Ex-addicts turn into ‘happy campers’ at Reflection Camp

KIANGAN, Ifugao — A tricycle driver, Julius, got the shock of his life when he went home one morning and found an empty house.

His wife of 13 years had left, along with their daughters aged 13 and 8. He realized he had not been home in Barangay Tuplac here for five straight days.

Julius was hooked on gambling and had learned to use “shabu” (methamphetamine hydrochloride)” to stay awake for gambling sessions that went on at all hours. He was often spotted at  wakes — the only occasion in Ifugao province when gambling was tolerated.

‘Old Julius’

The tricycle driver soon found a new wife, with whom he had two daughters. But like his first relationship, Julius’ addiction to gambling and drugs proved too much for his second wife, who left him to work in the Middle East. Her parents take care of their children, aged 6 and 4.

But that was the “old Julius.” Last month, he joined the first batch of 109 former drug users who graduated from the Ifugao Reflection Camp (IRC), the centerpiece of the province’s community-based drug rehabilitation program.

The IRC’s six-month program is being touted as a national model for drug rehab in the country. Under the program, clients undergo reformatory activities that focus on physical, psychological and moral realignment. They also perform a weekly interval of activities both at the IRC and at their home communities.

The first phase of the program requires clients to stay for six days at the IRC, which uses the one-story building of the old Ifugao provincial jail at Tiger Hill in Barangay Baguinge as its office, kitchen and storage area. An open area, dominated by a long conference table, serves as dining and lecture area.

Campers

“Clients,” also called “campers,” stay in evacuation tents recycled from past typhoons, with five to seven of them in each tent.

In spite of the fence and jail guards nearby, the campers’ movements are not restricted.

“They are free to leave anytime. They can just walk out if they wish,” said Joseline Niwane, the provincial social welfare officer and overall camp coordinator.

All IRC activities are geared toward rehabilitation. In the morning, campers wake up to exercise and undergo a 2-kilometer jog around the camp. By midmorning, they listen to lectures on various topics — from types of substance abuse to maintaining self control.

There are also confidence-boosting activities. In one of them, campers were asked to simulate newscasts with their peers as audience. There are also Bible classes and sharing sessions led by community pastors. For the next five weeks, campers are required to take on jobs in the community before returning for another round of sessions at the IRC.

Youngest

SPO1 Gary Gattud, who conducts lectures on drug education, said a 12-year-old boy from Banaue town was the youngest to be admitted to the program.

Julius and other IRC graduates said they had agreed to enter the program at the prodding of family members and friends, who feared that they would end up dead if they refused to surrender.

Based on police data, Ifugao registered only a single case of extrajudicial killing (EJK) — that of a tinsmith from Lagawe town. Local officials said the low rate of EJKs can be attributed to an Ifugao custom that forbids tribe members from harming a fellow Ifugao.

Days before his graduation from the program, things turned around for Julius when he was visited by his four children. “I could not help but cry. I realized how much I had missed in my life because of my vices,” he said.