Illicit drugs: Part 3 - Essay Example

? 3) How does the criminal justice system respond to ONE of the forms of crime addressed in the last part of the unit? What are the strengths and weaknesses of this response? (Topic: illicit drugs) Name: Class: Date: Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Introduction 2 THE HistorICAL PROHIBITION OF Illicit DrugS in Australia 2 The Evolution of Australian National Drug Policy 5 Innovative Aspects of Australian National Drug Policy 6 Current Policy Views and Future Directions 7 Conclusion 7 References 9 Introduction The policy of the criminal justice system related to the use and distribution of illicit drugs in society has traditionally been one of prohibition, similar to past historical attempts to ban alcohol on moral grounds through temperance campaigns, with subsequent consequences in the rise of violence associated with the black market. The economic forces related to illicit drug prohibition increases the market price of these substances by forcing the trade underground, reducing supply, and increasing the amount of risk associated with distribution. The unregulated cash market surrounding the distribution and use of illicit drugs offers the promise of fast money to innumerable criminal entrepreneurs who profit off of the public use of the drugs despite the legal prohibition against them. Current drug policy suggests that a broad variety of recreational use of these substances is prohibited on greater public safety concerns. This policy attempts to address user demand issues through education programs, but these are largely accepted to have been unsuccessful in changing the social demand for illicit drugs popularly. The resulting criminalization of possession and distribution of illicit drugs then leads to a wider problem in prisons, such as incarceration for individuals guilty only non-violent crimes related to prohibition on a moral basis. This reflects the broader social debate as to whether or not it is truly the proper role of government to criminalize the use of illicit drugs through prohibition. THE HistorICAL PROHIBITION OF Illicit DrugS in Australia Most sources agree that Australia’s social problem with illicit drug use in the citizenry began in the early 1960’s and increased steadily to epidemic proportions. Australia’s problem with illicit drugs largely follows trends in the US, UK, Canada, EU, and other developed economies with the legal framework based in international agreements. The historical treaties that influenced Australia’s domestic illicit drug policy include (MacKay, 2001): The First International Opium Commission (Shanghai Conference) of 1909 The Second International Opium Convention of 1925 The Convention for Limiting the Manufacture and Regulating the Distribution of Narcotic Drugs – Geneva, 1931 The Paris Protocol, 1948 The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961 The Convention on Psychotropic Substances 1971 According to a special report prepared on Australian illicit drug policy for the Canadian Parliament, “The Paris Protocol 1948 ceded to the World Health Organization the power to determine which new drugs should be treated as ‘dangerous drugs’ for the purpose of the 1931 Convention. The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961 consolidated and further extended control over the international and domestic drug trades. It sought to limit the possession, use, trade, distribution, import, export, manufacture and production of drugs exclusively for medical purposes. It also combated drug trafficking through international cooperation. The Single Convention was instrumental in prompting a major rewriting, updating and extension of legislation at state level. The Convention on Psychotropic Substances 1971 further extended international controls to include a broad range of synthetic behaviour- and mood-altering drugs.” (MacKay, 2001) During the period of 1960 to 1970, the government largely was forced to develop new law enforcement approaches to drug use and distribution, which not only criminalized a portion of society, but also pushed drug use underground and into the black market. As the demand for illicit drugs increased, the period of 1970 to 1980 saw increased organization of the drug trade into gangs, syndicates, and mafias with a rise in violence. As drug and gang-related violence was turned upon prominent authorities in Australia, most noticeably in “the murder of anti-cannabis campaigner Donald Mackay in 1977,” the ‘war on drugs’ began its most heated phase in the 1980 – 1985 period. (MacKay, 2001) As Professor David Penington wrote in “An Overview of Drug Use and Drug Policy in Australia” (1999), “A major change occurred following the 1984 Federal Election, when Prime Minister Bob Hawke had cried on national television when asked about the heroin addiction of his daughter. A special Premiers’ Conference was held, from which emerged the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse.” (Penington, 1999) As criminalization and prohibition policies had the net effect of increasing the profit motive to drive distribution networks, giving birth to and financing innumerable violent gangs related to the illicit drug trade, and did not address directly the problem of user demand, later evolution of drug policy can be seen as a reform or shift in emphasis in the social policy response. As the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (2008) wrote, “Similar to most other industrialized nations, Australia has been confronted with a strong increase in the use of illicit drugs since the late 1960s. Initial responses to the problem concentrated almost exclusively on law enforcement activities and did not prove particularly successful. Subsequent policies of harm reduction, pursued since the mid 1980s, were successful in preventing HIV/AIDS spreading among injecting drug users, but failed to limit the upward trend in drug abuse. By the end of the 1990s Australia had one of the highest levels of drug use worldwide. The implementation in 1998, of the National Illicit Drugs Strategy (1997) - termed the ‘Tough on Drugs’ strategy - saw the reversal of this trend.” (UNODC, 2008) Included in the changing strategy of Australia on illicit drug use is increasing emphasis on decriminalization of non-violent use and possession of marijuana, needle assistance and methodone programs related to heroin use, and increased focus of law enforcement on organized gangs that control supply of illicit drugs through international networks. The Evolution of Australian National Drug Policy In analyzing the change of Australia’s national illicit drugs policy, statistics related to the use of these substances in society, rates of incarceration for offenders, and budgetary resources allocated for various policy approaches can be referenced in order to illustrate the evolution. Experts suggest that Australia’s black market for illicit drugs stands at approximately $5.5 billion Australian dollars per annum. (Collins, 2007) What is rarely questioned is the degree to which the black market prices are driven by prohibition-style national policies, and thereby give increasing motive for organized crime in the drug trade and also finance the weapons that are used