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Latin America looks to Europe for drug fighting models
Reuters (UK)
Saturday, November 17, 2012
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Latin American countries are turning to Europe for lessons on fighting drugs after souring on the prohibition-style approach of the violent and costly U.S.-led war on drugs. Until recently, most Latin American countries had zero-tolerance rules on drugs inspired by the United States. But now countries from Brazil to Guatemala are exploring relaxing penalties for personal use of narcotics, following examples such as Spain and Portugal that have channeled resources to prevention rather than clogging jails. -
U.S. marijuana vote may have snowball effect in Latin America
One expert said that if U.S. states such as Colorado and Washington could permit a system for consumption of marijuana that didn't cause usage to soar, "it could mark a snowball effect on Latin America"
Tim Johnson (McClatchy Newspapers)The Seattle Times (US)
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
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Voters in Colorado and Washington state who approved the recreational use of marijuana Tuesday sent a salvo from the ballot box that will ricochet around Latin America, a region that's faced decades of bloodshed from the U.S.-led war on drugs. Experts said the moves were likely to give momentum to countries such as Uruguay that are marching toward legalization, to undercut Mexican criminal gangs and to embolden those who demand greater debate about how to combat illegal substances. -
Biggest blow to Mexico drug cartels? It could be on your state ballot
A Mexican study says legalizing marijuana for recreational use in the US - an issue on the ballot in three US states - could cut the proceeds of Mexican drug gangs by 30 percent
Sara Miller LlanaChristian Science Monitor (US)
Monday, November 5, 2012
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Over the past year, the world has eyed Latin America as it has forged forward, in both policy and politics, with a rethink of the “war on drugs.” (See our recent cover story on “Latin America reinventing the war on drugs” here.) But tomorrow, the world will be watching the United States, the birthplace of the “war on drugs,” as three states vote on legalizing the recreational use of marijuana. -
Narco-states grope for new strategy
Emilio GodoyInterPress Service (IPS)
Monday, November 5, 2012
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Mexico, Colombia and Guatemala face the need to modify their approach to the fight against drug trafficking and are urging the world to do the same. But Mexico and Colombia’s willingness to make the necessary changes is unclear. The three countries are connected by a powerful circuit of trafficking of drugs – whose main market is the United States – weapons and money from illegal activities. But the extent of the problem and the way drug organisations operate in each one of these countries vary. -
Latinamerika udfordrer USA i krigen mod narko
En lang række latinamerikanske regeringer ønsker at legalisere narkotika for at undgå mere vold. USA kæmper imod
Dagbladet Information (Denmark)
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
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I mere end 40 år har de latinamerikanske lande med støtte fra USA forsøgt at bekæmpe narkotrafik med militære midler. Men markedet for kokain og andre narkotika er ikke blevet mindre. Derimod er kampen kun blevet hårdere og koster flere menneskeliv, mens rets- og fængselsvæsen i stigende grad overbelastes i de latinamerikanske lande. -
Coffeeshop, partita aperta
Il commento di Tom Blickman (Transnational Institute, Amsterdam) al voto olandese
Tom BlickmanLa rubrica di Fuoriluogo sul Manifesto
Mercoledi, 3 ottobre 2012
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Contrariamente alle aspettative, le elezioni olandesi di settembre non sono state decisive per il futuro dei coffeeshop. I partiti a favore delle restrizioni ai coffeeshop (o addirittura per la loro abolizione) hanno ottenuto 77 seggi su 150, mentre i contrari al cannabis pass e/o a favore della fornitura legale di cannabis ai coffeeshop ne hanno ottenuti 73. E per governare c’è bisogno di una coalizione. -
How Latin America is reinventing the war on drugs
Frustrated with US dictates, countries across the region are floating new ideas to curb drug trafficking, from 'soft' enforcement to legalization
By Sara Miller Llana, Staff writer, and Sara Shahriari, CorrespondentThe Christian Science Monitor (US)
Monday, July 30, 2012
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Like thousands of other Bolivians, Marcela Lopez Vasquez's parents migrated to the Chapare region, in the Andean tropics, desperate to make a living after waves of economic and environmental upheaval hit farming and mining communities in the 1970s and '80s. -
'Bolletjesslikker opsluiten zinloos'
Patrick MeershoekHet Parool
Zaterdag, 16 juni 2012
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Bolletjesslikkers horen niet in de gevangenis. Het berechten en opsluiten van ongeveer vijftienhonderd kleine drugssmokkelaars per jaar heeft geen noemenswaardig effect op de invoer van cocaïne en vormt een zware belasting voor Openbaar Ministerie, rechtbank en gevangenis. -
At summit, drug talk likely to be hot but hidden
The Summit of the Americas is focused on roads and ports. But behind closed doors, leaders will discuss drug policies
The Miami Herald (US)
Saturday, April 14, 2012
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As the hemisphere’s leaders gather in Colombia this week for the VI Summit of the Americas, their on-camera discussions will be dominated by perennial convention topics: poverty, cooperation, the need for roads. But behind closed doors, they are expected to tackle a more contentious issue: the narcotics trade. -
Guatemalan president leads drug legalization debate
CNN (US)
Friday, March 23, 2012
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On the campaign trail, Otto Perez Molina vowed to rule his country with an iron fist. The retired general said he would send troops into the streets to fight drug violence. Analysts summed up his political platform with three words: law and order. Now – just two months after taking office – the Guatemalan president is pushing a controversial proposal that has come under fire from U.S. officials and earned praise from people who were once his critics. Last year's law-and-order candidate said he wanted to legalize drugs.
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