[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 169 (Thursday, November 20, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2344-E2345]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




EXPRESSING APPRECIATION TO THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH FOR ITS SUPPORT OF 
                       STRONG ANTI-DRUG POLICIES

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. MARK E. SOUDER

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 19, 2003

  Mr. SOUDER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my deep thanks and 
appreciation to Pope John Paul II and the Roman Catholic Church for 
their unwavering support of a strong and balanced anti-drug strategy. 
Last month, at a European Union conference held in Dublin, Ireland, the 
Holy See submitted a statement outlining the Catholic Church's approach 
to drug policy. As chairman of the Government Reform Committee's 
Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy and Human Resources, I 
have long supported a vigorous but multipronged approach to reducing 
the scourge of drug abuse, emphasizing tough law enforcement, effective 
prevention, and treatment that works. I am submitting the Holy See's 
statement for the Record, as I believe it provides an eloquent and 
timely defense of those policies.
  As the Vatican's statement makes clear, the problem of drug abuse is 
deeply rooted in the spiritual crisis that has gripped much of modern 
society. We live in a culture that often finds itself incapable of 
educating our young people in the values that give them an alternative 
to drugs. ``One of the most important factors leading to drug abuse,'' 
warns the statement, ``is the lack of clear motivation, the absence of 
values, the conviction that life is not worth living.'' We must ensure 
that our children are raised with the knowledge both of their own self-
worth and of their responsibility to work for a better world. That 
knowledge is the best bulwark against drug abuse and other self-
destructive behavior, and prevention efforts in our schools and 
communities must be grounded in such an approach.
  But we must also make sure that we don't send the wrong message to 
young people by suggesting that governments tolerate the use of drugs. 
I strongly agree with the Catholic Church in its rejection of drug 
legalization. Legalizing the use of even the so called ``lighter'' 
drugs will only lead to the greater use of stronger drugs. Nor can we 
afford to condone drug abuse in a misguided attempt at ``harm 
reduction.'' As the Vatican's statement notes, ``The State should not 
assist its more vulnerable citizens to alienate themselves from society 
and ruin their lives.''
  Mr. Speaker, the problem of drug abuse is one of the most difficult 
facing lawmakers and

[[Page E2345]]

parents today. It is deeply rooted, and will require a great and 
continuing effort to keep it under control. But we must not give up--
there is simply too much at stake. I thank the Catholic Church for its 
ongoing support of that effort.

   Intervention of the Delegation of the Holy See at the Ministerial 
       Conference on ``New Challenges for Drug Policy in Europe''

                     (Dublin, October 16-17, 2003)

       Mr. Chairman: The Holy See is pleased to participate in 
     this Ministerial Conference sponsored by the Pompidou Group, 
     for it sees this as a fitting and encouraging opportunity to 
     discuss and analyze the strategies in the fight against the 
     threat represented by drug abuse, as the Conference theme 
     aptly suggests.
       The data provided by the European Observatory for Drugs and 
     Drug Addiction in the 2002 Annual Report on the Evolution of 
     the Drug Phenomenon in the European Union and Norway continue 
     to raise alarms and indicate that the situation, instead of 
     improving, is growing worse.
       Great concern is caused both by the constant increase in 
     the use of synthetic drugs and by the ever decreasing age at 
     which drug abuse is observed.
       Pope John Paul II, already in 1984, noted that ``among the 
     threats facing young people and all of society today, drug 
     abuse is one of the greatest, since it is a danger that is as 
     insidious as it is invisible, and one that is not yet 
     properly recognized according to the extent of its 
     seriousness''.
       If politics is at the service of the human person and 
     society, it must not fail to go to the root of problems. This 
     means grappling with the anxiety, that is, the existential 
     crisis or apprehensions, that in a consumerist and 
     materialistic society finds rich soil for shattering the 
     inner equilibrium in subjects who are particularly weak, 
     fragile and sensitive. There is no doubt that the 
     phenomenon of drug abuse is connected with a crisis of 
     civilization and with great dejection. One of the most 
     important factors leading to drug abuse is the lack of 
     clear motivation, the absence of values, the conviction 
     that life is not worth living.
       Among the political measures to be adopted in the fight 
     against this phenomenon, my Delegation would point out in the 
     first place those aimed at combating illicit trafficking in 
     drugs, controlled by powerful criminal organizations. This 
     takes place in the larger context of arms trade, terrorism 
     and trafficking in human beings. Such criminal activity goes 
     beyond national borders and therefore requires a concerted 
     policy of international cooperation.
       Faced with the many suggestions and decisions made in 
     different national contexts for the purpose of resolving the 
     problem, the Holy See does not agree with the proposal to 
     legalize the circulation and distribution of drugs, not even 
     so-called light drugs. We must not fail to take into account 
     the risk of moving from the use of light drugs to the use of 
     those with more destructive effects. The State should not 
     assist its more vulnerable citizens to alienate themselves 
     from society and ruin their lives.
       Rather, the Holy See encourages above all the promotion of 
     preventive information and education, and the possibility of 
     the proper treatment and reintegration into society of those 
     who unfortunately fall prey to drug addiction.
       More resources should be destined to the application of 
     preventive and educational measures in the family, in 
     schools, in sports clubs and in society in general. There is 
     a need for placing renewed emphasis on the human values of 
     love and life, the only values capable of giving meaning to 
     human existence.
       As far as treatment and reintegration into society are 
     concerned, my Delegation places great importance on the work 
     of assistance and recovery communities. This is a matter of 
     helping drug addicts, in the midst of their inner suffering 
     and their state of anxiety, to rediscover dignity, to take 
     control of their lives once more and to reintegrate 
     themselves into their families and into society.
       An integrated system of services offered by local agencies, 
     institutions and educational groups (family, school, 
     community) should increase the ability to bring effective aid 
     to the lives of young people who, once they are freed from 
     drug addiction, will be able to avoid a relapse. Only the 
     desire to be reborn and the ability to heal will ensure that 
     ``recovered'' young people can return to a normal life after 
     having passed through the frightening tunnel of drug 
     addiction.
       An adequate policy in this regard must also address the 
     ethical questions involved, seeking to place the problem in a 
     wider anthropological, ethical, social, political and 
     economic context. Means and resources need to be set-aside 
     for this purpose.
       Mr Chairman, allow me to conclude by reaffirming the 
     willingness of the Holy See and the Catholic Church--with 
     their extensive networks of institutions and structures 
     devoted to the education, assistance and rehabilitation of 
     drug addicts--to work with European institutions in seeking 
     together paths and means for a policy in the fight against 
     drug abuse and addiction that will not only resist the 
     criminal and subversive phenomenon but will also take into 
     consideration the moral issue of drug addiction and of a 
     society that promotes a culture of solidarity for life.
       Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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