Addiction and its impact on diverse communities Perminder Dhillon MA Chief Executive Officer Drug and Alcohol Action Programme Empowering communities against addiction

From Migration to Maelstrom Why have we written this report??? Because there is a dearth of information about how addiction issues impact on the Tamil community originating from Sri Lanka Majority of the Tamil community in the London Borough of Ealing came as refugees fleeing ethnic cleansing in Sri Lanka Their experiences from their originating country and their status here make them a vulnerable community DAAP is successfully engaging with other South Asian communities and we need to engage the Tamil community

From Migration to Maelstrom Why have we written this report??? That DAAP is concerned about : the increase in street violence between Tamil young people and young people from other communities Tamil on Tamil fights and violence And shares the concern of the Metropolitan Police about Tamil on Tamil murders and the impact of this on all communities not just the Tamil community in Ealing the recent case of a young Tamil boy disappearing on his way to school in Southall

From Migration to Maelstrom What is the report about? We did not undertake any primary research about the extent of substance misuse. We have relied on the available statistics especially those available from the CNWL Substance Misuse Services NHS: 2002 DAAP interviewed key agencies and individuals concerned with drug and related issues within the Tamil community – including Tamil support organisations and the local police in order to get an overview of the issues

From Migration to Maelstrom What is the report about? We wanted to: Bring these issues to the attention of all those who work in the addiction field and on community development issues determine how organisations like ours can work on education and community cohesion issues with the Tamil community make adequate recommendations about profiling these issues adequately both at a local and a national level

From Migration to Maelstrom Key Findings Contrary to the notion that addiction does not affect the Tamil community, findings show that drug use does exist in the Tamil Community That there is increasing violence and crime linked to drug issues That there are no drug education resources in the Tamil community

From Migration to Maelstrom Recommendations The Tamil community needs to be better informed about drug and related issues Better data collection of drug users to include those of Tamil heritage The link between crime and drugs need to be explored especially in relation to Tamil on Tamil murders The so called gang fights or street violence need to be thoroughly investigated by both the community itself and agencies to determine whether there is a relationship between drug use and or distribution and violence

From Migration to Maelstrom Recommendations Young people from the Tamil community need to consulted on issues relating to drugs, violence, safety and community cohesion Organisations like DAAP must undertake targeted work with young people on drug education and prevention as well as self development Agencies need to engage drug users and carers in their programmes of action

From Migration to Maelstrom Recommendations On a controversial note- sensational reports in the media suggest that there is a link between Tamil Tigers and drug trafficking. This issue was too broad for our report. DAAP recommends that this issue be investigated at a national and international level.

The publication is supported by Dr.Raj Rajarayan OBE, DAAP chair