Pubdate: Wed, 02 May 2012
Source: Lawrence Journal-World (KS)
Copyright: 2012 The Lawrence Journal-World
Contact:  http://www.ljworld.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1075
Author: Andres Oppenheimer

LEGALIZED DRUGS ON AGENDA

When the recent Summit of the Americas in Colombia decided to
commission a study on whether to decriminalize drugs, many thought
that would be the end of it, and the whole thing would be quickly
forgotten. Well, maybe not.

For starters, it was the first time that such a large group of heads
of state ventured into that once taboo area. And there are several
other non-related factors that may contribute to put decriminalization
in the front burner later this year, or in early 2013.

At a closed meeting during the April 14-15 summit of President Barack
Obama and 29 other regional leaders, Obama agreed to ask the
Organization of American States to look into possible alternatives to
the four-decade-old U.S.-backed war on drugs, which many say is
failing. No further details were given.

Last week, I called OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza to find
out whether this is something we should take seriously.

Skeptics say the leaders did what they usually do when they don't know
how to solve a problem: they kicked it forward. It will take years for
the OAS commission to make its recommendations, they say.

But supporters note that the region's pro-legalization movement is
gaining momentum, and that the OAS study may give it further legitimacy.

Only a decade ago, the debate about drug legalization was limited to
academic circles, they note. Then, in 2009, three former presidents -
Fernando Henrique Cardoso of Brazil, Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico and
Cesar Gaviria of Colombia - issued a joint statement supporting
decriminalization of marijuana. Later, former Mexican President
Vicente Fox suggested an even more drastic proposal: legalizing all
drugs.

Earlier this year, for the first time, a sitting Latin American
president - Guatemala's Otto Perez Molina - called for considering an
across-the-board legalization of drugs. Shortly thereafter, Colombian
President Juan Manuel Santos said he supports a "serious debate" on
the issue at the Cartagena summit, which ended with the mandate to the
OAS.

Asked how soon the OAS will complete the study, Insulza told me that
they want to finish it by the end of this year, and release it by next
March.

It will be a comprehensive study that will look into the business of
drug trafficking, the success or failure of various European countries
that have experimented with decriminalization and regulation of the
drug trade, as well as ways to improve education, prevention and
rehabilitation, he said. Several other regional institutions,
including the Pan American Health Organization and the Inter-American
Development Bank, will participate in the study, he added.

"What will be new is that we will offer several alternatives to what
is being done right now," Insulza said. "The idea is not to tell
presidents what should be done, but to give them a menu of options."

My opinion: Several factors will converge late this year, or in early
2013, to place the drug debate at the top of the U.S.-Latin American
diplomatic agenda.

First, Mexico will inaugurate a new president in December, and, no
matter what the candidates say now, the winner of the July 1 election
will want to create distance from the current war on drugs, which has
left more than 50,000 dead over the past five years.

Second, California, Oregon and Washington are scheduled to include
pro-marijuana legalization propositions on their ballots in this
November's elections. A victory of one or more of those propositions
would embolden legalization forces, and weaken Latin America's resolve
to fight the drug cartels militarily.

Third, the OAS study may include decriminalization of marijuana among
its "menu of options," encouraging more presidents to join the
pro-decriminalization camp. The OAS, which has not been doing a good
job defending democracy or human rights lately, may take its drug
policy mandate seriously, if anything else to become more relevant.

A blanket legalization of hard drugs may not be the best idea, but if
the OAS report concludes that decriminalization of marijuana would
give countries more resources to help combat harder drugs, it will be
a better alternative than the war on drugs that is costing so many
lives - and money - nowadays.
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