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Results for drugs

47 results found

Author: Felbab-Brown, Vanda

Title: The Violent Drug Market in Mexico and Lessons from Colombia

Summary: This policy paper addresses the issue of how to reduce violence in Mexico. It first describes the illegal drug economy in Mexico, contrasts the situation in Mexico with Colombia and the Plan Colombia, and then argues that although public policy analyses center comparisons on and draw lessons from Plan Colombia, the better analogy for Mexico is Colombia before Plan Colombia, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The paper ends with a brief decription of the Mexican reponse and the Merida Initiative and offers recommendations for a new strategy in Mexico.

Details: Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution, 2009. 29p.

Source: Policy Paper, No. 12; Foreign Policy at Brookings

Year: 2009

Country: Mexico

URL:

Shelf Number: 113769

Keywords:
Drug Control (Mexico)
Drug Trafficking (Mexico)
Drugs
Violent Crime (Mexico)

Author: Walsh, John

Title: Lowering Expectations: Supply Control and the Resilient Cocaine Market

Summary: Recent data from the Obama administration show that U.S. cocaine prices continued to fall through 2007, while purity remained high. The data undermined claims by Bush administration officials that supply disruptions had achieved unprecedented cocaine shortages in the United States. This report asserts that the U.S. can and should do more to reduce demand for cocaine, but a dramatic reduction in the size of the lucrative U.S. cocaine market should not be expected any time soon. A realistic and humane drug policy should focus on harm reduction - aiming to minimize the harms caused by illicit drug production, distribution and abuse, but also striving to minimize the damage done by policies meant to control drugs.

Details: Washington, DC: Washington Office on Latin America, 2009. 10p.

Source:

Year: 2009

Country: United States

URL:

Shelf Number: 117793

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Control
Drug Policy
Drug Trafficking Control
Drugs

Author: Kellow, Aynsley

Title: Enhancing the Implementation and Management of Drug Diversion Strategies in Australian Law Enforcement Agencies: The Cases of South Australia Police, Tasmania Police and Victoria Police During the Period 2000-2005

Summary: Drawing on researchers in the fields of policy studies, administrative law, criminology, police studies, public sector management, and police practitioners, this report identifies evidence-based good practice in implementing and managing illicit drug diversion strategies in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia.

Details: Hobart, Tasmania: National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund, 2008. 165p.

Source: Monograph Series No. 31

Year: 2008

Country: Australia

URL:

Shelf Number: 115383

Keywords:
Drug Abuse Prevention
Drug Enforcement
Drug Offenders(Australia)
Drugs

Author: Degenhardt, Louisa

Title: Comparing the Drug Situation Across Countries: Problem, Pitfalls and Possibilities

Summary: This briefing compares the drug situation in a number of developed countries presenting data to provide information for analysts and policy makers for more effective drug control.

Details: London: Beckley Foundation, Drug Policy Programme, 2009. 26p.

Source: Briefing Paper Nineteen

Year: 2009

Country: International

URL:

Shelf Number: 116393

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addition
Drug Control
Drug Policy
Drugs

Author: Hammond, Kate

Title: Drug Driving in New Zealand: A Survey of Community Attitudes, Experience and Understanding

Summary: This resarch involved a review of the literature around drugs and driving, in-depth interviews with 12 key experts from around New Zealand with knowledge and experience from drug and alcohol and/or road safety sectors, and an internet survey of 1164 New Zealanders. Each of these phases focused on issues around prevalence of drug driving; driver impairment associated with drug use, attitudes and perceptions towards drug driving, and ways to reduce driving under the influence of drugs.

Details: Wellington, NZ: New Zealand Drug Foundation, 2009. 99p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: New Zealand

URL:

Shelf Number: 117302

Keywords:
Driving Under the Influence (New Zealand)
Drug Abuse
Drug Driving
Drug Offenses
Drugs

Author: U.S. Department of Justice. National Drug Intelligence Center

Title: National Methamphetamine Threat Assessment

Summary: This report presents a national-level strategic assessment of methamphetamine trafficking in the United States. This assessment addresses significant trends in methamphetamine production, transportation, distribution, and abuse. It discusses a wide range of issues, including methamphetamine production in the United States and Mexico and the impact of foreign and domestic methamphetamine production.

Details: Johnstown, PA: National Drug Intelligence Center, 2009. 44p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: United States

URL:

Shelf Number: 118585

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Methamphetamines (U.S.)

Author: Open Society Institute, International Harm Reduction Development Program

Title: Detention as Treatment: Detention of Methamphetamine Users in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand

Summary: Methamphetamine use is a serious public health concern in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. Despite having policies that recognize addiction as a health problem, these governments are increasingly using law enforcement approaches that treat drug users as criminals rather than patients. This report examines the growing use of detention as treatment for methamphetamine users in the three countries. It examines the policies and practices that force people to detention centers, documents abuses and human rights violations occuring in the centers, and discusses the overall implications for individual and public health.

Details: New York: Open Society Institute, 2010. 81p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2010

Country: Asia

URL:

Shelf Number: 118619

Keywords:
Detention (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand)
Drug Abuse
Drug Addiction
Drug Offenders
Drugs
Human Rights
Methamphetamines ( Cambodia, Laos, Thailand)

Author: Ormston, Rachel

Title: Scottish Social Attitudes Survey 2009: Public Attitudes to Drugs and Drug Use in Scotland

Summary: This report presents frindings from the 2009 Scottish Social Attitudes survey on public attitudes towards illegal drugs and drug misuse in Scotland. The report focuses in particular on attitudes towards opiate misuse and on views of potential policy responses to this. However, it also places such attitudes in the context of wider views and experiences of illegal drugs.

Details: Edinburgh: Scottish Government Social Research, 2010. 75p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2010

Country: United Kingdom

URL:

Shelf Number: 118687

Keywords:
Drug Abuse Policy
Drugs
Opiates
Public Opinion, Drugs (Scotland)

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: Patterns and trends of Amphetamine-Type Stimulants and other Drugs in East and South-East Asia (and neighborhood regions)

Summary: UNODC launcehd the Global Synthetics Monitoring: Analyses, Reporting and Trends (SMART) Programme in September 2008. The Programme seeks to enhance the capacity of Member States and authorities in priority regions, to generate, manage, analyze and report synthetic drug information, and to apply this scientific evidence-based knowledge to design the policies and programmes. The Global SMART Programme is being implemented in a gradual phased manner, with East Asia being the first focus priority region. This annual report is the first regional situation assessment for East and South-East Asia put forward under the Global SMART Programme. If forms one of the first essential key steps, in providing consolidated up-to-date analysis, based on the information shared by the members countries. This report provides an overview of the amphetamine-type stimulants in the region, and outlines several key issues and emerging threats throughout the region and their implications for the neighbouring regions. It also highlights the need for continued and joint efforts, both at the national as well as regional levels.

