Drug Watch International
DRUG WATCH WORLD NEWS
| Vol. I; 1997 | Number 1 |
AN
ISLAND UNDER SIEGE
By: Peter Stoker, Dir. NDPA
PO Box 594, Slough, SL1 IAA, United Kingdom
Phone/Fax: + 44 1753 677917
Britain
continues to be heavily targeted by the international legalisation movement with
increasingly sophisticated techniques. The
“Harm Reduction” movement, spawned in the Liverpool area a decade ago, has
merged with the rave/dance club scene, which was born a few years later in
Manchester. The drug of choice on
the dance scene is Ecstasy (MDMA), then Amphetamine, with other drugs such as
Ketamine being used. Columbian
cut-price heroin is reportedly being introduced.
“Safer
Dancing” is the latest alias for Harm Reduction.
The suggestion of mobile testing labs outside clubs has been heavily
criticised by National Poisons Unit Director Dr. John Henry.
The quality of such a lab is uncertain; the purity of Ecstasy does not
remove its intrinsic toxicity; and the message of quiescence to youth is
studiously ignored.
Cannabis
campaigning continues throughout Britain. Passage of "medicalization"
legislation in Arizona and California hardly helped, even though the nonsensical
basis of the referenda is clear. Media
articles eulogising cannabis continue in carefully orchestrated waves.
Methadone abuse is one of Scotland's biggest problems.
Northern Ireland's abuse levels are climbing fast.
The
national strategy, “Tackling Drugs Together,” published in May 1995, has
prevention as a priority, but a woolly definition of prevention has played into
the hands of those who claim prevention doesn't work.
Legalisers have hijacked the strategy, saying, "Yes.
We must have more drug education. And
we are the people to deliver it." Prevention
conferences are subverted into platforms for pro-drug valedictions.
However,
there are signs of sanity breaking out in several quarters.
One bright beacon is the National Drug Prevention Alliance (NDPA), which,
after three years, now has a specific project work grant to enable it to build
strongly.
NDPA
has attracted national and local TV, radio and press coverage.
Meetings with Government ministers, opposition parties and key national
bodies have lifted its profile. NDPA
includes an Executive level of professionals plus a general membership of lay
and professional groups, concerned parents and youth.
Total constituency is estimated at 10 million people.
NDPA
has launched a new Strategy Document upgrading existing national strategy,
particularly in prevention. Britain's
upcoming General Election may help to concentrate minds.
NDPA was included in an exhibition this February at the Houses of Parliament on the theme “Tackling Drugs Together — the People Who Make Things Happen.” That is certainly the NDPA's function!
AUSTRALIA'S
HARM REDUCTION STRATEGY: A FAILURE
By:
Jill Pearman
Since
1985,"harm reduction" has formed the cornerstone of Federal Government
Drug policy in Australia. Governments and their advisers have aggressively
pursued and enforced the theory that promoting safe drug use will increase the
health of young Australians. The research showing the success of "harm
reduction" to reduce drug use is markedly absent.
Australian government research clearly demonstrates the failure of this
policy, as numerous studies show incredible increases in drug use for 12-16 year
olds.
Drug
education in schools is the most concerning area of this policy, and this is
where "harm reduction" is truly becoming "harm promotion."
This can best be demonstrated by a document entitled "Drug
Sense" which is used extensively in secondary schools in New South Wales.
This document states: "The aim of harm reduction is to reduce harmful and
hazardous drug use, and promote responsible and safer use of drugs. The program
attempts to facilitate young people's discovery of their own drug use patterns,
the potential harms, and the choices they make in relation to their drug
use."
This
policy, with its lack of prevention and its promotion of “safe” drug use,
has clearly failed to reduce demand and reduce “harmful” use. Our young
people are growing up thinking it normal to damage their mind and their body
with drugs. The ironic aspect to this deadly strategy is that our government,
and those who further this farce, boasts that Australia leads the world in this
area.
