Survey on traffic, public policies and ICE consumption

By Christophe Cozette published La Dépêche de Tahiti see my news

"An epidemic" (read interview).While Fenua is going through an unprecedented health crisis, the House of Human Sciences of the Pacific of the University of French Polynesia (UPF) has just published a survey of almost 180 pages on another scourge, which alsowreaks havoc in society, Ice (or methamphetamine).This is the first major investigation of this entity, created in 2017 and chaired today by Éric Conte, ex-president of the UPF.

"Knowledge of the ICE (Read box) were fragmented and fragmented in the various administrations and the actors lacked global vision to effectively coordinate their actions", writes, in the preamble, this survey of the House of Man Sciences of the Human Sciences ofPeaceful, the first of this type in overseas.And this study on the ICE, Éric Conte wanted it and here it is."I really wanted to do it, without being asked by anyone, the subject seemed interesting to me and I think that this synthesis is useful," said the former president of the UPF in substance, last Friday, afterthe presentation of the synthesis of this imposing study.Others should soon follow on the Polynesian family and the homeless.

"Ice is trendy"

This ICE survey is available in two parts, traffic and public policies, in order to explore the causes and consequences of the explosion of traffic and analyze the existing arrangements.Most mostly, the consumer (or trafficker) is a man, the average age is 39 years (see box).Not all become dependent but "it is not a matter of young people," say scientists."The social environment plays a major role, it is often friends who offer it, but this environment is also important to win," insist doctoral students, as confirmed by Alice Valiergue's interview (see below)).Often, trafficking are family networks and we consume them by search for social, sexual, festive or sporting performance.

"Ice is trendy" according to experts, confirmed words during their numerous interviews (read box).The social inequalities of Fenua are one of the factors of this galloping traffic, "a form of social revenge" and the money harvested in traffic makes it possible to improve their life and that of his family.Traffickers are divided into two clans, "drug addicts" (to provide for their consumption) and "commercial" (to make money and have the money necessary to invest).

On public policies, the observation is final.They were slow to set up - it is a record seizure in 2017 which triggers an awareness -, the judicial services are overwhelmed and nothing slows traffic ("It's like the grass that we cutAnd who repels each time, ”said a magistrate) and recurrence is often in order, because of the fines inflicted.The all-repressive, the only real policy on the ICE, can even be counterproductive, according to the doctoral students.Regarding prevention, it is the wrong target and "fear is not at all an effective element".As for the supply of care, it is simply nonexistent.And like any "virus", the ICE needs land to spread and as long as social inequalities are as great, this drug will continue its ravages.

A weight survey

Alice Simon and Alice Valiergue are two doctoral students and worked full time for a year on this study.They were supported by Henri Bergeron and Michel Kokoreff, two drug experts.The complete study contains 172 pages.This study was 50 % co -financed by the Ministry of Health.The two doctoral students carried out 107 interviews with professionals and associative actors (police, gendarmerie, justice, etc.) and 41 interviews with traffickers, consumers and their loved ones (see box).They peeled more than 500 press articles including the dispatch.They also created a specific database on all of the judicial files on ICE trafficking.

Dealers extracts

Extract n ° 15: Andy, detained for trafficking - investigator: What did you do with this money?- Andy: we bought ourselves from the party.[…] - investigator: you were going to a nightclub? - Andy: Yes.I spend five hundred thousand on alcohol.- Investigator: You gave everyone, right?- Andy: Yeah, "Come, come, come"!If there is a big tail, I arrive, as all the bodies know me, the bosses of the nightclubs, they know that I come to consume.I pass in front, I look at the line: "Hey, we don't make them in?"All that brings in!I pay to drink, everything!»».That was it !

Extract n ° 18: HINATEA, detainee for trafficking - HINATEA: I had a little enjoying everyone, since we live in a disadvantaged district.So at Mother's Day, Halloween, Christmas, I was always going to buy boxes: a chicken card, a rice card for each home in my neighborhood, with a plastic with various uh ... like, corn, pea, the beans.I offered it all at each home in my neighborhood.