Details: Vienna: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2009. 140p.

Source: Internet Resource; Global SMART Programme

Year: 2009

Country: Asia

URL:

Shelf Number: 117587

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Control
Drug Enforcement
Drug Trafficking
Drugs

Author: Kego, Walter

Title: Countering Narcotics Smuggling in Europe's Eastern Neighborhood

Summary: This report presents the findings from a seminar held in Kiev, Ukraine on November 27-28, 2008. The aim of the seminar was to develop an understanding of criminal trends and activities in the entire region, but also to inquire into what possibilities there are to enhance collaboration in crime prevention in general, and fighting organized trade in narcotics in particular.

Details: Stockholm, Sweden: Institute for Security and Development Policy, 2009. 32p.

Source: Internet Resource; Policy Paper

Year: 2009

Country: Europe

URL:

Shelf Number: 116248

Keywords:
Drug Control
Drugs
Narcotics Smuggling
Organized Crime

Author: Duffy, Martin

Title: Cannabis Supply and Young People: 'It's a Social Thing'

Summary: The supply of drugs to young people is an emotive subject and discussion is rarely conducted with much reference to evidence. Research on young people's access to drugs is scarce in the U.K. The evidence that exists, however, shows that many young people gain access to drugs through older brothers and sisters, through friends and friends of friends - so-called social supply networks. This report offers a snapshot view of how young people in a large city and in rural villages get supplies of cannabis.

Details: York, UK: Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 2008. 49p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2008

Country: United Kingdom

URL:

Shelf Number: 117592

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drugs
Marijuana

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

Title: Bosnia and Herzegovina: County Overview 2009

Summary: This country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drug problems in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2009. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation presenting brief information in key areas - drug prevalence, prevention, harm reduction, drug laws, etc.

Details: Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2009. 39p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina

URL:

Shelf Number: 119125

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Policy
Drug Treatment
Drugs

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

Title: Former Yugoslav Republic of Madedonia: Country Overview 2009

Summary: This country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drugs problems in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 2009. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation presenting brief information in key areas - drug prevalence, prevention, harm reduction, drugs laws, etc.

Details: Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2009. 20p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: Macedonia

URL:

Shelf Number: 119124

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Abuse Treatment
Drug Policy
Drugs

Author: Youngers, Coletta A.

Title: Development First: A More Humane and Promising Approach to Reducing Cultivation of Crops for Illicit Markets

Summary: This report lays out a more promising approach to reducing the cultivation of coca and poppy crops used in the production of cocaine and heroin. It is based on improving the welfare of poor farmers via comprehensive development strategies that include improving local governance and citizen security, combined with voluntary reductions in cultivation of crops deviated to the illicit market. Implemented in tandem with effective demand reduction strategies to contain and eventually shrink the global cocaine and heroin markets, the "development first" approach has the potential to gradually achieve sustainable reductions in coca and opium poppy cultivation by reducing poor farmers' reliance on such crops.

Details: Washington, DC: Washington Office on Latin America, 2009. 39p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: International

URL:

Shelf Number: 119214

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Control
Drug Markets
Drugs
Illegal Drugs
Opium
Poverty

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: Cannabis in Africa: An Overview

Summary: This paper summarizes information on cannabis in Africa from the 2006 and 2007 editions of the United Nation's Office on Drugs and Crime's World Drug Report.

Details: Vienna: UNODC, 2007. 20p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2007

Country: Africa

URL:

Shelf Number: 119260

Keywords:
Cannabis (Africa)
Drugs
Methamphetamine

Author: Chambers, Max

Title: Coming Clean: Combating Drug Misuse in Prisons

Summary: This report aaserts that U.K. prisons, traditionally thought of as secure institutions, are awash with drugs. The easy availability of drugs in prisons undermines treatment programs, allows prisoners to maintain anti-social habits during their sentence, and leaves them unprepared for release and primed to reoffend. While is less widely known is how drugs really get in to prisons, and what really goes on inside prisons in an effort to get inmates off drugs and prepared for release. Following extensive consultation with senior figures involved in tackling the problem of drug misuse in prisons, this report outlines a series of recommendations which would make a real difference in helping prisoners to get off - and stay off - illegal drugs.

Details: London: Policy Exchange, 2010. 43p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2010

Country: United Kingdom

URL:

Shelf Number: 119281

Keywords:
Drug Smuggling, Prisons
Drugs
Inmates, Use of Drugs
Prison Contraband
Prisoners
Prisons

Author: Rivera, Marny

Title: Alaska Meth Education Project: Process and Outcome Evaluation, 2009

Summary: The Alaska Meth Education (AME) Project is a statewide effort to reduce meth use and availability in Alaska by educating Alaskans about, and preventing youth from trying, meth. The AME Project provides free community education presentations, an anti-meth media campaign. anti-meth summits, and a website and Facebook page which provide information, local resources, and links to their campaign ads. This report evaluates AME Project efforts and is the first to provide information regarding Alaskans’ perceptions of meth, including effects and risks associated with meth use and perceptions regarding the availability and use of meth by young adults in Alaska. Evaluation methods included a survey to evaluate community education presentations; a survey conducted with UAA Justice students exposed to the anti-meth radio advertisements generated by the AME Project; a survey of 10,000 randomly sampled Alaskans; and a process evaluation involving interviews conducted with AME Project statewide advisory committee members.

Details: Anchorage, AK: Justice Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2009.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: United States

URL:

Shelf Number: 119205

Keywords:
Drug Addiction and Abuse
Drugs
Drugs and Crime
Methamphetamine (Alaska)

Author: Tajikistan. Drug Control Agency

Title: Report on the Drug Situation in the Republic of Tajikistan for 2009.

Summary: This report presents an analysis of illegal drug situation in Afghanistan and Tajikistan, a description of the criminal market for narcotic drugs in the area, and efforts to combat illegal drug trafficking in Tajikistan and the surrounding area.

