THE Archbishop of Armagh and president of the Irish Bishops' Conference, Dr Sean Brady, has said he wonders how drug dealers can sleep easily in their beds when they contemplate the lives wrecked by their evil trade.
He was announcing "Breaking the Silence," an initiative by the bishops on drugs, in Dublin yesterday.
Also present were the chairman of the Government's task force on drugs, Mr Pat Rabbitte, the assistant Garda Commissioner, Mr Tom King, the Papal Nuncio, Dr Luciano Storero, the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Desmond Connell, the Bishop of Raphoe, Dr Philip Boyce, the Bishop of Killala, Dr Thomas Finnegan, the Bishop of Clonfert, Dr John Kirby, and the Auxiliary bishop in Dublin, Dr Eamonn Walsh, who chaired the working party which prepared the initiative.
Dr Connell said all were present to take positive steps in dealing with the rapidly increasing drugs problem.
The bishops' initiative will involve an island wide distribution of information about the treatment and prevention of drug abuse, through parishes and dioceses.
The May issue of the magazine Intercom contains a 20 page supplement on drugs, giving details of contacts in each diocese who might be able to offer assistance. A copy of the magazine is being sent to every parish and priest in the country.
In a statement accompanying the initiative, the bishops directly address drug dealers. "Look at what you are doing," they say. "Look at the trail of lives, young lives destroyed through drugs. Look at the families who have suffered the agony of seeing a son or daughter die for your profit.
"You may perhaps, now and again, recognise the horror of what you have done. No doubt you prefer not to think about it. You can be in no doubt that there are many people who are utterly disgusted by what you do."
Dr Brady described drug abuse as one of the gravest and most pressing problems confronting the world today. "It destroys, debases and diminishes many lives," he said, "while the powerful barons of the drug trade feast on its fruits.
The bishops were taking this initiative "to promote a better understanding [of substance abuse] in all our parishes and communities", he said. People must "learn from this awful experience of drugs, learn how to face it and beat it".
In the "Breaking the Silence" document the bishops also challenge the notion that drugs are an urban problem alone. "There are very few of us in Ireland who have not been touched by addiction," they write, pointing also to the link between drugs, poverty, and social deprivation.
Among those who addressed the announcement of the initiative at Clonliffe College yesterday was Celia, a mother of an addict, who spoke of the guilt and lack of self esteem that went with being such a parent.
Paul, who had been taking drugs since he was 11, until 22 months ago, spoke about his history of addiction and imprisonment before going to the Coolmine centre.
The bishops' initiative was welcomed by the Eastern Health Board and by the Merchant's Quay Project in Dublin.
