Decriminalization of Drugs in Portugal

Carmichael Cruz

Zachary Horn

Christine Le

Amy Olivas

Stacey Sugiono

Facts & History of Portugal

Population 10million, land: 92,00 square kilometers

Said to have homogenous culture, language, religion, ethnicity

55 years of dictatorship and poverty

1974 - Revolution

Finally establishing democracy and economic growth

1986 – Joined the European Union

History

With economic success came modern problems of drug abuse

Worsened in 1990s

100,000 drug addicts – 1/3rd in Lisboa

Data is not taken as thoroughly in Portugal

Drug Arrests

1991 – 4,667 arrested

1995 – 6,380 arrested

1998 – 11,395 (235% increase from 1990)

61% use or possession for use45% heroin related

Seizure of Cannibis

1990 – 1,279 1998 – 2,063

Seizure of Heroin

1990 – 1,3461998 – 3,750

Seizure of Cocaine

1990 – 3461998 – 1,377

In 1999 there were 40 addiction consultation centers, 5 rehabilitation centers, 2 therapeutic communities, and 4 day centers 95.4% heroin users

Treatment Cases

1990 – 56,4381999 – 288, 038

Commission of National Drug Strategy created to combat high drug use in 90s

Decriminalization Legislature

In July 2001 Portugal formally decriminalized drug possession for personal use with Law 30/2000.

This law decriminalized the possession of up to a ten day supply of all types of illicit substances.

However, the selling and trafficking of these drugs were still a criminal charge.

Introduced a system of referral to Commissions for the Discussion of Drug Addiction

Political Reactions• Conservative politicians in Portugal feared

that a wave of “drug terrorists” would descend upon Portugal because of the lack of drug supervision.

• ''We are offering sun, beaches and any drug you like,'' said Paulo Portas, leader of the conservative Popular Party.

• Police focus had been turned to drug traffickers as opposed to drug users; Portugal’s Socialist government now views users as victims who need help in the forms of counseling.

Drug Users Respond

A drug addict, Margarida Costa, believes that this new system will be more beneficial than jail. She states, “In fact, I started taking drugs in jail…You could get everything you wanted in there, everyday.”

Doctors’ Thoughts

"My aim is to support them, to tell them they can have another way of life - a good life." - Dr Maria Antonia Almeida Santos, from Lisbon Toxicology Commission

Prior to the decriminalization some doctors claimed that, patients would even ask them to unplug his intercom to his secretary for fear that someone might listen in on the consultation.

Media

High number of HIV/AIDS cases Campaigns to raise

awareness

Television, radio & press, posters in clubs and bars

• “The Portuguese Experiment: Did Legalizing Drugs Work?”

•Inaccurate•Discussion of unambiguous success of drug decriminalization and its impact

CATO

Five years after, illegal drug use among teens in Portugal declined

Rates of new HIV infections from sharing dirty needles dropped

Number of people seeking treatment for drug addiction more than doubled

Judging by every metric, decriminalization in Portugal has been a resounding success…it has enabled

the Portuguese government to manage and control the drug problem

far better than virtually every other Western country does

“

”

• Time magazine says decriminalization has been a “huge success”

•Met its central goal

•Addicts learning to control drug usage or get clean at treatment centers

Skepticism

•Not sole reason for decline in drug use

•Peter Reuter, UMCP criminologist•Global decline in marijuana usage

•Drug policy has been success for NOW•Drugs remain harmful•New problems will arise

The Cato Report

Drug Decriminalization in Portugal Looked at data mostly from Institute on Drugs and

Drug Addiction reports What is the Cato Institute?

A Libertarian Think Tank Funded initially by one of the Koch brothers (Koch

Industries) Rupert Murdoch was on board of directors Many corporation give money to Cato

Visa, Wal-Mart, Microsoft

Portugal a “drug haven” for tourists?

No increase in drug tourism - 95% Portuguese

Lifetime Prevalence Rates

13-15 yr olds, all drugs 14.1% in

2001 to 10.6% in 2006

16-18 yr olds, all drugs 14.1% in

1995 to 27.6 in 2001 to 21.6 in 2006

Lifetime Prevalence Rates

Lifetime Prevalence Rates

Gone down for 13-18 yr olds, all drugs

Slight increase in older groups from aging expected as the drug

generation gets older

Usage in teens key to predicting future rates, so that is emphasized

Drug Related Phenomena

The number of people in substitution treatment increased from 6,040 in 1999 to 14,877 in 2003

HIV and AIDS going down (by diagnosis)