Details: Dushanbe: Tajikistan Drug Control Agency, 2009. 49p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: Tajikistan

URL:

Shelf Number: 119121

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Narcotics

Author: Meza, Ricardo Vargas

Title: The Security Approach to the Drugs Problem: Perpetuating Drugs and Conflict in Colombia

Summary: The drugs problem in Colombia is intertwined with structural factors at the social, economic, institutional and cultural levels. Moreover, its relationship to the armed conflict has had serious consequences for the socio-economic conditions of peasant and indigenous communities affected by the production of raw materials used to produce cocaine.

Details: Amsterdam: Transnational Institute, 2009. 8p.

Source: Internet Resource; Drug Policy Briefing No. 31

Year: 2009

Country: Colombia

URL:

Shelf Number: 119212

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Control
Drug Trafficking
Drugs

Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Home Affairs Committee

Title: The Cocaine Trade: Seventh Reprot of Session 2009-10

Summary: This report examines the trends in cocaine use in the U.K. and the progress to date in tackling the cocaine trade in terms of reducing both supply and demand.

Details: London: Stationery Office, 2010. 2 v.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2010

Country: United Kingdom

URL:

Shelf Number: 117866

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Abuse and Addition
Drug Control
Drug Trafficking
Drugs

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Independent Evaluation Unit

Title: Thematic Evaluation of Counter-Narcotics Enforcement in Central Asia

Summary: The programme of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Central Asia covers Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Counter-narcotics enforcement (CNE) is by far the largest operation and is considered strategically important to the region. CNE projects with varying objectives account for 85 per cent of the region’s total portfolio and have been allocated a combined budget of about US$ 40 million. CNE projects are ongoing operations that are expected to remain a primary area of intervention for UNODC in Central Asia in the future. The present thematic evaluation aims to assess UNODC activities in the region by establishing what the Office has achieved to date under the CNE objective and to identify lessons learned and best practices to improve future operations.

Details: Vienna: UNODC, 2007. 71p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2007

Country: Asia

URL:

Shelf Number: 115737

Keywords:
Drub Abuse and Addiction
Drug Abuse and Crime
Drug Control
Drugs
Narcotics

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

Title: Cocaine and Crack Cocaine: A Growing Public Health Issue

Summary: This report shows that, in some European countries, there has been a marked increase in recent years in the use of cocaine, in treatment demands for cocaine problems and in seizures of the drug. The potential for cocaine use to have a major impact on public health is examined and special attention given to the health consequences of cocaine use, which are often not well recognised in existing reporting systems. Also examined are the challenges to providing effective treatment for cocaine and crack cocaine dependence.

Details: Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2007. 30p.

Source: Internet Resource' EMCDDA 2007 Selected Issue

Year: 2007

Country: Europe

URL:

Shelf Number: 118622

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Treatment
Drugs

Author: McBride, Duane C.

Title: The Drugs-Crime Wars: Past, Present and Future Directions in Theory, Policy and Program Interventions

Summary: Research into the relationship between drug use and crime has generated a substantial body of literature. While these efforts have not established a causal link between the two behaviors, they do confirm a high correlation between drug use and many types of criminal behavior in a) the general population, b) populations of drug users, and c) arrested populations. The literature also shows that the drugs-crime relationship occurs within the framework of societal policies toward drug use that have ranged from regulated commercial approaches to strict prohibition. There is considerable debate about the strength and continuity of the relationship between drug use and crime. It is suggested that research focusing on the relationship would benefit from the application of theoretical models such as Ecosystems Theory and/or Social Capital. These models may help sort out the nature and complexity of the relationship as well as suggest more appropriate interventions. A review of programmatic approaches that have been used to break the drugs-crime relationship is presented that suggests the most successful approaches include a comprehensive range of services from assessment, implementation of services to meet assessed needs, and aftercare within the framework of graduated sanctions and comprehensive case management. In order to further examine the drugs-crime relationship, it is suggested that future research should use an interdisciplinary approach to evaluate the differential impact of state policies as well as and examine the effectiveness of specific treatment program elements.

Details: Chicago: ImpacTeen, 2001. 116p.

Source: Internet Resource; Research Paper Series, No. 14

Year: 2001

Country: United States

URL:

Shelf Number: 119462

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Crime
Drug Policy
Drug Treatment
Drugs

Author: Lloyd, Charlie

Title: Drugs Research: An Overview of Evidence and Questions for Policy

Summary: In 2001 the Joseph Rowntree Foundation embarked upon a programme of research that explored the problem of illicit drugs in the UK. The research addressed many questions that were often too sensitive for the government to tackle. In many cases, these studies represented the first research on these issues. This study gives an overview of the projects in the programme. The topics covered include: The policing of drug possession; The domestic cultivation, purchasing and heavy use of cannabis; Non-problematic heroin use, heroin prescription and Drug Consumption Rooms; The impact of drugs on the family; and Drug testing in schools and in the workplace.

Details: York, UK: Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 2010. 70p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2010

Country: United Kingdom

URL:

Shelf Number: 119469

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Testing
Drug Treatment
Drugs
Narcotics
Substance Abuse

Author: Keefer, Philip

Title: Innocent Bystanders: Developing Countries and the War on Drugs

Summary: Drug use and abuse is one of the most difficult challenges facing the contemporary world. If it is true that there has always been consumption of different types of drugs in different societies, although not in all of them, it is no less true that it generally took place in restricted, socially regulated realms, especially in ritualistic ceremonies. This is not the case today. Drug use has spread to all segments of society, with hedonistic motivations; although it is often not socially sanctioned, users are at times, depending on the drug, treated with leniency. It is well-established that all drugs are harmful to the health, even the legal ones, such as alcohol and tobacco, and that some drugs are more harmful, such as heroin and crack. The discussion of 'gateway drugs' is a medical issue on which there is no consensus. For the purposes of public policy design, the important thing to keep in mind is that drugs produce negative consequences for both users and societies in general, and that minimizing their consumption should be the main goal. The salient discussion, therefore, is about choosing among different strategies to achieve the same goal. Most of all, this report contributes to the debate by shedding light on the understanding of the economics and logistics of the drug market.

Details: Washington, DC: The World Bank, 2010. 362p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2010

Country: International

URL:

Shelf Number: 119523

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Markets
Drug Policy
Drug Trafficking
Drugs

Author: Miron, Jeffrey A.

