HO CHI MINH CITY: HCM City authorities are replacing dry lectures with magic shows, interactive dramas and visual exhibits to educate students on the sophisticated disguises of modern synthetic drugs.
A 12-session mobile awareness campaign, themed "Civilised Fortress – Compassionate City", is being jointly organised by the city’s Department of Culture and Sports and the Drug Crime Investigation Police Department until December 1.
The initiative operationalises the municipal Party Committee's Resolution No. 02-NQ/TU, which aims to turn Vietnam's southern economic hub into a drug-free city by 2030.
Instead of traditional presentations, the programme uses performing arts to deliver high-impact psychological lessons.
Magic acts demonstrate how illicit substances are disguised as everyday snacks, soft drinks, chocolate and pastries.
Meanwhile, an informational play titled 'The unmasked shipment' dramatises how criminals exploit trust and peer pressure to trick students into transporting contraband.
Luu Thi Hanh, deputy head of the Cultural and Family Lifestyle Building Division under the Department of Culture and Sports, said that they had elevated the quality of outreach by offering a comprehensive experience that combined drama, magic, direct dialogu, and realistic models of disguised drugs.
"Students not only gain knowledge, but also build the resilience to become 'steel fortresses' against drug-related crimes."
Alongside the performances, Major Vu Dinh Thinh from the Drug Crime Investigation Police Department and volunteers from the Peace for the City Club (P.A.S.T) hold Q&A sessions to equip pupils with practical refusal skills.
Exhibition spaces featuring simulated drug samples and propaganda posters also allow teachers and students to examine emerging drug forms first-hand.
School leaders and students have welcomed the two-way interactive format.
Nguyen Xuan Quang, principal of Phuoc Loc Technical and Technological Intermediate, said theatrical staging allows legal and life-skills education to penetrate campus life far more effectively than standard extracurricular talks.
Tran Thi My Tham, a final-year accounting student at the school, said the session had opened her eyes to how drugs infiltrate campuses through everyday food and drinks such as soft drinks, chocolate and pastries.
"I now realise that even friends or acquaintances can be links leading us down the wrong path through seemingly normal actions, like offering a drink or asking someone to deliver a parcel," she said, adding that she would proactively share the knowledge with her family and peers to stay vigilant and strictly say no to drugs.
Similarly, Bui Nhu Kim Huyen, a 10th grader at Hac Dịch High School, pledged to share the warning signs with her family and peers.
At the grassroots level, local authorities are pairing campus outreach with broader community policing.
Lieutenant Colonel Le Anh Dai, chief of Tan Thanh Ward Police, said officers will expand awareness drives to local factories and residential quarters to achieve 100 per cent public coverage.
Tan Thanh Ward People's Committee chairman Nguyen Ngoc An said strict local monitoring will accompany public education to meet the 2030 drug-free target.
The mobile campaign is backed by intensified law enforcement.
Police statistics showed that the city's anti-drug forces uncovered and handled 6,401 drug-related cases involving 17,756 suspects in the first 10 months of the year.
These figures represent a year-on-year surge of 40.28 per cent in cases and 43.95 per cent in suspects.
During the crackdowns, officers also seized substantial quantities of heroin, cocaine, cannabis and synthetic drugs.
Following its initial stops, the tour will continue from November 25 to December 1 across five more schools. — Vietnam News/ANN
