LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP)-- U.S. investigators have traced $132 million in Swiss banks to the brother of a former Mexican president and say at least some of the money came from drug traffickers, according to court documents released Friday. Switzerland's highest court disclosed for the first time details of the largely secret U.S. case against Raul Salinas de Gortari, the brother of former President Carlos Salinas de Gortari. The Federal Tribunal made the disclosure in a decision allowing some bank account documents to be turned over to U.S. authorities, who have accused Salinas, his wife and others of money laundering, bribery and cocaine trafficking. [continues 182 words]
ZURICH -- Long-time heroin addict and dealer Marco P. may have hit bottom when he drew a 3 1/2-year prison term, but his habit did not. Behind bars, the fierce addiction that has consumed 17 of his 32 years continued. Now, thanks to a national heroin-dispensing program that last year earned ringing approval from Switzerland's cautious electorate, Marco sees some rays of hope. Three times a day, he shows up at the squeaky-clean injection room of the Project Crossline clinic, housed in a nondescript government building. And at one of its steel counters, under the close scrutiny of health-care professionals, he does what he used to do at home, or in parks or alleys : fill a vein with top-quality heroin. [continues 738 words]
Following voters' rejection in last year's national referendum of proposals aimed at forcing rapid abstinence on drug users, the Swiss government has issued a decree regarding treatment. This is accompanied by indications of the approximate total of addicts currently eligible for treatment under medical supervision: 800 on heroin, 100 on morphine, and about 100 on methadone. The decree does not set limits on the number of addicts who may receive treatment. Experimental administration of heroin, started in 1994, shows that between 2000 and 3000 people (about one in 10 of those believed to be on "hard" drugs) are "heavily dependent" addicts, most have tried repeatedly to break the habit. Authority for the existing programme expires in 2000; the decree extends it until a new law comes into force, expected not later than 2004. In it, heroin may be categorised as a medication, possibly prescribed by specially trained family doctors and paid for by sickness insurance. [end]