It
is time that our leaders wake up and realise that other countries have succeeded
in reducing usage rates. These
reductions have been achieved by good prevention, community asset building,
parental empowerment, and clear and concise leadership for our young about the
health risks associated with drug use. The well being and health of Australia's
youth is presently under enormous threat due to this ill-conceived, non-proven
experiment called "harm reduction."
CANADA
– WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?
Director Education & Research, Lambton Families In
Action For Drug Education
Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
There's
plenty wrong with the drugs picture in Canada and most of our politicians are
wringing their hands and saying they don't know why.
After
a decade of declining adolescent drug use, PRIDE Canada's annual survey shows
adolescent drug use is escalating at an alarming pace.
Marijuana and hallucinogen use has nearly tripled; cocaine use has nearly
quadrupled; 3% of high school students carry a gun to school (approximately
27,000 Ontario students); 14% carry a knife (approximately 126,000 Ontario
students); and 35% had threatened to harm another student or a teacher
(approximately 315,000 Ontario students).
What
is contributing to Canada's escalating drugs problems?
FACT: "Harm reduction" (aka
- the old, failed, responsible drug use messages of the 1970s) has become the
main focus of all Canadian drug policy.
FACT: The majority of our
politicians seem to be unable to
grasp the basic fact that marijuana
and other drugs have been proven to be dangerous to our health and safety.
FACT: Under our new laws a person
can have up to 30 grams of marijuana (100 marijuana cigarettes) in their
possession and only be given a fine or ticket.
FACT: Our government has sent mixed
messages to our youth by legalizing the growing of hemp (marijuana).
FACT: The recent American
referendums to legalize marijuana and other drugs in California and Arizona have
done irreparable damage to the youth, not only of the USA, but also in Canada
and other countries. It is astonishing and appalling that the American public is
sitting back and letting a small group of "outsiders" virtually tell
you how to vote.
Canadians
and Americans are well known to "go to bat" for the underdog
worldwide. When is the North American public going to "go to bat" for
our underdogs in this whole mess - our children? Aren't they worth the fight as
well?
PART
OF THE DRUG PROBLEM
Hassela Nordic Network
In
the 1996 report of the Vienna-based UN agency International Narcotics Control
Board (INCB), the Board states in paragraph 209 that "In two states
(California and Arizona) in the United States, referendums were approved in
November 1996 which would, if implemented, permit a broad use of cannabis, for
alleged medical purposes. The Board
appreciates the firm stand of the authorities of the United States against such
indirect but evident attempts to legalize cannabis.
The Board notes with concern that well-financed, non-profit
foundations sponsor institutions that are developing strategies for the
legalization of drugs."
Financier
and philanthropist George Soros has stated that “… I’ll tell you what I
would do if it were up to me. I
would establish a strictly controlled distribution network through which I would
make most drugs, excluding the most dangerous ones like crack, legally
available" (in Soros on Soros, John Wiley & Sons Inc., 1995,
p.200). He certainly is working
hard to promote this idea. According
to articles in the Washington Post, the New York Times and Newsweek,
Soros and the Drug Policy Foundation (DPF) gave almost $1 million dollars in
support of the California and Arizona initiatives. And he is prepared to give more.
In
a lengthy guest column in the Washington Post Outlook section March 2,
1997, Soros wrote, "The voters in Arizona and California have demonstrated
that it is possible to support sensible and compassionate drug policies while
still being tough on drugs … I hope that other states will follow suit"
and "I shall be happy to support some of these efforts."
There
is a grave misunderstanding here. Voters
in Arizona and California did NOT demonstrate that it is possible to support
sensible and compassionate drug policies. According
to many in California and Arizona, through an enormous campaign, voters were
tricked into believing that distribution of so called “medical” marijuana
would be a sign of a sensible and compassionate drug policy, obviously unaware
of, or not told about, the findings presented in the “Mecca of Cannabis” —
The Netherlands.