Title: The Budgetary Implications of Drug Prohibition

Summary: "Government prohibition of drugs is the subject of ongoing debate. One issue in this debate is the effect of prohibition on government budgets. Prohibition entails direct enforcement costs and prevents taxation of drug production and sale. This report examines the budgetary implications of legalizing drugs. The report estimates that legalizing drugs would save roughly $48.7 billion per year in government expenditure on enforcement of prohibition. $33.1 billion of this savings would accrue to state and local governments, while $15.6 billion would accrue to the federal government. Approximately $13.7 billion of the savings would results from legalization of marijuana, $22.3 billion from legalization of cocaine and heroin, and $12.8 from legalization of other drugs. The report also estimates that drug legalization would yield tax revenue of $34.3 billion annually, assuming legal drugs are taxed at rates comparable to those on alcohol and tobacco. Approximately $6.4 billion of this revenue would result from legalization of marijuana, $23.9 billion from legalization of cocaine and heroin, and $4.0 billion from legalization of other drugs. State-by-state breakdowns provide a rough indication of legalization’s impacts on state budgets, but these estimates are less reliable than those for the overall economy. Whether drug legalization is a desirable policy depends on many factors other than the budgetary impacts discussed here. Rational debate about drug policy should nevertheless consider these budgetary effects. The estimates provided here are not definitive estimates of the budgetary implications of a legalized regime for currently illegal drugs. The analysis employs assumptions that plausibly err on the conservative side, but substantial uncertainty remains about the magnitude of the budgetary impacts."

Details: Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, Department of Economics, 2010. 43p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 21, 2010 at: http://www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/miron/files/budget%202010%20Final.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: United States

URL: http://www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/miron/files/budget%202010%20Final.pdf

Shelf Number: 118415

Keywords:
Drug Legalization
Drug Policy
Drug Prohibition
Drugs

Author: Frabutt, James M.

Title: A Collaborative Approach to Eliminating Street Drug Markets through Focused Deterrence

Summary: The purpose of this project was to conduct a process and outcome analysis of the street drug market elimination strategy. Two main goals were addressed by the evaluation. The first goal was to model and describe the elements, developmental stages, and operational steps of the street-drug intervention. The second goal was to measure the impact of the strategy across several levels: a) key stakeholder percepton of roles and impact; b) resident perception of impact; c) observable neighborhood changes; and d) crime impact. The report presents an overview of the intervention sites and the methodology, findings, and subsequent discussion of the data sources utilized.

Details: Unpublished report to the U.S. National Institute of Justice, 2009. 72p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 23, 2010 at: http://www1.cj.msu.edu/~outreach/psn/DMI/HighPointEvaluation.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: United States

URL: http://www1.cj.msu.edu/~outreach/psn/DMI/HighPointEvaluation.pdf

Shelf Number: 119671

Keywords:
Drug Enforcement
Drug Markets
Drug Offenders
Drugs

Author: Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland

Title: Findings from the UK National Problem Profile- Commercial Cultivation of Cannabis

Summary: This report reveals there has been a boom in cannabis production across Britain in the last two years, with nearly 7,000 illegal farms and factories uncovered in 2009/10 alone. The report describes trends in commercial cultivation of marijuana in the UK since 2004, describes the present and potential risks to society, and makes recommendations for stronger law enforcement actions.

Details: Glasgow: ACPOS, 2010. 15p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 9, 2010 at: http://www.acpo.police.uk/asp/policies/Data/064a%20UK%20National%20Problem%20Profile%20Cultivation%20of%20Cannabis.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: United Kingdom

URL: http://www.acpo.police.uk/asp/policies/Data/064a%20UK%20National%20Problem%20Profile%20Cultivation%20of%20Cannabis.pdf

Shelf Number: 119773

Keywords:
Drugs
Marijuana

Author: Japan. National Police Agency. Drugs and Firearms Division

Title: Drug Control in Japan 2009

Summary: This report provides an overview of the drug situation in Japan, including laws to control abused drugs.

Details: Tokyo: National Police Agency, 2009. 13p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 15, 2010 at: http://www.npa.go.jp/english/yakujyu/Drug%20Control%20in%20Japan%202009.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: Japan

URL: http://www.npa.go.jp/english/yakujyu/Drug%20Control%20in%20Japan%202009.pdf

Shelf Number: 119805

Keywords:
Drug Control
Drugs
Drugs and Crime
Organized Crime

Author: Barnaby, Lorraine

Title: Drugs, Homelessness & Health: Homeless Youth Speak Out about Abuse Harm Reduction

Summary: The purpose of the report is to present the results of a harm reduction needs assessment survey among the most at-risk homeless youth in Toronto, identify barriers to appropriate health services, and based on the youth’s voices, make recommendations, and advocate for better programs to serve this vulnerable population. The study was designed with three components. First we surveyed 100 poly-substance using homeless youth screened for recent (past 6 month) histories of crack (n=71), methamphetamine (n=51), non-prescribed opioid (n=53) and/or injection drug use (n=33). Then, based on the survey results, we conducted five focus groups with 27 street-involved youth to discuss their reactions to the survey findings; these groups provided many quotes on various topics. As well, four young people took part in an arts-involved segment, creating pictures of street life used to illustrate this report. The survey sample of 100 street-involved youth consisted of 75 young men, 21 young women and 4 transgendered/transsexual individuals aged 16 to 25, the majority of whom were in the older age range. Nine out of ten were Canadian born and nearly 2/3 identified their ethno-racial background as White/Caucasian.

Details: Toronto: Wellesley Institute, 2010. 103p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 21, 2010 at: http://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/category/research/

Year: 2010

Country: Canada

URL: http://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/category/research/

Shelf Number: 119851

Keywords:
Drug Offenders
Drugs
Harm Reduction
Homelessness
Mental Health
Street Youth

Author: Sykes, Wendy

Title: Perceptions of Social Harms Associated with Khat Use

Summary: This is the report of research into perceptions of social harms associated with the use of khat in Somali, Yemeni and Ethiopian communities in England and Wales. Views were sought from within these key communities, from professionals and practitioners directly involved with them, from mainstream drug and alcohol service providers and from members of the wider UK population. The research was carried out in London, Sheffield and Cardiff with fieldwork conducted during May and June 2009. The research was to: explore the perceived social harms associated with khat affecting the user, his/her family and the wider community; explore differences in perceptions of harms by age group, country of origin and gender; investigate the level and type of service available to khat users and their families, and the expectations and needs of khat users from services; investigate views on the appropriate Government response to khat.

Details: London: Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate, 2010. 19p.

