Editor,
I am writing this not as an activist or expert, but as a recovering addict from Shillong who has struggled with addiction for several years.In 2024, during one of the darkest periods of my life, I saw addicts being publicly shamed, beaten and sent away in the name of reform.
Around that time, I came across a small group of recovering addicts who chose a different path. They spoke openly about stigma, dignity and recovery, and they helped several individuals who had been forcibly confined in rehabilitation centres outside the state return home safely.
Through counselling, discipline and support within this fellowship, I have now remained sober for 20 months.What touched me most was that these people work quietly without publicity or recognition. They go door to door across Shillong, speaking with families, helping recovering addicts avoid relapse and reminding people that recovery is still possible.
At the same time, some of us who are trying to stay sober often feel confused by the contradictions around us. On one side, there are campaigns against addiction. On the other, alcohol promotion and commercial interests continue openly.
For recovering addicts, this can be emotionally difficult and discouraging.Addiction is not a crime. Recovery takes time, trust, honesty and community support. It cannot depend only on conferences, announcements or temporary campaigns.
Every day, many families in Meghalaya continue to struggle silently with substance abuse. We meet young people battling dependency, children living with HIV and parents trying desperately to hold their homes together.
Real recovery work often happens quietly — inside homes, on the streets and through ordinary conversations between people trying to help each other survive.
This letter is not meant to attack anyone. It is simply an appeal for more sincerity, consistency and support for genuine grassroots recovery efforts. If society truly wants to fight addiction, then policies, public messaging and action must move in the same direction.
Yours faithfully,
( Name withheld on request )
via e-mail
Shillong, Meghalaya
Disclaimer:The views expressed in this letter are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Shillong Daily. The Shillong Daily has not independently verified the claims made in the letter.