“Human dignity of the Addicted Youth”

The Monthly Webinar Organized by the Middle East Council of Churches

Secretary General Dr. Michel Abs: Immunization must be achieved through constant awareness and education because treatment after a fall means losing half the battle - a battle for the future

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) held a new webinar entitled “Human dignity of the Addicted Youth”, on Thursday 29 February 2024, with the participation of specialists, academicians, universities’ students and interested attendees in the topic at hand. Noting that this webinar comes as part of the monthly seminar which MECC is organizing within the framework of the “Human Dignity Project” - “Dialogue and Social Cohesion-Social Capital Rehabilitation”, which MECC is implementing consecutively.

The webinar, which was broadcasted live on the MECC Facebook Page, included three interventions, moderated by Dr. Lubna Tarabey, who denounced in her opening speech the phenomenon of drug addiction, mentioning its causes and repercussions, stressing the role of states in reducing it and the importance of preserving human dignity.

The webinar began with a speech delivered by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches Dr. Michel Abs, in which he said, “We know that the forms of addiction are diverse, as are the types of drugs, human failures, environmental compositions, and the follow-up and immunization that can be obtained during or after treatment. If drug abuse constitutes a major social scourge that indicates a structural, socio-economic, political, and psychological imbalance, its promotion and the failure to eliminate it indicate one of two things: either the complicity of those in charge of this matter in the government, or the state’s weakness, which is unable to protect the youth of its society. Either way, it is a sad and major disappointment for the concerned observer.”

He added, “The battle is perilous, affecting increasing portions of humanity. The estimated percentages are high and rising, yet nothing suggests that the structures of society, particularly the family, will recover appropriately to serve as a means of protection for those vulnerable to this scourge. Immunization must be achieved through constant awareness and education because treatment after a fall means losing half the battle - a battle for the future.”

Afterwards, the first intervention started under the title “The Problem of Addiction in Lebanon: Reality and Challenges,” with Mrs. Samar Boulos, who is an Instructor at the Lebanese University and President of the Association of Social Assistants in Lebanon. In her intervention, Mrs. Boulos talked about the role of social workers, especially in interventions to support the most vulnerable groups, indicating the factors that lead to the use of narcotic substances. She also highlighted the interventions through prevention and treatment, stressing the need to enhance personal empowerment among young people.

The second intervention revolved around the title “Youth and Drugs, the Factors of Push and Pull,” together with Professor Dr. Waad Ibrahim Khalil, who is the Head of the Capacity Building Department at the Center for Peacebuilding and Peaceful Coexistence at the University of Mosul - Iraq. In his intervention, Dr. Khalil focused on the reasons that led to the spread of the drug phenomenon, in addition to the latest updates in this issue. He concluded by pointing out that youth are at risk and are oscillating between the factors of attraction and push to drugs, noting the need for a comprehensive societal stance in which all societal institutions participate to work together to protect the youth.

The third intervention was entitled “Preserving the Human Dignity of the Addicted Youth - the Coptic Church as an Example,” with Dr. Albert Edward Sidrak, who is a Consultant in Psychiatry, Neurology, and Addiction Treatment, Responsible for the Preventive Departments at the Bishopric of Public, Ecumenical and Social Services "BLESS" affiliated with the Coptic Orthodox Church, and member of the Synodal Committee for Mental Health and Anti-Addiction in the Coptic Orthodox Church. In his intervention, Dr. Sidrak talked about the response of the Coptic Orthodox Church to reduce the drug phenomenon. Hence, he highlighted the various programs and projects that the Church is implementing for human development, mentioning that the addict person is not a criminal and deserves to live and be helped to overcome his or her problem.

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