Source: Internet Resource: Home Office Research Report 44: Accessed October 13, 2010 at: http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/horr44c.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: United Kingdom

URL: http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/horr44c.pdf

Shelf Number: 119951

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drugs
Khat

Author: U.S. Government Accountability Office

Title: Afghanistan Drug Control: Strategy Evolving and Progress Reported, but Interim Performance Targets and Evaluation of Justice Reform Efforts Needed

Summary: The illicit drug trade remains a challenge to the overall U.S. counterinsurgency campaign in Afghanistan. Afghanistan produces over 90 percent of the world's opium, which competes with the country's licit agriculture industry, provides funds to insurgents, and fuels corruption in Afghanistan. Since 2005, the United States has allotted over $2 billion to stem the production, consumption, and trafficking of illicit drugs while building the Afghan government's capacity to conduct counternarcotics activities on its own. In this report, GAO (1) examines how the U.S. counternarcotics strategy in Afghanistan has changed; (2) assesses progress made and challenges faced within the elimination/eradication, interdiction, justice reform, public information, and drug demand reduction program areas; and (3) assesses U.S. agencies' monitoring and evaluation efforts. To address these objectives, GAO obtained pertinent program documents and interviewed relevant U.S. and Afghan officials. GAO has prepared this report under the Comptroller General's authority to conduct evaluations on his own initiative. The U.S. counternarcotics strategy has changed emphasis across program areas over time to align with the overarching counterinsurgency campaign. The 2005 U.S. counternarcotics strategy focused on five program areas: elimination/eradication, interdiction, justice reform, public information, and alternative livelihoods. Since then, U.S. Department of Defense (Defense) policy and rules of engagement were changed to allow greater military involvement in Afghanistan counternarcotics efforts due to the ties between traffickers and insurgents. Furthermore, the U.S. counternarcotics strategy has shifted to align more closely with counterinsurgency efforts by de-emphasizing eradication, focusing more on interdiction efforts, and increasing agricultural assistance. The United States' use of total poppy cultivation as a primary measure of overall counternarcotics success has limitations in that it does not capture all aspects of U.S. counternarcotics efforts. In recognition of this, the administration is attempting to develop measures that better capture overall counternarcotics success. U.S. agencies have reported progress within counternarcotics program areas, but GAO was unable to fully assess the extent of progress due to a lack of performance measures and interim performance targets to measure Afghan capacity, which are a best practice for performance management. For example, although Defense is training Afghan pilots to fly interdiction missions on their own, this program lacks interim performance targets to judge incremental progress. Furthermore, a lack of security, political will, and Afghan government capacity have challenged some counternarcotics efforts. For example, eradication and public information efforts have been constrained by poor security, particularly in insurgency-dominated provinces. In addition, other challenges affect specific program areas. For example, drug abuse and addiction are prevalent among the Afghan National Police. Monitoring and evaluation are key components of effective program management. Monitoring is essential to ensuring that programs are implemented as intended, and routine evaluation helps program managers make judgments, improve effectiveness, and inform decisions about current and future programming. U.S. agencies in all counternarcotics areas have monitored program progress through direct U.S. agency oversight, contractor reporting, and/or third-party verification. For example, eradication figures were routinely reported by U.S. Department of State (State) officials and contractors, and verified by United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime monitors. U.S. agencies also conducted and documented program evaluations to improve effectiveness in the elimination/eradication, interdiction, and public information program areas. However, State has not formally documented evaluations of its justice reform program.

Details: Washington, DC: GAO, 2010. 50p.

Source: Internet Resource: GAO-10-291: Accessed December 14, 2010 at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d10291.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: Afghanistan

URL: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d10291.pdf

Shelf Number: 120492

Keywords:
Drug Control
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Illegal Drug Trade (Afghanistan)
Narcotics

Author: Metaal, Pien

Title: Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America

Summary: A comparative study on the impact of drug policies on the prison systems of eight Latin American countries – Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay – reveals that drug laws have contributed to the prison crises these countries are experiencing. The study Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America, published by the Transnational Institute (TNI) and the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), found that the persons who are incarcerated for drug offenses tend to be individuals caught with small amounts of drugs, often users, as well as street-level dealers. The drug laws impose penalties disproportionate to many of the drug offenses committed, do not give sufficient consideration to the use of alternative sanctions, and promote the excessive use of preventive detention. The weight of the law falls on the most vulnerable individuals, overcrowding the prisons, but allowing drug trafficking to flourish.

Details: Washington, DC: Washington Office on Latin America; Amsterdam: Transnational Institute, 2011. 100p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 8, 2011 at: http://www.druglawreform.info/images/stories/documents/Systems_Overload/TNI-Systems_Overload-def.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Central America

URL: http://www.druglawreform.info/images/stories/documents/Systems_Overload/TNI-Systems_Overload-def.pdf

Shelf Number: 121288

Keywords:
Drug Control Policy (Latin America)
Drug Offenses
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Prison Overcrowding

Author: Serrano-Berthet, Rodrigo

Title: Crime and Violence in Central America: A Development Challenge

Summary: Central America’s spiraling wave of crime and violence is threatening the region’s prosperity as countries face huge economic and human losses as a result of it. Aside from the pain and trauma inflicted upon victims, violence can cost the region up to 8 percent of its GDP when taking into account law enforcement, citizen security and health care costs. This is no small change for a region that in 2010 grew around 2 percent of GDP, while the rest of Latin America grew around 6 percent. To make matters worse, crime and violence also hampers economic growth, not just from the victims’ lost wages and labor, but by polluting the investment climate and diverting scarce government resources to strengthen law enforcement rather than promote economic activity, argues Crime and Violence in Central America: a Development challenge. But, in a redeeming twist, the study also suggests that a ten percent reduction of murder rates in the region’s most violent countries could boost annual economic growth by as much as a full one percent. Crime rates in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras are among the top five in Latin America. In the region’s other three countries — Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama — crime and violence levels are significantly lower, but a spike in recent years has raised serious concerns. Some perspective may help gauge the extent of the problem. While Central America's population is roughly the same size as Spain's, Spain only registered 336 homicides in 2006, in sharp contrast with Central America’s 14,257 homicides – an average of 40 per day. Drug trafficking and a decades-long culture of violence emerge as the main culprits in Central America’s crime predicament. Easy access to firearms and weak judicial institutions are also to blame for the region’s violent state of affairs, according to the report. Narco trafficking ranks as the top cause for the rising crime rates and violence levels in Central America, a reflection in part of the sheer volume of narcotics flows through the area –90 percent of US-bound drugs, according to the study. Inherent traits of drug cartel operations, such as turf wars and vendettas between rival gangs, seem to fuel the region’s murder rates. The complexity of this situation calls for a regional approach and greater emphasis on prevention, at the expense of interdiction, which has proven insufficient to diminish the traffickers’ capacity. Also, successful strategies require actions along multiple fronts, combining prevention and criminal justice reform.

