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Breaking the Silence
Cannabis prohibition, organized crime and gang violence in British Columbia
Report prepared by the Stop the Violence BC Coalition
October 2011
This brief report outlines the links between cannabis prohibition in British Columbia (Canada) and the growth of organized crime and related violence in the province, and is the first report of a coalition of concerned citizens and experts known as Stop the Violence BC. The report also defines the public health concept “regulation” and seeks to set the stage for a much needed public conversation and action on the part of BC politicians.
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Taking Drugs Seriously
A Demos and UK Drug Policy Commission report on legal highs
Jonathan Birdwell, Jake Chapman & Nicola SingletonDemos
May 2011
Since first coming to public prominence at the end of 2009, legal highs have posed a major challenge to existing legal and legislative structures designed to deal with drugs. With the market in manufactured psychoactive substances like mephedrone moving faster than public policy can accommodate, this report asks whether the assumptions enshrined in the 40-year-old Misuse of Drugs Act (MDA) are still valid when applied 21st century drugs market.
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Controlling and Regulating Drugs
A Review of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975.
New Zealand Law Commission
April 2011
The New Zealand Law Commission was asked to address the efficacy of the Misuse of Drugs Act in reducing the demand for, and supply of, drugs prohibited under the International Drug Conventions. The Commission has recommended the existing Act be repealed and replaced by a new Act administered by the Ministry of Health. Justice Hammond said the thrust of the proposed new Act is to facilitate a more effective interface between the criminal justice and health sectors: “We need to recognise that the abuse of drugs is both a health and a criminal public policy problem.”
Read more...Controlling and Regulating Drugs: A Review of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 - Part 1
Controlling and Regulating Drugs: A Review of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 - Part 2 -
Options for regulating new psychoactive drugs
A review of recent experiences
Peter ReuterUK Drug Policy Commission (UKDPC)
May 2011
This paper is intended to provide the basis for a discussion of policy options in dealing with new psychoactive substances that show signs of popularity and of harmfulness within a wider project being undertaken by the UK Drug Policy Commission and Demos, the outcomes of which are presented in Taking Drugs Seriously: a Demos and UK Drug Policy Commission report on legal highs (Birdwell et
al., 2011).
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Cannabis social clubs in Spain
A normalizing alternative underway
Martín Barriuso AlonsoSeries on Legislative Reform of Drug Policies Nr. 9
January 2011
Cannabis social clubs (CSC) are noncommercial organisations of users who get together to cultivate and distribute enough cannabis to meet their personal needs without having to turn to the black market. They are based on the fact that the consumption of illegal drugs has never been considered a crime under Spanish legislation. Taking advantage of this grey area, private clubs that produce cannabis for non-profit distribution solely to a closed group of adult members have existed for years.
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Non-residents in the Netherlands and access to coffee-shops
The restriction is justified by the objective of combating drug tourism and the accompanying public nuisance
Court of Justice of the European Union
December 16, 2010
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Under the 1976 Law on opium (Opiumwet 1976), the possession, dealing, cultivation, transportation, production, import and export of narcotic drugs, including cannabis and its derivatives, are prohibited in the Netherlands. That Member State applies a policy of tolerance with regard to cannabis. That policy is reflected inter alia in the establishment of coffee-shops, the main activities of which are the sale and consumption of that ‘soft’ drug. The local authorities may authorise such establishments in compliance with certain criteria. In a number of coffee-shops, non-alcoholic beverages and food are also sold.
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All Eyes on California
Prop 19 and the Growing Debate on Marijuana Policy
John WalshWOLA Commentary
October 29, 2010
Registered voters in California will be the ones voting next Tuesday on whether to legalize marijuana under state law. But the ballot initiative in question – Proposition 19 – has sparked debate far beyond the state’s borders. The fate of Prop 19 is being watched especially closely in Latin America, and for good reason. Proximity to the United States – still the world’s major market for illicit drugs – has helped to stimulate robust illicit drug production and distribution networks in the region. And U.S.-backed militarized enforcement to suppress the drug industry, combined with harsh laws to punish drug users, have made the “war on drugs” more than metaphorical in many Latin American countries. Download the document (PDF) -
An economic perspective on the legalisation debate: the Dutch case
Martijn Adriaan BoermansAmsterdam Law Forum, Vol. 2, No. 4
Ocober 26, 2010
Understanding the consequences of drug legalisation versus prohibition is important for policy. Most recently this subject has gained much political attention not only globally, but specifically in the Netherlands. This study will provide a contribution to the legalisation debate based on a microeconomic analysis of the effects of illegal markets. The research question is how to design a coherent soft drugs policy framework that maximizes social welfare within the Netherlands that precludes most historical, sociological and political debates. In particular, attention is restricted to ‘soft drugs’ better known as cannabis derived products like hashish and marijuana.
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Reducing Drug Trafficking Revenues and Violence in Mexico
Would Legalizing Marijuana in California Help?
Beau Kilmer, Jonathan P. Caulkins, Brittany M. Bond, Peter H. ReuterRAND Occasional Paper
October 2010
The United States’ demand for illicit drugs creates markets for Mexican drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) and helps foster violence in Mexico. Some government and media sources have reported that Mexican and Colombian DTOs combined earn $18–$39 billion annually in wholesale drug proceeds and 60 percent of all Mexican DTO drug export revenue comes from marijuana. These numbers have been cited to argue that legalizing marijuana in California would reduce Mexican DTOs’ revenues, thereby reducing violence.
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US Federal Government Data on Cannabis Prohibition
Tools for Debate
International Centre for Science in Drug Policy
October 2010
The report reviews 20 years of data from US government funded surveillance systems on government drug control spending, cannabis seizures and cannabis arrests, in order to assess the impact of enforced cannabis prohibition on cannabis potency, price and availability. The report’s findings highlight the clear failure of cannabis prohibition efforts by showing that as the United States has dramatically scaled up drug law enforcement, cannabis potency has nevertheless increased, prices have dropped, and cannabis remains widely available.
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