In
an executive summary of publication no. 1996/21, “Marihuana as medicine”
from the Standing Committee on Medicine of the Health Council of the
Netherlands, the Committee states that
"In
order to assess the efficacy of marihuana and cannabinoids for these
indications, (chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting; as an appetite stimulant
in AIDS patients and cancer patients; as a muscle relaxant and tremor-suppressor
in multiple sclerosis; intraocular pressure lowering in glaucoma) the Committee
has studied the literature published during the past 25 years.
On the basis of this literature survey, the Committee has concluded that
evidence is insufficient to justify the medical use of marihuana."
Recently
the GGD (the Municipal Health Service) in the Dutch city of Groningen conducted
a survey on drug use among teenagers in Groningen and found, among other things,
that 30 percent of the Secondary Education pupils had used marijuana, hashish or
weed once or more; compared to 15 percent in 1992. The figure has doubled in four years. The survey further states that as pupils grow older, more of
them smoke and/or use so called “soft drugs;” 37 percent at age 13 and 60
percent at age 17. The Municipal
Health Service in Groningen warns: "It is clear that this will have
considerable consequences for the population’s state of health in the
future." It is equally clear
that the Municipal Health Service in Groningen fears that problems will
increase, not decrease, with easy access to cannabis products.
Now,
Soros and his liberalization/legalization advocates obviously are prepared to
contribute towards such consequences for the U.S. population’s state of health
in the future.
What
then can be expected from Soros? According
to his own words: "Initially, I would keep prices low enough to destroy the
drug trade. Once that objective was
attained I would keep raising the prices, very much like the excise duty on
cigarettes, but I would make an exception for registered addicts in order to
discourage crime. I would use a
portion of the income for prevention and treatment." (Soros on Soros,
p. 200).
Is
Soros really naive enough to believe that lowering the prices would destroy the
drug trade and that the illegal market wouldn’t reappear when he started
raising the prices?
There
is no doubt that an absolute majority of the global population wants freedom
from drugs, not freedom to do drugs.
As
long as George Soros doesn’t realize the harm of advocating liberalization
and/or legalization of presently illicit drugs, he and his money will be a
threat to individuals, families and nations worldwide.
He will remain part of the drug problem, not a part of a solution.
THE UNITED STATES
FIGHTS BACK
By:
Susie Dugan, Vice President Drug Watch International
Director, Drug Watch USA Delegates
As
adolescent use of psychoactive drugs rises at an alarming rate, U.S. drug
prevention organizations are fighting back against the influences of the wealthy
and powerful pro-drug legalization movement.
Each
new survey gives proof of the dramatic increase in teen drug use.
The most recent surveys by Partnership for a Drug Free America and PRIDE
found drug use by teens has doubled since 1992.
Research
indicates that drug use increases as the perception of harm decreases.
American teens' attitudes about drugs and drug use have changed from a
decade ago when teen drug use was dramatically down.
There is a new perception that no harmful consequences result from drug
use. Many kids will tell adults,
repeating the mantra of the legalizers, "After all, marijuana is medicine;
it can't hurt you."
Children
pay close attention to the arguments of the pro-drug legalization movement.
U.S. teens are aware that California and Arizona voters declared
marijuana medicine. Do they know of
the many articles, including those in the New York Times, the Washington Post,
and Newsweek, stating that both campaigns were financed and orchestrated by
wealthy pro-drug groups such as the Drug Policy Foundation, the Marijuana Policy
Project, NORML, and billionaire George Soros, who offered to bankroll additional
efforts to legalize marijuana in other states?
Drug
Watch International has established an information center in Omaha, Nebraska,
which will provide factual, research-based scientific information.
Information has been sent to a number of states that have legislation
pending to promote marijuana as medicine or marijuana hemp as a profitable fiber
for farmers.
Drug
Watch is circulating a resolution against marijuana as "medicine,"
which will be delivered to our national leaders.
U.S. prevention groups are fighting to stiffen penalties against drug
use, even as NORML is boasting on the Internet that pro-drug laws are being
introduced.
