. Most offenders are referred by courts to prisons.
"Up to now I haven't seen treatment in the Kurdistan Region that could be like those in developed countries," said Dr. Sherwan Khasro, a researcher who specializes in ending the usage of drugs.
A 31-year-old drug addict has been behind bars at Erbil's Asayish directorate for 5 months. It is his second time in jail, previously having served time for also using drugs.
He told Rudaw he was born as a refugee in Iran and developed an addiction. He then came to the Kurdistan Region.
He complained that there is no real rehabilitation for addicts in Kurdistan and it is only about serving time in jail; whereas in Iran, doctors, teachers, and psychologists try to fully rehabilitate an individual with time served in jail.
He said drugs previously couldn't be found in Kurdistan, "but they have increased now.”
He claimed that when crossing from Iran into the Kurdistan Region, Iranian guards don't jail those who carry drugs.
"They want to corrupt the youth here," he said, claiming he has experienced it.
"I have heard officers myself. They say, 'Let them go. They are Kurds. Let them get corrupted.’”
The Kurdistan Region's capital of Erbil has established anti-drug task forces to address the issue.
Reporting by Bahroz Faraidoon
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