According to the World Health Organization, there were more than 6 million e-cigarette smokers in Indonesia as of 2021, around 3 per cent of the country’s population.
Roy of BNN said e-cigarettes’ popularity among Indonesians created the perfect cover for drug traffickers looking to disguise their illicit substances as consumer products that are compact and easy to transport.
“You wouldn’t know that they are drugs if you don’t test them in a lab,” the one-star police general said.
MORE DAMAGING EFFECTS
Evan, not his real name, has struggled with drug addiction since his mid-teens and has been arrested three times for drug-related offences.
He was just 17 when he was first caught with cannabis in 2013. Because it was his first offence, he was released with a warning.
Nearly a decade later, in 2022, he was arrested again, this time for possessing a small amount of methamphetamine. He avoided jail, with a court ordering him to undergo six months of mandatory rehabilitation instead.
But shortly after completing the programme, Evan discovered what he thought was a more convenient and discreet way to continue using drugs: e-cigarettes laced with synthetic cannabinoids.
“The vape tasted like strawberry but had the effects of cannabis,” the audio engineer told CNA.
With a vape, Evan said, he looked no different from millions of other Indonesians who use e-cigarettes.
“I smoked it at work. I smoked it on my motorbike while waiting at traffic lights. I even smoked it in front of my parents. Nobody suspected that I was using drugs,” he said.