The
California and Arizona Propositions were a wake up call to America.
Those who scoffed at the "ludicrous" notion that this country
would ever legalize drugs have received a rude awakening.
Legalizing
drugs could enslave a whole generation of our children and bring down with them
the most powerful nation the world has ever known. We must never let that happen!
THE VALUE OF A
RESTRICTIVE DRUG POLICY
By:
Mrs. Gun Hellsvik, Former Minister of Justice, Sweden
At present, she is a member of the Swedish Parliament
For
some time, it has been widely felt in many major cities around the world that
the drug abuse situation is out of control, and it seems that politicians have
given up the fight against narcotics. Instead, they are focusing, to a greater
or lesser degree, on the legalization of drug use. This is a course which we will not accept in Sweden.
Dealing
with narcotics is one of the areas which receives top priority in Swedish crime
policy. This priority has also been
implemented, and Sweden — as a result of this hard-line attitude — has a
better narcotics situation than many other countries.
Today,
Sweden has a restrictive drug policy by international standards, but this has
not always been the case. Thirty
years ago, an experimental project involving the legal prescription of drugs was
launched in Sweden. The experiment
was partly a response to the perception that police action, on its own, could
not stem the tide of drug abuse. One
of the reasons for canceling the project was the extensive leakage of legally
prescribed drugs into the illegal market. A
study of the patients who took part in the experiment indicated that, although
drug offences virtually ceased during the experiment, there was an increase in
the overall crime rate.
When
the drug problem was relatively new, it was natural to concentrate a high
proportion of resources on law enforcement. But, so far, experience has shown
that the problem cannot be solved solely by a one-sided emphasis on control
measures.
Swedish
experience indicates that a one-sided concentration on harm reduction, for
example the legal prescription of drugs, does not solve the problem either.
In
Sweden, we have reached the conclusion that a successful demand reduction
strategy must be part of a broader policy.
The key factors are to ensure good conditions for all children and young
people, and to build up a protective mechanism which gives warning when a young
person risks becoming involved in drug abuse.
This
is a responsibility primarily for parents entailing and retaining basic family
values, but it is also a job for the municipal social welfare services.
If
we decided to concentrate exclusively on care and treatment, drugs would soon
flood the market. This, in turn, would lead to an increase in the number of drug
users. Reducing the supply and
reducing the demand cannot be kept separate.
In fact, a close interaction between preventive measures, control policy
by means of law enforcement and the treatment of drug users makes the separate
elements in our drug policy more effective.
There
are some encouraging indications of an improvement in Sweden. The proportion of
young drug users is steadily declining. Today, only ten percent of the heavy
drug abusers are under the age of 25. In
1979, the corresponding figure was 37 percent.
Survey
findings for the national school population show that, at the beginning of the
1970s, 13 percent of the pupils in the final year of compulsory schooling
reported that they had tried drugs at least once. The corresponding figure between 1983 and 1992 varied between
three and five percent.
A
properly coordinated narcotics policy can, in itself, be a powerful message with
a preventive effect. We believe that our clear and unambiguous anti-drugs policy
has helped us to transform the flood of new recruits to drug abuse in the 1970s
into a small trickle in the
INTERNATIONAL
NEWS BRIEFS
(Spring
1997)
Marijuana smoke transmits aspergillosis, a fungus having up to a 90% fatality
rate if contracted by transplant patients.
Researchers have strongly warned against the use of marijuana in immuno-compromised
patients such as those with AIDS, chronic granulomatous disease, bone marrow
transplants and those receiving chemotherapy for small cell lung cancer.
Long term use of marijuana is known to result in progressively impaired ability
to process complex information.
The major psychoactive component of marijuana, delta-9 THC, has been shown in
human and experimental animals to affect the immune system.
In a study, published in the 'New England Journal of Medicine,' doctors warn
that inhaling heroin vapour, popularly known as "chasing the dragon,"
can severely damage parts of the brain responsible for movement.
