Posted by Randy Barnett:
Can Pragmatists Be Practical About the Drug War?
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_02_22-2009_02_28.shtml#1235401085
It should be HUGE news when the former presidents of Mexico, Columbia,
and Brazil jointly announce that [1]The War on Drugs Is a Failure. In
their Wall Street Journal column today, Fernando Henrique Cardoso,
César Gaviria and Ernesto Zedillo summarize the [2]conclusions in
their report for [3]The Latin-American Commission on Drugs and
Democracy. Here is the executive summary of their report:
Violence and the organized crime associated with the narcotics
trade are critical problems in Latin America today. Confronted with
a situation that is growing worse by the day, it is imperative to
rectify the �war on drugs� strategy pursued in the region over the
past 30 years.
Prohibitionist policies based on the eradication of production and
on the disruption of drug flows as well as on the criminalization
of consumption have not yielded the expected results. We are
farther than ever from the announced goal of eradicating drugs.
A realistic evaluation indicates that:
* Latin America remains the major global exporter of cocaine and
cannabis, has become a growing producer of opium and heroin, and
is developing the capacity to produce synthetic drugs;
* The levels of drug consumption continue to grow in Latin America
while there is a tendency toward stabilization in North America
and Europe.
The in-depth revision of current drug policies is even more urgent
in Latin America in light of their enormous human and social costs
and threats to democratic institutions. Over the past decades we
have witnessed:
* A rise in organized crime caused both by the international
narcotics trade and by the growing control exercised by criminal
groups over domestic markets and territories;
* A growth in unacceptable levels of drug-related violence affecting
the whole of society and, in particular, the poor and the young;
* The criminalization of politics and the politicization of crime,
as well as the proliferation of the linkages between them, as
reflected in the infiltration of democratic institutions by
organized crime;
* The corruption of public servants, the judicial system,
governments, the political system and, especially the police
forces in charge of enforcing law and order.
In their Wall Street Journal column they offer the following
alternative strategy:
The first step in the search for alternative solutions is to
acknowledge the disastrous consequences of current policies. Next,
we must shatter the taboos that inhibit public debate about drugs
in our societies. Antinarcotic policies are firmly rooted in
prejudices and fears that sometimes bear little relation to
reality. The association of drugs with crime segregates addicts in
closed circles where they become even more exposed to organized
crime.
In order to drastically reduce the harm caused by narcotics, the
long-term solution is to reduce demand for drugs in the main
consumer countries. To move in this direction, it is essential to
differentiate among illicit substances according to the harm they
inflict on people's health, and the harm drugs cause to the social
fabric.
In this spirit, we propose a paradigm shift in drug policies based
on three guiding principles: Reduce the harm caused by drugs,
decrease drug consumption through education, and aggressively
combat organized crime. To translate this new paradigm into action
we must start by changing the status of addicts from drug buyers in
the illegal market to patients cared for by the public-health
system.
We also propose the careful evaluation, from a public-health
standpoint, of the possibility of decriminalizing the possession of
cannabis for personal use. Cannabis is by far the most widely used
drug in Latin America, and we acknowledge that its consumption has
an adverse impact on health. But the available empirical evidence
shows that the hazards caused by cannabis are similar to the harm
caused by alcohol or tobacco.
If we want to effectively curb drug use, we should look to the
campaign against tobacco consumption. The success of this campaign
illustrates the effectiveness of prevention campaigns based on
clear language and arguments consistent with individual experience.
Likewise, statements by former addicts about the dangers of drugs
will be far more compelling to current users than threats of
repression or virtuous exhortations against drug use.
Why can't pragmatists be practical for a change?
References
1. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123535114271444981.html
2. http://drugsanddemocracy.org/files/2009/02/declaracao_ingles_site.pdf
3. http://drugsanddemocracy.org/blog/archives/category/highlights
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