Drug Related Death

Opiates: 281 in 2001 to 133 in 2006

All Drugs: 400 in 1999 to 290 in 2006

Drug Rates vs EU

Portugal lower throughout 2001-2006

Conclusions

Destigmatization of drug use

Treatment goes up after user no longer afraid of punishment

Drug related harms go down because more people are being treated

Free citizens from fear of prosecution and imprisonment and push people to treatment

British Journal of Criminology Small increases in reported illicit drug use amongst adults Reduced illicit drug use among problematic drug users and

adolescents, at least since 2003 Reduced burden of drug offenders on the criminal justice

system; Increased uptake of drug treatment; Reduction in opiate-related deaths and infectious diseases; Increases in the amounts of drugs seized by the authorities; Reductions in the retail prices of drugs.

Reactions

Walter Kemp, a spokesperson for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, says decriminalization in Portugal "appears to be working.“

In it’s 2009 World Drug Report the UN said, "These conditions keep drugs out of the hands of those who would avoid them under a system of full prohibition, while encouraging treatment, rather than incarceration, for users. Among those who would not welcome a summons from a police officer are tourists, and, as a result, Portugal's policy has reportedly not led to an increase in drug tourism…It also appears that a number of drug-related problems have decreased.”

U.S. Response

In September 2010, White House drug czar Gil Kerlikowske visited Portugal to gain insight into their drug reform program.

The Obama administration opposes legalization of drugs.

Agrees with Portugal in that, “Looking at this as both a public safety problem and a public health problem seems to make a lot more sense." – Kerlikowske

However, an increasing number of American cities are offering nonviolent drug offenders a chance to choose treatment over jail and it seems to be working.

Drug Courts in the U.S.

In 2010, San Francisco instituted a court program where judges offered drug addicts the chance to go to rehab, get jobs, move houses, find primary care physicians and even remove their tattoos. Data showed that these courts reduced drug relapses and saved money.

There are now more than 2,400 drug courts in the U.S. serving 120,000 people.

Influence on other countries

a record 93 countries worldwide have offered alternatives to jail time for drug abuse in 2010

Switzerland Heroin maintenance

clinics (1994)

addiction has steadily declined.

No one has died from an overdose since the program began

The program is credited with reducing crime and improving addicts' health.

Canada

Vancouver has North America's first legal drug consumption room

"a safe, health-focused place where people inject drugs and connect to health care services."

Other countries that decriminalized small amounts of

personal use of drugs:

BrazilSpainItalyUruguay

Doesn’t work on all countries

Depends on how and what kind of policy is implemented

Ex: In the Netherlands, where police ignore the peaceful consumption of illegal drugs, drug use and dealing are rising, according to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. Five Dutch cities are implementing new restrictions on marijuana cafes after a wave of drug-related gang violence.

Should the United States follow Portugal’s path?

The Obama administration firmly opposes the legalization of drugs, saying that it would increase access and promote acceptance.

“War on Drugs”

The U.S. is spending $74 billion this year on criminal and court proceedings for drug offenders, compared with $3.6 billion for treatment

Should the United States follow Portugal’s path?

Some do not consider Portugal a realistic model for the U.S. because of differences in size and culture between the two countries. America has the highest rates of cocaine and

marijuana use in the world Population of US is 29 times larger than the 10.6

million citizens of Portugal

•References•http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/8106689.stm

•http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1893946,00.html

•http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=portugal-drug-decriminalization

•http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tomchivers/100047485/portugal-drug-decriminalisation-a-resounding-success-will-britain-respond-no/

•http://www.treatmentsolutionsnetwork.com/blog/index.php/2011/01/03/portugals-drug-reform-success/ http://www.idpc.net/php-bin/documents/BFDPP_BP_14_EffectsOfDecriminalisation_EN.pdf.pdf

•http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2009/04/26/portugal

•http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1441460.stm

•http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2009/04/08/portugal/index.html

•http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/05/world/portugal-s-drug-users-go-to-experts-panel-not-jail.html

•http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2001/jul/20/drugsandalcohol.uk

•http://www.thenation.com/article/157007/decriminalizing-povert

• http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/27/portugals-drug-policy-pays-eyes-lessons/

•http://www.drugpolicy.org/global/drugpolicyby/westerneurop/switzerland/

•http://www.aolnews.com/2010/08/14/is-portugals-liberal-drug-policy-a-model-for-us/

•http://www.cato.org/pubs/wtpapers/greenwald_whitepaper.pdf

•http://bjc.oxfordjournals.org/content/50/6/999.full