Latin America Weighs Less Punitive Path to Curb Drug Use - NYTimes.com - 0 views
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he Supreme Court of Argentina opened a path this week to decriminalizing the private consumption of illicit drugs, becoming the latest Latin American country to reject punitive policies toward drug use.
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Mexico’s Congress voted to end the practice of prosecuting people found to be carrying small amounts of illicit drugs, including marijuana.
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The new laws and court decisions in the region reflect an urgent desire to reject decades of American prescriptions for distinctly Latin American challenges
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In February, a commission led by three former Latin American presidents issued a scathing report that condemned Washington’s “war on drugs” as a failure and urged the region to adopt drug policies found in some European countries that focus more on treatment than punishment
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Latin America is a source of much of the cocaine and marijuana that is distributed throughout North America and Europe. Latin American leaders are struggling with the need to crack down on violent drug traffickers while also trying to stem consumption. Punishing users in Latin America has led to overcrowded prisons and has done little, if anything, to curb overall consumption
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the “prohibitionist approach” to drug control had “wreaked havoc throughout the region, generating crime, violence and corruption on a scale that far exceeds what the United States experienced during alcohol prohibition in the 1920s.”
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In Tuesday’s ruling, the Supreme Court in Argentina declared unanimously that the 2006 arrests for marijuana were unconstitutional under the concept of “personal autonomy” protected by the Constitution.
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Argentina has a serious drug problem, but not especially with the use of marijuana. The country has one of the highest per-capita rates of cocaine use in the world and a growing problem with synthetic drugs like Ecstasy. Some parts of the country have also been afflicted by the rapid rise of “paco,” a cheap and highly addictive drug that combines small amounts of cocaine residue with toxic chemicals
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This is an article from the NY Times that discusses the controversy surrounding the Supreme Court of Argentina's decision to decriminalize the private consumption of illicit drugs.
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In August, the Supreme Court of Argentina decriminalized the private use of illicit drugs. Such inquiries as to whether to accept drug use, help those who are addicted, or maintain the prohibition have arisen internationally at an increased rate recently. The Argentine administration felt that the war on drugs has not succeeded as predicted and it should focus on "treatment (more than) punishment."