The Research Consortium on Drugs and the Law (CEDD)
The Research Consortium on Drugs and the Law (Colectivo de Estudios Drogas y Derecho, CEDD) brings together researchers from seven Latin American countries with the goal of analyzing the impact of criminal law and legal practice surrounding illicit drugs. The CEDD seeks to foster a debate about the effectiveness of the current drug policies and recommends policy alternatives that are more balanced and effective.
The CEDD was created in the context of the growing evidence that international policies on drug control have not decreased drug use, have not stopped the cultivation of crops for illicit markets, and have not reduced drug trafficking. The effects of drug laws fall disproportionately on the most vulnerable and disadvantaged peoples, and have the undesired consequence of overwhelming the criminal justice system.
The Consortium's creation was driven by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and the Transnational Institute (TNI) after the publication of a 2010 study Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America, on the impact of drug laws on prison systems in eight Latin American countries.
The new series of studies critically examine whether the principle of proportionality is applied in drug related crimes and punishments. The studies find that punishment for drug offenses and the treatment of offenders is disproportionate, which often generates more harm than the intended benefit.
CEDD Members:
The CEDD includes members from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, United States, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Peru:
Argentina: Alejandro Corda, Intercambios Asociación Civil
Brazil: Luciana Boiteux, Professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, and João Pedro Padua, Director of Psicotropicus.
Bolivia: Rose Marie Achá, Justicia Penal Juvenil en Defensa de Niñas y Niños (DNI)
Colombia: Diana Guzmán and Rodrigo Uprimny, DeJusticia
Ecuador: Jorge Paladines, Andean University
Estados Unidos: Coletta Youngers, Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)
México: Catalina Pérez Correa, Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE)
Países Bajos: Pien Metaal, Transnational Institute (TNI)
Perú: Jérôme Mangelinckx y Ricardo Soberón, Centro de Investigación ‘Drogas y Derechos Humanos’ (CIDDH)
Studies on disproportionate sentencing for drug crimes
Executive Summary and comparison between the seven countries: The Punitive Addiction: Disproportionality of Drug Laws in Latin America (Spanish only)
Argentina: Disproportionality and the economic, institutional, and human costs of the anti-drug laws in Argentina (Spanish only)
Bolivia: Disproportionality in the Bolivian penal system against drugs (Spanis only)
Ecuador: Disproportionality in law and the anti-drug programme (Spanish only)
Mexico: (Dis) proportionality and drug crimes in Mexico (Spanish only)
Peru: The principle of proportionality in trials for illicit drug trafficking in Peru (Spanish only)
