Portugal’s War on Drugs (2021)

Introduction

Over twenty years ago, Portugal decriminalized drug use in 2001. This country went from being known as ‘the heroin capital of Europe’ to a global leader in the war on drugs. SBS Dateline travels to in Lisbon to find out what Australia can learn from Portugal’s radical approach to decriminalize drugs.

Quotes

“Today is Freedom Day in Portugal, a national holiday that celebrates the country’s shift from authoritarian rule to democracy in 1974.”

“Under Portugal’s decriminalized drug policy, it’s not considered a crime to have up to 10 days worth of drugs for personal use. For marijuana, that’s 25 grams. For cocaine, it’s 2 grams. For heroin, it’s 1 gram.”

“What we mean by decriminalizing is not the same thing as regulating or legalizing. Decriminalizing means that we no longer treat it has a criminal offense, but it’s still an illegal activity, so we deal with as a misdemeanor offense.”

“Instead of appearing before a judge, people found using drugs in Portugal meet with a panel of health experts and social workers. The emphasis is on treatment, not punishment, although repeat offenders can be fined.”

“When democracy arrived in 1974, so did access to the outside world. Along with new prosperity came an influx of drugs. By the 90s, 1-in-10 people were using heroin and Casal Ventoso was home to the biggest open-air drug market in Europe. On average, one person in Portugal was dying from a drug overdose every single day.”

“Decriminalizing drug use means that police are no longer tied up chasing users and can instead focus their efforts on catching the big fish in the drug world.”

“Portugal took an unprecedented step when it decriminalize drug use in 2001. As a result, it went from being the drug capital of Europe, with 1-in-10 people using heroin, to having one of the lowest drug-related death rates in the region.”

“In Australia, illicit drug use is growing and changing. The Coronavirus pandemic has made it harder for users to access cocaine and heroin, while use of new emerging drugs, thought to be more potent and more deadly, has surged. Each state and territory designs its own drug laws and last year the ACT became the first jurisdiction to legalize the use and possession of small amounts of cannabis. Then, in February, a bill was introduced that would follow in Portugal’s footsteps and decriminalize the possession of other illicit drugs.”