Details: Washington, DC: World Bank, 2011. 45p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 13, 2011 at: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTLAC/Resources/FINAL_VOLUME_I_ENGLISH_CrimeAndViolence.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Central America

URL: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTLAC/Resources/FINAL_VOLUME_I_ENGLISH_CrimeAndViolence.pdf

Shelf Number: 121323

Keywords:
Drug Cartels
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Gangs
Gun Violence
Homicides
Violent Crime (Central America)

Author: Birdwell, Jonathan

Title: Taking Drugs Seriously: A Demos and UK Drug Policy Commission Report on Legal Highs

Summary: Since first coming to public prominence at the end of 2009, legal highs have posed a major challenge to existing legal and legislative structures designed to deal with drugs. With the market in manufactured psychoactive substances like mephedrone moving faster than public policy can accommodate, this report asks whether the assumptions enshrined in the 40-year-old Misuse of Drugs Act are still valid when applied 21st century drugs market. Bringing together stakeholders from across all areas involved in drugs policy - including frontline practitioners such as medical professionals, youth workers and law enforcement - Taking Drugs Seriously brings bold, innovative responses to an area too often dominated by stale rhetoric. The report points a way forward for public policy, taking account of the opportunities for new thinking presented by the challenges of the modern drugs market.

Details: London: Demos, 2011. 155p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 19, 2011 at: http://www.demos.co.uk/files/Taking_Drugs_Seriously_-_web.pdf?1305207826

Year: 2011

Country: United Kingdom

URL: http://www.demos.co.uk/files/Taking_Drugs_Seriously_-_web.pdf?1305207826

Shelf Number: 121748

Keywords:
Drug Abuse Policy (U.K.)
Drug Control
Drug Markets
Drug Policy
Drug Reform
Drugs

Author: Blumenschein, Karen

Title: Independent Evaluation of the Impact and Effectiveness of the Kentucky All Schedule Prescription Electronic Reporting Program (KASPER)

Summary: The abuse and diversion of controlled prescription drugs is a significant and persistent problem in the United States. Current data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reveals that approximately 6.9 million individuals aged 12 or older are nonmedical users of controlled prescription drugs (opioid pain relievers, tranquilizers, sedatives, or stimulants). While the number of non-medical users has remained relatively stable over the past 5 years, the number of treatment admissions and deaths from overdose of controlled prescription drugs has increased significantly. To begin to address prescription drug abuse in the Commonwealth, on July 15, 1998 the Kentucky Legislature mandated the establishment of an electronic system for monitoring controlled substances (CS) through passage of Kentucky Revised Statute (KRS) 218A.202. The Kentucky All Schedule Prescription Electronic Reporting Program (KASPER) was thus designed. The rules for reporting and access were defined in Kentucky Administrative Regulations (902 KAR 55:110) promulgated on December 16, 1998. Data collection from dispensers of CS was initiated on January 1, 1999. The original version of KASPER required dispensers of CS in Kentucky to report dispensing of Schedule II, III, IV and V CS every 16 days. Significant enhancement of KASPER occurred in 2004 with creation of eKASPER. As described in a comprehensive report on Kentucky’s prescription monitoring program prepared by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) in 2006, the vision for eKASPER was “to create a system to allow authorized users to request a report through the Internet 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, and to receive the report in real time (within 15 minutes of request) while continuing to allow them to request reports through the mail or by fax.” The eKASPER system was launched on March 16, 2005 and has been recognized at the state and federal levels as a model program. Additionally, as a result of regulatory amendments to 902 KAR 55:110, dispensers of CS are now required to report dispensing records to KASPER every 7 days. Although satisfaction surveys of KASPER users, including pharmacists, prescribers and law enforcement officials, were conducted in 2004 and 2006, an independent evaluation of the impact and effectiveness of KASPER has not been conducted. This report presents such an evaluation.

Details: Lexington, KY: Institute for Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy, College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky, 2010. 81p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 23, 2011 at: http://chfs.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/24493B2E-B1A1-4399-89AD-1625953BAD43/0/KASPEREvaluationFinalReport10152010.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: United States

URL: http://chfs.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/24493B2E-B1A1-4399-89AD-1625953BAD43/0/KASPEREvaluationFinalReport10152010.pdf

Shelf Number: 121785

Keywords:
Drugs
Prescription Drug Abuse (Kentucky)
Prescription Fraud

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

Title: Khat Use in Europe: Implications for European Policy

Summary: Khat leaves are cultivated in the highlands of the Horn of Africa, Southern Arabia and along the East African coast. In many countries, chewing khat is an age-old tradition. More recently, the mass migration of people from the Horn of Africa has been associated with the spread of khat usage to neighbouring countries, Europe and the rest of the world. Exact numbers of regular khat users on a worldwide scale do not exist, however estimates range up to 20 million. This paper presents the challenges associated with the spread of khat consumption.

Details: Lisbon: EMCDDA, 2011. 4p.

Source: Internet Resource: Drugs in Focus No. 21: Accessed July 5, 2011 at: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/attachements.cfm/att_137392_EN_TDAD11001ENC_WEB.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Europe

URL: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/attachements.cfm/att_137392_EN_TDAD11001ENC_WEB.pdf

Shelf Number: 121963

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Policy
Drugs
Immigrants
Khat (Europe)

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

Title: Drug Policy Profiles -- Portugal

Summary: The EMCDDA Drug policy profiles aim to describe some of the main characteristics of national drug policies in Europe and beyond. The profiles do not attempt to assess these policies, but instead outline their development and main features. The objective is to help readers — from researchers to policymakers — gain a better understanding of the way in which countries control drugs and respond to drug-related security, social and health problems. This first profile describes the national drug policy of Portugal, a policy that has attracted significant attention recently in the media and in policy debates. It considers national strategies and action plans, the legal context within which they operate and the public funds spent, or committed, to resource them. It also describes the political bodies and mechanisms set up to coordinate the response to the multi-faceted problem and the systems of evaluation that may help to improve future policy.

