Use of illegal drugs common among Indonesian truck drivers

When Maritime Fairtrade met with Toha, a truck driver and former drug addict, on October 20 in Sidoarjo Regency, the sky was overcast and he was taking a break in-between long-distance driving. In his early days as a driver, he used illegal methamphetamine (meth) to keep himself awake during long stretch of driving, and eventually he was addicted to it. It was a dark period for him.

Coffee stalls around Tanjung Perak Port. Photo credit: Ibnu Wibowo 

“I was addicted to meth for five years. During this period, I spent all my money on drugs and I can’t go to work without using meth. My health suffered, and my friends and family gave up on me,” Toha said. “I spent IDR 3 million per month, about 80 percent of my salary, to buy drugs. In the end, my wife divorced me because I could not provide for her and I accumulated a lot of debt.

“Illegal meth was widely distributed among truck drivers, sometimes by drivers who were also drug dealers. I bought the meth at Tanjung Perak Port as my route was from the port at Surabaya to Sidoarjo or Proboliggo Regency.

“The meth was sold in small packets, with the most expensive ones weighing a quarter gram at IDR 500,000 (US$32) each. Usually, we will buy smaller packets costing IDR 300,000 each and shared among two to three drivers. At Tanjung Perak Port, the drug transactions were carried out at the many coffee stalls scattered around the area.

“We were just like any other people taking a break and having coffee. It was quite difficult for the police to find out about the illegal drug dealing. We avoided dealing at night because there were more police patrols, roadblocks and drug raids.

“That being said, drug transactions took place 24/7 even during religious holidays, because we were all drug addicts and when we felt the urge, we did not care about being arrested. We just wanted to get high.”

Coffee stalls around Tanjung Perak Port. Photo credit: Ibnu Wibowo 

Rohman, Toha’s colleague, said drug transactions could also take place without face-to-face contact. In one such system known as mines, dealers hid the meth inside cigarette packs and dropped them along the side of the road for the addicts to pick up. Dealers also used couriers, usually teenagers or children as they were usually not suspected by the public or police, to send drugs to the addicts.

Suspected drug dealer caught at port area. Photo credit: Tanjung Perak Port Police
Suspected drug dealer caught at port area. Photo credit: Tanjung Perak Port Police

Adjunct Police Commissioner (AKP) Hendro Utaryo, Surabaya Tanjung Perak Port, said the police would continue to crack down on drug use and trafficking in the port area. The police recently caught a meth dealer who also worked as a truck battery seller, and recovered 8.67 grams of illegal meth. 

Arrest of drug dealers. Photo credit: Sidoarjo Police

Sidoarjo’s Commissioner of Police (Kombespol) Kusumo Wahyu Bintoro, made clear the police force will keep up the fight against illegal drugs. In a recent case, the Sidoarjo Police, within a two-week operation, managed to arrest 70 suspects and recovered 209.46 grams of crystal meth. 

Drug dealer caught in Sidoarjo. Photo credit: Ibnu Wibowo

Nuniek Herdyastuti, professor of biochemistry, State University of Surabaya (UNESA), said: “Drug use is very dangerous for the body, especially for drivers who needed to be in optimal physical health. The number one risk is addiction. 

“There are also side effects like anorexia, fever, diarrhea, dehydration, ketosis, collapse, and cardiovascular events that can lead to death. The use of meth can also lead to impaired liver function, kidney and nerve damage and brain disorders.” 

*All names of truck drivers are pseudonyms.

Top photo credit: iStock/ Andranik Hakobyan. Stock photo of a drug addict.

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