Arab states struggle with drugs

"For young Arabs, there is a growing sense of economic discontent combined with a sense that Westerners are having more fun," says Hassan, who, as a recovering addict, is now a manager with the Freedom project in Cairo. "Young people are like sitting ducks for drug pushers, who are targeting them at much younger ages than ever before," he says.

A recent UN-sponsored study in Egypt put simple "curiosity" as a factor in 97 percent of all initial drug use. Only 36 percent of the respondents cited frustration as a reason for indulging.

But William says that peer pressure is also on the rise. "The young kids think it is cool to use drugs," she says. "Often it is the more intelligent and risk-taking kids who try them first."

At the Freedom Farm about an hour outside of Cairo in a remote desert setting, 24 recovering addicts try to face up to the reasons they fell into the drug trap. Therapy at the farm is similar to that of many Western programs which stress the importance of recovering addicts treating their fellow addicts.

The farm is one of few facilities of its kind anywhere in the Arab world.

Addicts come from as far away as Syria, Iraq, and the United States to take part in a 12-step recovery program that takes between six months and a year.

In addition to art therapy, there is work therapy that includes helping out on a South African-run ostrich farm.

Ayham Gded, a heroin addict, has been in and out of recovery centers for several years. "I was an isolated person even before I tried drugs," he says "I was shy and wanted release. I wanted to have more relationships. At first, drugs helped me open up, but after a while I had no friends at all." Seven months of sobriety at the Freedom Farm has Mr. Gded on the road to recovery.

The Freedom Farm's original Christian-based program in Wadi Natroun is now introducing a 12-step program that will complement a similar program already run in downtown Cairo, which treats mostly Muslims. Ashraf Yehia, the sponsor of the new program, will set the pace for young addicts.

Just two years ago, after locking himself in his room for seven months in an attempt to kick his own addiction, Mr. Yehia tried to take his own life. "I felt I could not live without drugs," he says as he reaches over a fence to feed a few ostriches. "There was no one around me to help."

"Drug use is on the rise due to unemployment and a growing sense of emptiness," says Yehia's supervisor, Miki Iskander. "A few years ago, there were no services at all for addicts. Eight years ago, the government only arrested people and threw them in jail. I, myself, was going to hospitals just to locate more dealers and find more drugs. This strict approach just makes the problem worse."

Another step that drug experts in Egypt want to see taken is a toughening of controls of over-the-counter drug sales. Current enforcement is lax, which has led to a boom in Egyptians seeking highs from drugs designed to treat everything from Parkinson's disease to epilepsy, they say.

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