Chasing the dragon is gaining popularity among drug users in the U.S. as
a means of ingesting heroin that averts the risk of exposure to HIV.
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected an Iowa man's appeal to ease tough restrictions
on the use of pot as an accepted medication.
A study by Karin Kallen, University of Lund, Sweden, reports "The present
study supports a connection between maternal smoking during pregnancy and all
limb reduction malformations."
The Dutch government is currently trying to "sell" their liberal
national drugs policy to other European countries.
However, a study by the
Dutch network of research institutes found that marijuana use by Dutch
schoolchildren has more than doubled since 1990.
The Medical Society of the State of New York opposes the concept of making
sterile needles and syringes available to known drug abusers.
A public opinion poll conducted between January 27 and January 31, 1997, by Dr.
Bruce D. Merrill, Professor of Mass Communications and Director of the Media
Research Center in the Walter Cronkite School at Arizona State University,
overwhelmingly supports the conclusion that Arizonans believe the enactment of
Proposition 200 created dangerous unintended consequences.
87% believe that marijuana and other illicit drugs should undergo
vigorous testing to make sure they are safe and effective BEFORE doctors would
be permitted to prescribe them.
The Health Council of the Netherlands, Standing Committee on Medicine, studied
the literature published during the past 25 years.
On the basis of this literature survey, the Committee has concluded that
evidence is insufficient to justify the medical use of marihuana.
Particular attention was paid to applications for which marijuana is
alleged to be effective -- chemotherapy-induced nausea, appetite stimulant in
AIDS, multiple sclerosis, and glaucoma.
In January Portugal began a campaign to create a national mobilization against
the increasing use of drugs. Portuguese
politicians and public figures from various political parties took to the
streets across the country to hold public meetings and visit schools.
De Hoop, the Christian Psychiatric Hospital for addicts in Dordrecht, the
Netherlands, recently asked the Dutch Justice Minister to take measures against Highlife,
a drug magazine. According to the
centre, the distribution of information in the magazine is against the law. De
Hoop is very worried about the increase and normalization of cannabis use in the
Netherlands and says that Highlife magazine gives the wrong impression
that the use of so called “soft drugs” is not harmful and thereby misinforms
and misleads the readers.
(HNN
1/24/97)
Robert Kampia, of the Washington based Marijuana Policy Project, a
pro-legalization activist organization, said initiatives patterned after the
California proposition would be submitted in early 1997 to legislatures in
Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Texas, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa,
Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The regional government of Schleswig-Holstein intends to allow the sale of
marijuana in pharmacies. The German
Ministers of Justice and Health, supported by pharmacists' organizations and
other experts have declared that they will use all legal procedures to oppose
the regulation.
In 1992 the murder rate per 100,000 in the U.S. was 9.31.
In Holland, where drug use is liberalized, it was 24.8 per 100,000.
Arrests for cannabis: (Report
from Drug Policy in the Netherlands, Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Health and
Welfare, Justice, and Interior. Rijswijk,
October 1995)
Dutch - 238,258
Germany - 25,694
France - 58,014
Britain - 59,904
Spain - 219,195
Comments
from HNN Conference, June 1996
Eduard Lintner, Drug Commissioner of the Federal Government of Bonn,
stated that he and the Minister of Health would not allow legalization of even
small amounts of drugs.
Sir Jack Stewart-Clark, MEP, Vice President European Parliament, stated
that there were 1 million Ecstasy users in England and that the majority of
amphetamines in England were made in The Netherlands.
Jurgen Storbeck, Coordinator of Europol Drugs Unit in The Hague, stated
that the annual consumption of illicit drugs worldwide is between 500 and 800
billion dollars.
A. Hamid Ghodse, former UNDCP President compared "harm
reduction" to jumping from a 50' building.
It doesn't matter if you land on your head or your feet, you'd still be
dead.
Lower IQ in toddlers is linked to prenatal exposure to marijuana.
