Basic Demographic Data

We collected two hundred questionnaires from Male’, Himmafushi, Maafushi Prison and Addu. Nineteen were only partially completed and not used in the final analysis. The sample consists of one hundred and eighty-one questionnaires, 139 male and 24 female, a further 18 participants had not answered the questions. Our sample consists of more men than women, which reflects the current situation in the Maldives.

Sex	Number of Respondents	Percentage %
Male	139	76.8
Female	24	13.3
No Answer	18	9.9
Total	181	100

Although there are women who are using drugs, it is more common among the men. Due to the culture in the Maldives, drug use behaviour differs between the sexes as well. Women use drugs in secret, they don’t even smoke cigarettes on the streets. Such behaviour is less accepted for women and women who do use drugs would do it less openly than the men. They might use with the men but they will not come outside onto the street like the men do. It is more common to see male users out on the streets in Male’. Men are more likely to get arrested or taken in for some criminal activity that might not even be linked to drugs. Therefore there are more men in the drug rehabilitation centers and the jails. Drug abuse remains more hidden in the female population.

Educational Background	Number of Respondents	Percentage %
Primary School	30	16.6
Secondary School	107	59.1
Senior Secondary	19	10.5
College/University	15	8.3
Never attended school	6	3.3
No Answer	18	9.9
Total	181	100

The majority of our sample has completed secondary school; this is grade 8 – 10. This means that these girls and boys are not very well educated and would have difficulties in finding work. This generally leads to increased relapse because if there is nothing for us to do and if there is nothing we can do then the way we think is that we might as well be using drugs. We have nothing else to do. We didn’t realize that when we decided to not to continue with school after our O’Levels. We weren’t interested in studying because we thought it was more important to have fun with our friends. We thought that we had finished our O’levels and that was all we had to know. Very little attention is given to the maintenance of our education by us or by anyone else. It is almost as if drug addicts don’t deserve to be educated. If you are found using drugs, then you are expelled from school, that is of course if you haven’t already dropped out because school was getting in the way of your drug use. If you are convicted of drug related behaviour, then you have to go to Jail or you might get the chance of going to rehab. Whichever it is, that is the end of your education. You have to leave school or you are expelled from school. There is no going back either. Our education is not encouraged when we are at the institutions and it is often too late to start again we were return to Male’. By the time we come back there are no opportunities available to us. We already have little interest in school and education due to our drug use. But even while using, we manage to pass our exams. Quite often, however we lack educational qualifications because of our drugs and addiction. In 1980, all the students involved in drug incidents were expelled from school. This is usually what happens. There is no focus on trying to reintegrate them into the community, treat them and continue with their education. But things are changing. Now, there are counselors in the schools to try and identify risk behaviours and there is an increased focus on prevention. But it is still not enough; there are students who are using. There are young girls who smoke hash oil, even while at school. Teachers have to be told how to deal with these problems.

“There is a boy in Grade 2 in my school. He’s started smoking. We don’t know how to deal with the problem or what to do with him. So we have taken him away from the other students. We don’t want him teaching them things and the only thing we can do is isolate him for a little while. We don’t know how to deal with situations like that and we are don’t know what we are supposed to do. Keeping him away is not going to help him. But if we aren’t trained and taught how to handle these problems then there is nothing we can do. (FGD with teachers, Addu).

It’s a vicious circle yet again. We aren’t educated because of our drug use and when we come back from Jail or rehab it is impossible to find a job or something to do because of our lack of education and skills. We are left with nothing to do everyday and no support structure, which often leads us to relapse.