Details: Lisbon: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 2011. 28p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 13, 2011 at: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/attachements.cfm/att_137215_EN_PolicyProfile_Portugal_WEB_Final.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Portugal

URL: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/attachements.cfm/att_137215_EN_PolicyProfile_Portugal_WEB_Final.pdf

Shelf Number: 122048

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction (Portugal)
Drug Control
Drug Policy
Drugs

Author: Anderson, David M.

Title: Khat: Social Harms and Legislation: A Literature Review

Summary: This paper summarises the findings of a literature review focused on drawing together existing evidence on the reported ‘social harms’ of khat to consumers in the UK. It also provides a commentary on the legislation brought in to control and prohibit khat in other countries. The review found a general lack of robust evidence on the link between khat use and social harms. Social harms associated with khat remain a concern among the UK’s immigrant Somali, Yemeni and Ethiopian communities but there was little evidence of a clear causal relationship to support this view. There is a much stronger evidence base for the medical harm associated with khat which suggests that the dangers of khat consumption are relatively low.

Details: London: Home Office, 2011. 50p.

Source: Internet Resource: Occasional Paper 95: Accessed July 15, 2011 at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/crime-research/occ95?view=Binary

Year: 2011

Country: United Kingdom

URL: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/crime-research/occ95?view=Binary

Shelf Number: 122072

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Policy
Drugs
Khat (U.K.)

Author: Michel, Kenneth

Title: Mexico and the Cocaine Epidemic: The New Colombia or a New Problem

Summary: Recently, there has been an increasing amount of attention paid to Mexico and its struggle with drug cartels. The drug war in Mexico has cost the lives of 28,000 people since 2006, leading to a growing concern that Mexico may become a narco-state. Although the situation in Mexico seems uncontrollable, this is not the first time drug trafficking organizations (DTO) have threatened the livelihood of a state. Colombia from the 1980s through the mid- 1990s was dominated by cartels that ruled with violence and almost brought Colombia to its knees. Colombia today continues with its fight against DTOs; however, the security of the state is no longer directly threatened by cartels. This thesis will discuss the history of the cocaine trade and explain why Mexico was able to supplant Colombia as the cocaine epicenter. Likewise, we will discuss the U.S. strategy to combat DTOs and identify shortcomings in order to implement a better strategy to defeat the cartels. We have seen an increase in violence in Mexico and it is critical for the U.S. to act in order to prevent the U.S. homeland from coming under siege by the bloody Mexican drug war fueled by the cartels.

Details: Monterey, CA: Naval Postgraduate School, 2010. 109p.

Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed July 22, 2011 at: http://dodreports.com/pdf/ada536473.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: Mexico

URL: http://dodreports.com/pdf/ada536473.pdf

Shelf Number: 122142

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Cartels
Drug Trafficking (Mexico and Colombia)
Drugs

Author: Campbell, David R.

Title: Evaluating the Impact of Drug Trafficking Organizations on the Stability of the Mexican State

Summary: Since 2007, when President Felipe Calderon declared his government’s war on the drug trafficking organizations operating in his country, the level of narcotics related violence has increased dramatically. The violence, which had been largely confined to factions of the cartels, now threatens every citizen and is devastating the economy of the border region. This thesis evaluates the impact of Mexican drug cartels on the stability of the Mexican State and on the security of the U.S. The primary conclusion drawn is that the Mexican state is unlikely to fail as state failure is defined, but the Mexican government is likely to return to a one party system under which drug trafficking and corruption are tolerated but the violence does not directly affect the average Mexican. While current U.S. efforts toward increased border security and assistance to Mexico in the form of the Merida Initiative have made positive impacts, it is only by decreasing U.S. demand for illegal narcotics and encouraging Mexican economic growth that both nations can make real progress in the drug war.

Details: Fort Leavenworth, KS: U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, 2010. 66p.

Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed July 22, 2011 at: http://dodreports.com/pdf/ada524420.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: Mexico

URL: http://dodreports.com/pdf/ada524420.pdf

Shelf Number: 122143

Keywords:
Border Security
Drug Cartels
Drug Trafficking (Mexico)
Drug Trafficking Control
Drugs
Merida Initiative

Author: Schaefer, Agnes Gereben

Title: Security in Mexico: Implications for U.S. Policy Options

Summary: The security structure in Mexico is characterized by shifting responsibilities, duplication of services, and general instability, along with a lack of coordination among federal, state, and local security forces. The backdrop of a deteriorating security situation in Mexico and change in administration in the United States demands a closer examination of potential priorities and policy options to guide future U.S.-Mexico relations. U.S. aid to Mexico has typically focused on a narrow set of outputs — improved technology, training, and equipment to prevent drug trafficking. Despite these efforts, Mexico's security situation continues to deteriorate. To help inform debate, this study examined a set of policy options for the United States (strategic partnership, status quo, and retrenchment), along with promising potential policy priorities (help Mexico streamline delivery of security services, bridge the gap between federal and local security, support Mexico's efforts to address domestic security concerns, and build trust in security institutions). Problems related to drug and human trafficking, corruption, weapon smuggling, and gang violence have spilled into the United States, reaching far beyond the border. For this and other reasons, the United States has a significant stake in the success or failure of Mexico's security reform measures.

Details: Santa Monica, CA: RAND, 2009. 108p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 22, 2011 at: http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/2009/RAND_MG876.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: Mexico

URL: http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/2009/RAND_MG876.pdf

Shelf Number: 122145

Keywords:
Border Security
Drug Cartels
Drug Trafficking (Mexico)
Drugs
Gang Violence
Gangs

Author: Zuffa, Grazia

Title: How to Determine Personal Use in Drug Legislation. The “Threshold Controversy” in the Light of the Italian Experience

Summary: Distinguishing between drug possession for personal use and supply and trafficking is widely acknowledged as one of the most difficult and controversial issues facing drug legislators and policy makers. To address the problem, two solutions are typically enacted: the threshold scheme and the “flexible” model. According to the former, pre-defined quantities of the substances are presumed for personal use, while in the flexible model (or “discretionary system”) the court rules whether possession of drugs is intended for personal use or for supply, taking into account all the available circumstances. The purpose of this paper is to examine the advantages and the shortcomings of the different options, based on the Italian experience, as well as their real effectiveness in dealing with the problem. As the threshold controversy in the Italian context is closely intertwined with the debate over “criminalisation versus decriminalisation”, it will be necessary to examine changes in drug legislation, in particular evaluating the current 2006 drug law.

