Warnings about date rape drugs
Easter may be a few weeks away, but the warnings are already being issued reminding the public that holiday drinking can cause accidents. But this year there is a new dimension to the National Drug Abuse Control Council’s campaign: watch out for date rape drugs. Today News Five spoke to NDACC about this relatively new threat to Belizean women and girls.
Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
Although there have been only two reported incidents of date rape since the National Drug Abuse Control Council introduced its Anti-Drug Campaign in 1999, NDACC believes there are far more cases.
Kimani Avila, Research and Information Officer, NDACC
“The first one was a young Mayan girl, who claims that her boss drugged her and raped her with tainted candy. And a couple of weeks ago, there was an incident in Santa Elena about a student waking up to find that she was sexually assaulted after accepting a drink from a male patron.”
“Besides these two that are being reported, we hear about incidents in San Pedro and other districts that they are happening, but just that they are not reporting it and it is not publicized.”
Hence, NDACC is sending out a strong warning to young men and women. A flyer, Date Rape Drugs explains what are the two main
drugs being used and how you can protect yourself.
Kimani Avila
“Two specific drugs that we were alerted by we had some information on the internet about those particular drugs mostly being used in the U.K and the U.S and we know just how influenced our people are by things that go on in the U.S. So those would be Rohypnol and GHB, but I am hearing reports that there are other drugs circulating, so those are the two that we focused on.”
NDACC advises teenagers to get smart: Sip only from drinks you open yourself, monitor how your drink is being prepared, avoid all drugs and alcohol, refuse to drink from an open punch bowl or container and throw away all drinks that you are not sure of.
Both Rohypnol and GHB are not normally sold in Belize, however NDACC says both drugs can be purchased by order and can be bought over the counter in neighboring countries. NDACC will launch its billboard anti-drinking, anti-drug abuse campaign on Wednesday in Belize City.
