Despite the drop in drug abuse nationwide, Addiction Medicine Association of Malaysia president Dr Steven Chow is pressing for medical treatment rather than traditional control measures like incarceration to stem the problem.

The National Anti-Drugs Agency has reported that the number of people arrested for drug addiction has dropped 36.5 percent in the first half of last year.

"However, we would be fooling ourselves if we believe that the problem of drug addiction is solved as there are many areas that can be improved to reinforce this downward trend," said Chow in a statement issued today.

To eradicate drugs, he said, a further review of existing drug enforcement and drug treatment regulations would be necessary, since in the past the focus was in jailing addicts instead of treating them.

"We need to be very mindful about putting control measures in place to prevent abuse and allow the option to individuals suffering from the disease of addiction to seek and undergo appropriate medical treatment without fear of persecution and stigmatisation," he said.

Chow reckoned that such a move would be timely as there are more 'strung out' individuals who have been cut off from their drug supply due to successful enforcement strategies by the police in Malaysia and across the region.

"There is a small window of opportunity for us to get them to remove their dependency on these illicit substances and potentially change the direction of their lives - many of them are youths - and possibly preventing them from engaging in criminal activities as a means to pay for their habit," he said.

He also commended the efforts taken by the Malaysian police in tackling drug related problems.

"Years of commitment and collaboration by the police, the medical treatment community and related government agencies to curb the supply of drugs, prevent individuals from falling prey to drugs as well as helping individuals rid themselves of addiction are bearing fruit."