Argimón, Gastón Pauls and experts discussed addictions at an event organized by the INAU union
The Argentine actor, Gastón Pauls, along with the Vice President of the Republic Beatriz Argimón, the president of SUINAU, Joselo López, and a panel made up of experts, including Dr. Daniel Radio, Secretary General of the National Drug Secretariat; Dr. Artigas Pouy, president of the Uruguayan Psychiatric Society; and Professor Alba Negrín, a member of the Toxicology Academic Unit of the University of the Republic, gave an open talk this Wednesday in the Hall of Lost Steps of the Legislative Palace on problematic substance use and its impact on mental health.
Joselo López was in charge of opening the event and thanked Argimón for the participation, as well as the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Sebastián Andújar, and other legislators.
In his speech, he said that the event is part of a series of talks carried out by the INAU union and INISA whose objective is to “delve into different problems and propose solutions and proposals to present them to the different candidates who will be competing in the next elections. ”.
“We select topics that are of interest to those of us who work at INAU and INISA and since we work with children and adolescents and accompany their processes, we are not oblivious to the different life circumstances that children and adolescents go through that we have to attend to, but also society as a whole,” said López during his presentation.
According to him, “a good part” of the population with whom they work has suffered rights violations that compromise their development and these circumstances cause some minors “to come into contact with psychoactive substances that end up further complicating their general situation.”
Likewise, regarding the presence of Gastón Pauls, López explained that the idea was to have a vision on the subject, external to the institutions in which they work, so as not to “contaminate” the possible conclusions.
“The impact of the problematic consumption of psychoactive substances has been worrying for a long time because it individually affects those who are in a situation of consumption, the family environment and impacts the daily life of the institutions that care for adolescents,” said the president of SUINAU.
He added that the phenomenon of problematic drug use is not new in Uruguay, but the substances and modes of consumption “are changing” over time. From there, López explained, the need to be continuously analyzing and looking for new solutions for the issue together with the experts.
Proposals to improve institutions
“The idea was to talk about when consumption is considered problematic, what leads people to use drugs, what is the impact on the health of adolescents, how can one contribute to the detection and monitoring of those who are consuming and , in this way, come out with more information”, indicated López, for which a “first level” panel was used.
“We take note very carefully because we have assumed the commitment to make proposals to improve the institutions in which we work and the responses given to children and adolescents,” said the union president.
today we are all together
For her part, Vice President Beatriz Argimón thanked the INAU Union for the invitation. “In times so different from those of the past, where it was very easy to unite for some issues, today we are all together. Government, civil society and the union that has to do with an emblematic and beloved institution such as INAU, which sets the policies for children in our country, an institution that I love and admire, ”said Argimón.
According to the vice president, as soon as López raised the possibility of this activity being carried out at the parliamentary headquarters, Argimón assured that “there could be no better place to develop this day”, because in the Legislative Palace “they are represented the interests of the whole society.
“This is an issue that worries us and should occupy more and more. That is why here, in the house of Uruguayan democracy, this is an issue that is at the top of the agenda,” he said, highlighting the fact that they are “all together” working to contribute to an issue that has to do with ” with human rights and with the situation of thousands of compatriots and thousands of families”.
“We all have a part today in reflecting, in reaching out, in contributing to the possibility of getting out of difficult situations,” Argimón considered.
He also highlighted the fact that the authorities that have to do with the matter, including the National Drug Secretariat, the president of the House of Representatives and legislators, the INAU board of directors, the union and Udelar are working together.
“This is not common to see in all parts of the world, where we can all be in the same place, thinking, talking, but, fundamentally, being proactive. That’s why this meeting had to be held here. For this reason, I thank the President of the INAU Union and all those who are part of its board of directors who decided that this was an issue that had to be dealt with here and here was the best place to make their call and success is marked by the amount of people who today, in this proactive attitude, have felt summoned to be there and to contribute to having a better society”, said the Vice President of the Republic.
And he added: “Hopefully this is the beginning of instances where we can all be part of the solution, wherever we are and that we all say that we are here because we want to be part of it.”
fundamental meetings
Meanwhile, the Argentine Gastón Pauls, who in 2004 founded a non-governmental organization that seeks to care for the most vulnerable children and adolescents who have drug use problems, was grateful for SUINAU’s invitation and considered that these debate meetings, thinking and throwing ideas to find solutions “are fundamental”.
“Today I am here because this is the true meeting that seems absolutely necessary to me because the disagreement in the world is so great, more and more marked, more and more present, that these spaces for me today are sacred,” he said.
Referring to his own experience, he said that he is still “in recovery” and will continue like this “all his life.”
He highlighted the specialists in the field and the anonymous groups that work on the subject “which are very valuable and necessary.”
“The anonymous groups are not specialists because they studied, but they are specialists because of the experience that they acquired very sadly, very hard,” he said.
He assured that the groups were fundamental for him since they made him see that he was not alone.
“The only thing that matters to me is that there are people next to you who are shaking your hand and who do not allow you to feel alone or alone. So I am also here thanking what others did for me, paying homage to those who fell in the middle and drowned, because there are a lot of them, who did not see the light, who did not reach the coast and drowned in middle of the shipwreck,” he said.
And he added: “The most important thing – which is what we always say – is that what we do we do for those who are to come, for those who are suffering this situation now. We do it for those people who still haven’t realized it and are losing everything, to tell them that we need them clean, alive, to continue spreading the message,” Pauls said.
He thanked the INAU union and stressed the importance of “being able to build workers who work for life, for good, for health and who spread life, health and hope.”
“Hopefully these meetings can be repeated and they find us clean, healthy and with sound mind,” concluded the Argentine actor.
