"On July 1, 2001, a nationwide law in Portugal took effect that decriminalized all drugs, including cocaine and heroin. Under the new legal framework, all drugs were "decriminalized," not 'legalized.' Thus, drug possession for personal use and drug usage itself are still legally prohibited, but violations of those prohibitions are deemed to be exclusively administrative violations and are removed completely from the criminal realm. Drug trafficking continues to be prosecuted as a criminal offense. . .Notably, decriminalization has become increasingly popular in Portugal since 2001. Except for some far-right politicians, very few domestic political factions are agitating for a repeal of the 2001 law. And while there is a widespread perception that bureaucratic changes need to be made to Portugal's decriminalization framework to make it more efficient and effective, there is no real debate about whether drugs should once again be criminalized. More significantly, none of the nightmare scenarios touted by preenactment decriminalization opponents — from rampant increases in drug usage among the young to the transformation of Lisbon into a haven for 'drug tourists' — has occurred."
The paper you linked has a bunch of interesting charts, all showing Portugal low on the list of European countries that face large drug associated problems.
ReplyDeleteSo they are not leaving the matter entirely up to the individual, which I thought at first. That would be 'legalizing' the drugs, correct? In this case, they still hold that state has jurisdiction in this realm of a person's life, they just decrease the form and extent of punishment?
I'm curious about that, too. What's the difference between an adminstrative offense and a criminal one?
ReplyDeleteWhen my dog ran off in Waco, I was given a ticket by the city and had to pay a fine. That's an administrative offense, from what I understand. I guess the Portugal drug policy treats personal drug use in a similar manner.
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