A good move spoiled
I want to draw the attention of the people responsible for the brand new viewer participatory live programme on RTV aired at 9:45pm on November 27, 2008 called 'Jibone jibone anaea" concerning drug issues sponsored by many important stakeholders of the country. I surely think the time and intention of the programme was absolutely contemporary with the fact that over 45,00,000 youths are affected by drug dependency in Bangladesh. Especially, for people like us who in some way or the other are connected to the cruel effects of drug dependency - it is a sign of hope that NGOs, multinationals and even national organisations are coming forward to assist the experts in the field to contain the national drug problem. Once the sponsors agree upon buying expensive slots of air time to sensitise the masses on any issue, the responsible people could explore more before commencing such a programme. The programme started with a video clip (poorly made to the context of the programme) portraying a true story of an unfortunate death of a boy, focusing on the interviews of the dead boy's sister and father who witnessed the boy killing himself. The story immediately made the viewers anguished and terrified. And surprisingly there was no rescue! The facilitator talking with the experts even stood in the way while they tried to uncover the story and direct the viewers to a point from where they could see the light of hope. In the cases of drug dependency, denial of the problem is a common stage of mind for the victims as well as for the caregivers that leads to severe consequences. We tend to hide our dear ones from the bad name just as he/she does. A sensitisation programme on drug awareness programme with such a story will only make people even more nervous and force them into a deeper shell of denial.
I was undone and hopeless and only could watch and share the similar expressions on the faces of the guest experts. I could only cry loudly to the people responsible for that programme who chose the theme 'Drugs may lead to suicide' instead of proactive themes like 'Let's talk about drugs'.
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