Ending addiction: Estonia's anti-drug village | DW Reporter

In "Lootuse küle", the village of hope, drug addicts can get a fresh, clean start. But it’s hard work that requires discipline and abstinence. The young Jan-Martti is participating in the program. Will he make it to the end?

"By ending the addiction, you stretch out your hand to hope." That’s the motto of "Lootuse küla," the "village of hope" in the heart of an Estonian pine forest. The village residents are drug addicts, dealers, and thieves between the ages of 18 and 68. Most have been in prison, some had one foot in the door. Long-term users, heavy addicts, first-time offenders.

Estonia has only 1.3 million inhabitants, but every year more than a hundred people die from drugs, medication, or alcohol abuse. "Lootuse küla" helps and gives hope back to those who’ve lost it. One of them is eighteen-year-old Jan-Martti Kaljuvee. He tells us his dramatic story and shows us his everyday life in the village of hope.

"Lootuse küla" offers an alternative to conventional imprisonment. Instead of waiting out their time behind bars, the men and women here live in wooden houses reminiscent of typical Scandinavian vacation bungalows. They move around the grounds freely, but live according to a strict daily schedule – including prayer and work in the sawmill. And, of course, there are no drugs. Alcohol is also prohibited. The goal is rehabilitation rather than punishment – a meaningful life not only after imprisonment, but also in the here and now.

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#Estonia #DrugAddiction #LootuseKüla