(Day
et al, Neurotoxicology and Teratology, 16;169-175, 1994 - MJRR 9/95)
Marijuana smoke contains carcinogens and more tars than tobacco smoke.
A recent study showed that marijuana users incur increased accidents,
illnesses, and health care costs. They
also had a 50% increased risk of being admitted to the hospital.
(Western
Journal of Medicine, Vol. 158, 596-601, 1993 - MJRR 10/96)
Marijuana use affects brain function and produces an attention deficit.
Increasing duration of cannabis use leads to progressively impaired
information processing.
STATISTICS
FROM THE NETHERLANDS:
From 1991-1993 there was a 49% rise of registered cannabis addicts.
(Dutch National Committee on Drug Prevention)
In 1988 there were 3 organized crime groups.
In 1993 there were 93.
(Dutch National Committee on Drug Prevention)
73% of Dutch people think drug laws are too tolerant.
(University of Amsterdam questionnaire)
82% of Dutch think drug use is wrong. 61% said all drugs should be prohibited.
(University
of Rotterdam poll)
STATISTICS
FROM CANADA:
A
study by McGill and Montreal universities of nearly 1600 injection drug users
found that those who participated in Montreal needle-exchange programmes were
two times more -- not less -- likely to become infected with HIV than those who
did not.
Prenatal
marijuana exposure showed that at age 4 and older, children showed increased
behavioral problems and decreased performance on visual perceptual tasks,
language comprehension, sustained attention and memory.
STATISTICS
FROM SWEDEN:
Impaired cognitive skills and functioning were documented in chronic cannabis
users, creating "a new state of consciousness that can best be described as
a cannabis dependent effect."
(Lundqvist,
Life Science, Vol. 56, 1995)
QUOTE
WITHOUT COMMENT
"The (British) Government is firmly against the legalisation or
decriminalisation of any drug controlled by the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971."
"With legalisation, the number of people dependent on drugs would
increase."
"There is evidence that the international drug trafficking organisations
target those countries with weak laws or controls."
"There would be no turning back from legalising cannabis or any other
controlled drug. The Government is
totally opposed to taking such a step and is determined not to do so."
(Tackling
Drugs Together, A consultation document on a strategy for England 1995-98)
The
American Medical Association's (AMA) Policy on the use of marijuana states: "The AMA supports
evaluation of therapeutic uses of non-inhaled preparations of cannabinoids
through well designed scientific studies."
"One
cannot experiment at the expense of people. Behavior leading to drug dependency has no chance of being
corrected if the products which reinforce this behavior are put on sale
freely." . . . "Does the state really have the financial means and the
personnel to face the growth of health problems which the liberalization of
drugs would inevitably involve?"
The
following medical organizations in the United States have stated that marijuana has not been scientifically
shown to be safe or effective as medicine:
American Medical Association
American Cancer Society
National Multiple Sclerosis Association
American Academy of Ophthalmology
National Eye Institute
National Cancer Institute
National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke
National Institute of Dental Research
National Institute on Allergy and Infectious Diseases
(Resolution
Against Marijuana Cigarettes as Medicine, Drug Watch 1/5/97)
INTERESTING
ACTIVITY . . .What message does he intend to communicate?
George Soros, a large financial supporter of the international drug legalization
movement, is a big believer in the Internet, thus establishing an information
system that will probably be impregnable, distributing information to thousands
of people in a way that would be difficult to block.
(The
New Yorker, 1-23-95, p 73)
George Soros, in early 1994, acquired the research institute and information
network of Radio Free Europe. The
Daily and weekly news analyses of the region are extremely influential and are
currently distributed mainly to government officials and academics.
Soros is reorganizing and changing staff and plans to create a vast
information network.
(The New Yorker, 1-23-95, p 71)
George Soros intends to focus more of his energies and funds on programs in the
United States.
(The
New Yorker, 1-23-95, P 73)
George Soros is one of the largest backers of Global Telsystems, Inc., a low
profile McLean company which recently received $20 million in venture funding to
help it set up state of the art telecommunications networks in Russia, Hungary,
China and elsewhere.