Extract n ° 19: ARI, detained for trafficking-Ari: it is there, from that moment that it was really gone to the top.I saw jet set evenings, things like that, like in movies.[…] After once I was really in it, I couldn't do without it, I was addicted to that.When I sold, I had lots of customers ... I liked.I liked this thing to go and sell, to do the delivery man, the courier ... That's also the thing when I was falling into it, smoking, selling, having money,Know the world, to show off ....Because when you smoke, it looks like it's the gendarme, you're afraid of anyone.You are the strongest you see, you have whatever you want, you go to the hotel, you do whatever you want, you have the money!You become proud ...

Alice Valiergue, docteure en sociologie : «No one, alone, has put himself in the Ice »

What is the observation you made on this survey?

We can emphasize two points.The first concerns taking into account social inequalities because when you enter traffic, it can be linked to very difficult and second point conditions, you must also be interested in the way the problem is framed.The fight against social inequalities is an important point.In Polynesia, we have very important differences between the rich and the poor and therefore a means of limiting these inequalities could be the implementation of an income tax, to redistribute wealth.These inequalities are one of the factors that promote traffic.And today, we are talking a lot about delinquency and the need to set up repressive solutions but what the study shows is the need also to be interested in prevention and the need to develop an offerof care.

We are aiming for prevention, it concerns young people a priori while the majority of consumers are older ...

It is necessary to communicate towards them and to take them into account in prevention policies in matters of addiction but we must also forget adults.On the side of traffickers, those convicted are major and adults.What is also important in terms of prevention is to pay attention to the message that is disseminated and fear is not at all an effective element.

What is effective then?

There are many proposals available, including prevention organizations.In school, for example, this can be teachers who work with educational tutorials.We can also use communities directly, here it could be religious communities.There are lots of relays to find.We must inform and bring people to have a positive choice for themselves for themselves.Playing on the prohibitions has not proven itself until then.

Justice for a little over a year seizes all the property of traffickers, even those not from their trafficking.A false good idea ?

It is common to say that what is practiced is to type in the traffickers' portfolio but an element that emerges from the investigation is that this policy has absolutely nothing obvious and may even seem counterproductiveBecause people come out of detention by being very indebted and sometimes have lost goods acquired before their traffic and find themselves in a situation where they do not have the means to have legal employment and do not have the means to reimbursetheir debts and fines, in a legal manner.This raises the question of recurrence.

You talked about "epidemic".How is Ice an epidemic?

The term has been used not at all in the medical sense but to recall the idea that it is a process that implies interactions between people and social entourage is important.No one, alone, has put himself in the Ice.It is a shared phenomenon, linked to a social environment.

What is Ice?

Ice is the name given in French Polynesia to methamphetamine synthesized in the form of crystals.It is a drug, that is to say a substance capable not only to modify states of consciousness, but also to generate physical and/or psychic dependence.The ICE is one of the so -called "narcotic" products, a term which has a legal meaning and implies that this is a prohibited drug unlike lawful drugs such as alcohol, nicotine or certain drugs.To date, ICE is considered one of the most addictive drugs on the market.Known to be stimulating and euphoric, it is notably consumed for festive or doping uses.It is particularly widespread in North America, South and Southeast Asia and Australia.In French Polynesia, ICE is now the most consumed drug after cannabis (often called "paka").Most of the ICE sold in the territory is imported from the United States.Traffickers apply very high margins, which make this product particularly expensive for customers: the most common dose, called "ten" in reference to the fact that it costs 10,000 francs, generally has 0.04 or 0.05 gram.In French Polynesia, this drug is almost always smoked in small glass pipes with a spherical home (called "Bubble", in reference to their shape).

Ice to fenua in a few figures

In 2019-2020, the ICE was currency around 150,000 francs per gram.It can reach 250 to 300,000 francs.Ice costs two to three times more than 20 years ago.

82 % of people prosecuted are men.The average age of persons prosecuted is 39 years and 70 % of them are between 25 and 45 years old.Young people represent only 6 %.

Half of the persons prosecuted are unemployed.ICE traffic is mainly concentrated in the Tahiti urban area even if it affects all the fenua islands.

There are two types of routes for traffickers, toxicomaniac careers and commercial careers.The money earned by traffic is primarily used to improve the material conditions of existence of traffickers and their entourage.

3.3 % of 13-17 year olds said they had smoked ICE in 2016.

Most ICE consumers are paka consumers.

Between 2010 and 2020, 277 people were involved in traffic.

Between 2017 and 2018, the number of articles on the ICE has doubled in La Dépêche de Tahiti (+60 % in Tahiti Infos).

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