Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform congratulates and welcomes the second report from
Australia21 entitled “Alternatives to prohibition – Illicit drugs: How we can stop killing and
criminalising young Australians”.

“Australia21 is one of the few organisations that has had the courage to speak publicly on the
grave consequences that is visited on young people and their families because of  our prohibition
drug laws,” said Brian McConnell, President of Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform.
“Prohibition has been an experiment that has failed. Even though the United Nations recognised
this in 1988, it and the rest of the world persisted, thinking that if they tried even harder it might
just work. ”

In its 1988 convention on drugs the UN, among other things, said that it was “Deeply concerned
also by the steadily increasing inroads into various social groups made by illicit traffic in
narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, and particularly by the fact that children are used in
many parts of the world as an illicit drug consumers market and for purposes of illicit production,
distribution and trade in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, which entails a danger of
incalculable gravity.”

And yet it continued with the same failed policies with no evaluation and it even believed that it
could achieve a drug free world by 2008.

“Australia21 has examined the prohibition policy and has identified some of the possible options
for consideration. In short Australia21 has thrown the gauntlet down and challenged Australian
governments to discuss the alternatives,” said McConnell.

“It is telling that Australia21 has focused on the fact that the drug laws are killing our young
people as this report is released just one day after the 20th anniversary of the overdose death of
my oldest son. If the use of drugs had not been driven underground by the prohibition laws and if
it had been treated just as a health problem, we would not have been in the dark about his drug use
and we might have been able to save his life.”

The report examines the measures being taken in respect of drugs in a number of countries. It
looks favourably on the Swiss prescription heroin scheme, the Dutch cannabis model and the
Portuguese decriminalisation approach. The Swiss scheme has clearly been effective and it was
just such a scheme that was proposed in 1997 in Australia, and approved by all health and justice
ministers, but because of pressure by the USA, was vetoed by John Howard. Many young lives
have been lost because of that decision.

The Portuguese decriminalised all drugs for personal use in 2001 with mostly positive results .
Lisa Prior, journalist, writer and medical student, has said in the report “one of the things I like
about the Portuguese system is that I would feel more confident of dobbing drug addicted kids in
to the police, confident that the outcome would help rather than [the alternative] jail.”

“I, also would be more confident,” said McConnell. “But it would be for the reason that drug use
would not be hidden and driven underground, but would be more open, where young people
would be more likely to discuss their problems with their parents and seek help early.”
Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform urges all governments to seriously consider this report
from the independent organisation Australia21.

“I personally urge parents who have been affected in the same way that my family has to speak
out, to overcome the shame and stigma heaped on them by the current laws, and take this
opportunity to save the lives of our young people,” said McConnell.

Health groups support new report urging drug law reform in Australia

Two of Australia’s leading public health advocacy groups have expressed their unwavering support for the latest Australia 21 report, Alternatives to Prohibition.

The report follows the release in April of the inaugural report The Prohibition of Illicit Drugs is Killing and Criminalising our Children and we are all letting it happen and its finding that the “war on drugs” had failed. Today’s  considers the experience in several European countries where emphasis has shifted from drug law enforcement to health and social intervention.

The Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) and the Alcohol and other Drugs Council of Australia (ADCA), the peak AOD body representing Australia’s non-government sector, unreservedly back the intent of the new report. They say the exploration of alternatives to enforcement in the Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal and Sweden had resulted in many positives.

The overseas experience is that drug policy reform which increases the emphasis on health and social intervention can reduce deaths, disease and crime.

PHAA Acting CEO Melanie Walker said, “Former Prime Minister Rudd hit the nail on the head when he observed that Australia spends only around one percent of the health budget on prevention but 70 times that amount treating people when they get sick. There are similar comparisons with the amount spent on public health drug programs which is hugely outweighed by funds poured into law enforcement.

ADCA patron Professor Ian Webster says that Australia needs to take a far more enlightened view. “Our Government must look at what is happening with drug policy developments overseas and be prepared to confront the issues at home.”

“This new report focuses on growing expert opinion, evidence and experience, presenting a compelling case for drug law reform. The fact is that some of these drugs are important to the provision of good medical care in Australia, notably in the management of acute and chronic pain.

“The contribution that many eminent Australians have made to the Alternatives to Prohibition report is based on this understanding, opinions that can no longer be ignored.”

Melanie Walker says that all levels of the community must be aware that decriminalisation doesn’t mean legalisation. “No public health advocate condones drug use but when experts in the field – many of whom contributed to the Australia 21 report – say decriminalisation should be part of a regime to address the illicit drug problem, it’s time governments listened.

“We can’t go on ignoring the cost to society of drugs, not just illicit drugs but also alcohol and tobacco. And no one of these should be considered in isolation from the others.”

ADCA CEO David Templeman says the new report heightens the need for debate at all levels on the decriminalisation of drugs.

“Advocacy groups were disappointed by the Prime Minister’s and Attorney General’s earlier response to the original Australia 21 report in April. The weight of broader community opinion and evidence warrants far more reasoned consideration by decision-makers on all sides of politics.

“The Commonwealth needs to show leadership on this issue. The new report cites the European experience that reducing the emphasis on drug law enforcement doesn’t appear to increase drug use. The past in Europe – and here in Australia – highlights the failure of drug law enforcement efforts alone to reduce drug use.

“Senior law enforcement figures, including former AFP Commissioner Mick Palmer and politicians from across the spectrum have observed that the war on drugs is an unmitigated failure. Thirty years and countless billions have been devoted to it … to what avail?”

The advocacy groups say over-reliance on drug law enforcement doesn’t align with the intent of Australia’s National Drug Strategy (NDS).

Of the three pillars of the NDS – demand, supply and harm reduction – it is reasonable to say the funding emphasis is currently on law enforcement and reduction of supply. Such emphasis leads to an imbalance and over-reliance on policing effort that has typified the “war on drugs” for the past three decades, an imbalance that has seen public health programs poorly funded in comparison.

It’s time for a new approach.