(Washington
Post, 11-4-96)
"Almost a decade after the collapse of the Soviet Union, much of Central
and Eastern Europe is still ruled by the old gang. Guess who's keping them in power?" ". . . money can
do a lot of harm in politics, especially in poor, small countries."
(article
about George Soros in FORBES Magazine, 4-7-97)
"Public records show that since 1993 he [Soros] has donated some $15
million to groups that favor changing the nation's [U.S.] drug policies."
Soros funded groups have called for the legalization of drugs. (New York
Times, 12/17/96) Documents show
that Soros and Soros funded organizations gave hundreds of thousands of dollars
to the successful CA and AZ initiatives to legalize marijuana for medical
purposes.
(New
York Times, A.M. Rosenthal, 11-16-96)
FROM THE DESK OF
STEPHANIE HAYNES
Immediate Past President, Drug Watch International
The drug problem, caused by the demand for mind-altering, addictive drugs, is the most serious threat to the world community today. The death, disease, violence, crime and corruption it spawns threaten the welfare and security of all nations. The world is paying a high price for the drug permissive era of the 1960s and 1970s in the United States and other western countries which left in its wake a host of societal problems such as homelessness, child abuse, crack babies, the AIDS epidemic, and crime-ridden neighborhoods. Societies that tolerate drug use are doomed to failure. A “code red” crisis does exist, which demands the full attention of the world’s leaders and responsible citizens.
There must be worldwide condemnation of permissive drug use and determination to effectively confront this root cause of so many of society’s ills. The recreational drug user and those who promote the free use of harmful, psychoactive drugs must be held accountable for the damage wrought on society by the use of these drugs.
All of us in the world community must resist the move to legalize drugs or weaken drug policies and anti-drug attitudes. We must uphold and promote standards, which strengthen healthy and responsible behavior. We must make the reduction of the use of harmful, illicit drugs a top priority. This is the mission of Drug Watch International. Widespread social disapproval of the illicit use of drugs is the key.
Drug Watch International is a volunteer organization of drug policy experts dedicated to making the world a safer and healthier place for our children and our children’s children through drug prevention. Drug Watch promotes drug prevention as the most effective, humane, and cost effective way to reduce the demand for drugs. We support comprehensive and coordinated approaches to prevent the availability and use of psychoactive and addictive drugs through education, enforcement, rehabilitation, and interdiction.
Drug Watch members are parents, physicians, teachers, lawyers, scientists, law enforcement officials, journalists, and community leaders from around the world who are, and have been, on the front line of the battle against drugs. Drug Watch fulfills its mission by providing accurate information on psychoactive substances, by promoting sound drug policies based on scientific research, and by opposing efforts to legalize drugs. Drug Watch volunteers provide training and technical assistance, and are frequent speakers at conferences, at government hearings, in schools, in the workplace, and on radio and television. The Drug Watch International Home Page on the Internet provides information on a wide range of drug policy topics.
For many years, Drug Watch International has been alone in voicing concerns about the growing movement to legalize drugs. We work to counter the misinformation about drugs being spread by the drug legalization lobby. The drug legalization movement is a serious threat to all efforts to reduce tactics – marijuana as medicine, needle handouts to addicts, “harm reduction” or the so-called responsible use of drugs, and the cultivation of marijuana hemp to save the environment – all aimed at making dangerous drugs more readily available.
As I step down from my three-year tenure as President of
Drug Watch, I remain as committed as ever to our efforts.
I, and other members of Drug Watch International call on world leaders
and responsible citizens to take bold and decisive action against this campaign
to allow the liberal use of harmful drugs.
The drug problem is not hopeless or inevitable.
Surrendering to drug liberalization is not the answer.
Armed with knowledge, spirit and will we can and must prevail against the
menace of drugs that threatens the future of our world.
(Spring 1997)
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