Homeless activist Fr Peter McVerry has slammed middle-class cocaine users for supporting drug dealers.
The founder of The Peter McVerry Trust told a meeting of the Association of Catholics in Ireland that “drugs are here to stay” and are an “inevitable consequence of the way we live”.
The outspoken priest told the meeting: “The vast majority of drug dealers’ money comes from middle-class people who are using cocaine.
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“We can’t control the supply of drugs coming into this country – we are an open country; it is impossible to detect all the drugs coming in. But we can do something about the demand for drugs, and that means providing treatment on demand."
Fr McVerry called for more drug addiction treatment services across the country, Independent.ie reported. He said: “Treatment services are very good, but very few.
"In many parts of the country, there is no treatment available. Even where treatment is available, there are long waiting lists. I think that is a disgrace."
The activist made a distinction between non-problem drug users and problem drug users and ultimately how differently they are treated in society. He said: “Most of the people I deal with who are addicted are using drugs to drown out their memories of childhood, of traumatic experiences of abuse and violence.
“They use drugs because that is the only way they know how to cope with life.”
He added that addiction should be treated as a health problem and not as a criminal justice issue. He said: “That is what families do; if somebody discovers that their son or daughter is using drugs, they don’t immediately call the police.
“No, they see how they can get this person some treatment. I think that is what we need to do with addiction, consider people who use drugs as people in need of treatment and help, not as young criminals.”
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