in that underground activity. By criminalizing drug use, the health care and addiction aspects of the substances as related to human individuals and their suffering is also overlooked by drug policies. However unrelated the policies pertaining to alcohol use and illicit drug use in society may have originated, there has been increasingly a medical consensus building that views drug addiction and alcoholism on similar grounds with mental health and hospital treatment preferred over incarceration. Australia has been recognized as leading in the international reform of drug policy based on these principles of understanding and in hope of making a more effective response from national policy to address the human needs. “Under the National Illicit Drugs Strategy ‘Tough on Drugs’ (1997) from 1998 to the present, the Australian (Federal) Government expended the largest budgetary outlay for drug control in history. In total, drug control expenditure has amounted to more than AUD$1.4 billion... A total of AUD$213 million (41%) were allocated for a range of supply reduction measures to intercept more illicit drugs at borders and within Australia. Law enforcement efforts included funding for 10 new Federal Police anti-drug mobile strike teams to help dismantle drug syndicates within Australia as well as increased funding for the Australian Customs Service to enhance its capacity to intercept drug shipments. 1. The remaining AUD$303 million (59%) were allocated for demand reduction initiatives covering five priority areas: 2. Treatment of users of illicit drugs, including identification of best practice; 3. Prevention of illicit drug use; 4. Training and skills development for front line workers who come into contact with drug users; 5. Monitoring and evaluation, including data collection; 6. Research.” (UNODC, 2008) In allocating 40% of the budgetary expenditures to supply related reduction programs in law enforcement, and 60% of the budget to mental health and healthcare related treatment programs, as well as education, intervention, and advertising, the relative successes and failures of each approach should be evident through the unique goals of each policy. Innovative Aspects of Australian National Drug Policy In its review of national Australian drug policy, the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (2008) described four distinct characteristics or innovations in practice. These are (UNODC, 2008): Strengthened powers of the police Drug Courts Expiation Notice Schemes (CENs) and caution schemes for cannabis Establishment of a medically supervised injecting centre These trends represent a move towards increasing decriminalization of minor crimes and routing of addiction cases to medical treatment rather than the prison system. The approach to needle exchanges is recognized as a reducing factor in the transmission of AIDS in IV drug users, but the government supervised injection or supply of drugs like heroin and methadone continues to be controversial. These policies represent a combined effort to target the issues related to the supply, production, and demand for illicit drugs in Australia, with an emphasis on harm reduction which leads to reform or change in policy to increase the effectiveness of response. Current Policy Views and Future Directions Further decriminalization of the use of illicit drugs is progressing in Australia largely due to the limitation of government resources and the historical lack of success that prohibition policies have produced. This is represented through local policy changes in Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania, and other states. “Attitudes of the Police Association, and also of many in the community in Victoria, have changed considerably. Following a six-month trial of a formal cautioning program in one police district for possession and use of marijuana, initiated by Victoria Police, this policy has now been adopted statewide, greatly reducing the court load. A similar trial is in progress in respect of other illicit drugs. Tasmania has adopted a similar program in respect of marijuana.” (Penington, 1999) Nevertheless, it is clear that the black market remains a $5.5 billion dollar per year economy that is not only unregulated and untaxed, but also fueling the continuation of violent crime in the country. While better jobs, access to education, and publicly funded treatment facilities can all contribute to reduction of drug use nationally, the lifestyle and tolerance to illicit drug use continues to rise in society. The link between violent crime and prohibition of illicit drugs is found in the users, as they resort to property theft or robberies to support their addictions, and also in gangs, mafias, and syndicates, as they use illicit drug profits to fund the weapons that further their control on local markets. Conclusion The change and innovation in Australia’s national illicit drug policy relates the stark realities of addiction in society. Drug and alcohol use operate on similar patterns of recreational and addictive use. Individuals with addiction problems need medical care and specialized rehabilitation treatment to leave their habits and destructive behavior. The turn from criminalization of users to treatment of addicts is positive, but may not reflect the wide range of recreational drug use that is non-violent and non-destructive. Because the direct result of prohibition policies is that the increase the price for street drugs, leaving the market untaxed and unregulated, the incentive for crime and violence is increased, leading to the development of gangs, mafias, and other elements of organized crime. Because of user demand and the profit motive from prohibition policies, the arrest of one drug dealer simply leads to the replacement of that person with another individual in the gang who seeks the same profit. The State, however, must bear the cost for the legal process and incarceration. While jobs and education offer hope for people, illicit drugs generally provide an escape for hopeless lives. Therefore, Australian national policy on illicit drugs must build upon the positive aspects of innovation and reform in decriminalization and user treatment to a new policy that destroys the profit demand driving the criminal drug trade and violence. Until the profit motive related to black market distribution of illegal drugs is eliminated, there cannot be any real progress in national policy outside of education. References Burton, Kate. Illicit Drugs in Australia: Use, Harm and Policy Responses. Australian Parliament, 17 May 2004. Web. 23 July 2011. Collins, David; Lapsley, Helen and Marks, Robert. “Illicit drugs damage Australian business,” Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation, March 2007, page 4. Web. 23 July 2011. MacKay, Robin. NATIONAL DRUG POLICY: AUSTRALIA. The Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs. LIBRARY OF PARLIAMENT, Canada, 20 December 2001. Web. 23 July 2011. Penington, David. An Overview of Drug Use and Drug Policy in Australia. Museum Victoria Lecture Series, 17 May 1999. Web. 23 July 2011. UNODOC. Drug Policy and Results in Australia. United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, 2008. Web. 23 July 2011. Read More