Details: Amsterdam: Transnational Institute, 2011. 12p.

Source: Internet Resource: Series on Legislative Reform of Drug Policies Nr. 15: Accessed September 2, 2011 at: http://www.idpc.net/sites/default/files/library/The-threshold-controversy-in-the-light-of-the-italian-experience.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Italy

URL: http://www.idpc.net/sites/default/files/library/The-threshold-controversy-in-the-light-of-the-italian-experience.pdf

Shelf Number: 122620

Keywords:
Drug Control (Italy)
Drug Policy
Drug Regulation
Drugs

Author: Nilsson, Robert

Title: The Impact of Drugs Trafficking, Corruption and Organized Crime: How to Strengthen Regional Cooperation around the Baltic Sea

Summary: The need for expanded and improved regional cooperation among the states around the Baltic Sea in countering the illicit drugs trade and organized crime is something which has been emphasized by papers previously published by ISDP within this research project. However, this is the first major attempt to put the acute need for regional cooperation among the wider spectrum of law enforcement offices and research communities at the very forefront of the policy debate. The reasons are manifold and ever more pressing in the rapidly changing context of closer European integration both within the Union itself and with the countries just east of the common border. The by far most profitable and, at the same time, most serious business for organized criminal networks operating in the Baltic Sea region is that of narcotics, through the entire chain from production to distribution. Even though the drug problem has been described by UNODC as contained in the sense that the demand has been stabilized, recent figures show that this containment is under threat. On the supply side the situation looks very different with increases both in production and trafficking. Similar to any legal market, the balance between supply and demand is the main determinant for pricing as well as the development of new business strategies for the drug lords within organized criminal networks. Together with these basic underlying factors of the narcotics trade, there are a number of recently emerged and decisive variables which have to be accounted for in the analysis of the future impact on cooperation among the states in the Baltic Sea region and its immediate neighbors. One such important factor is last year’s decision to enlarge the Schengen area, raising a number of pertinent questions and challenges of how to adapt to the radically changing environment where the borders of the EU have now been brought “closer to regions and territories which are unstable, uncontrolled and hence should be a source of concern due to the crime trends visible in geographical areas such as the Northern Caucasus and Central Asia.” Another such factor of which we still know very little about is the impact of the financial crisis. Most likely, this crisis will have effects on the narcotics trade as on any other legal or illegal trade. These effects are difficult to predict at the moment, but just as a strong and well-monitored banking system carries the necessary preconditions for controlling and securing financial transfers, the weakened state of the banks in the region could provide increased opportunities for organized criminal networks in their continuous search for expanded business opportunities. But apart from these two politico-economic changes of great import, what are the more imminent challenges to be met in the common fight against the proliferation of narcotics and growth of organized crime in the Baltic Sea region?

Details: Stockholm: Institute for Security and Development Policy, 2009. 48p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 3, 2011 at: http://www.isdp.eu/images/stories/isdp-main-pdf/2009_nilsson-kego_the-impact-of-drugs-trafficking.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: International

URL: http://www.isdp.eu/images/stories/isdp-main-pdf/2009_nilsson-kego_the-impact-of-drugs-trafficking.pdf

Shelf Number: 122626

Keywords:
Drug Enforcement
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Organized Crime

Author: Dominguez, Manuel J.

Title: The Institutionalization of Drug Trafficking Organizations: Comparing Colombia and Brazil

Summary: Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTOs) have emerged as important informal institutions in Latin America. This thesis looks at: 1) the emergence of DTOs within Colombia and Brazil, 2) how DTOs meet the criteria for being informal institutions, and 3) what sustains DTOs. In both cases, drug trafficking was shaped by expansions and shifts of drug production within the Andean region from the 1960s onward. DTOs in Colombia emerged in the mid-1960s and 1970s while DTOs in Brazil took root with the introduciton of the drug trade in the region in the late 1970s to early 1980s. DTOs in Colombia and Brazil qualify as informal institutions based on structural composition, stability, behavioral control, and social cohesion. Sustainability in the Colombian case study is attributed to the DTOs’ capacity to learn and adapt to U.S. and Colombian efforts while capitalizing on policy failures. Sustainability in the Brazilian case study is attributed to the DTOs’ capacity to become entrenched in favela (poor urban) zones. Analysis of the case studies reveals divergent paths and characteristics of DTOs. In particular, internal warfare coupled with an emphasis on illicit drug production in Colombia has led DTOs to focus on the control of rural land. In Brazil, meanwhile, the absence of internal conflict an the emphasis on illicit distribution (retail) in Brazil has resulted in the DTOs focusing on controlling points of sale and internal, informal governance within the favela zones.

Details: Monterey, CA: Naval Postgraduate School, 2010. 101p.

Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed September 19, 2011 at: http://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=15886

Year: 2010

Country: South America

URL: http://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=15886

Shelf Number: 122776

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking (Colombia, Brazil)
Drug Trafficking Control
Drugs

Author: Tanner, Murray Scot

Title: China Confronts Afghan Drugs: Law Enforcement Views of “The Golden Crescent”

Summary: The rising flow of illegal drugs from the “Golden Crescent” region—Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran — into western China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) has caused increasing concern to Chinese law enforcement officials and analysts. This study seeks to strengthen understanding of Chinese law enforcement perceptions of the Golden Crescent drug problem by making use of previously underexploited Chinese law enforcement publications. Key Findings include the following: • Chinese law enforcement officials and analysts now see Golden Crescent trafficking as a major and rapidly growing threat to society. This view reflects a major shift from China’s earlier exclusive focus on the “Golden Triangle” region drug threat. • Chinese law enforcement analysts blame the rise in Golden Crescent drug smuggling on the increase in foreign supply rather than Chinese demand. These analyses tend to understate Chinese domestic problems, such as police corruption, ethnic tensions, and rising drug prices and demand, which may have made China a more attractive drug shipping route. • Chinese analyses of popular Golden Crescent smuggling routes emphasize highway, air, and rail routes through Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan. If correct, these analyses indicate that these four important security partners of Beijing may be failing to prevent trafficking into China across their territory. • The Chinese law enforcement writings reviewed indicate that China has serious weaknesses in its counternarcotics intelligence capabilities and is anxious to overcome them. Problems include meager clandestine intelligence on Asian drug networks, weak data on trafficking by ethnic separatists, and poor intelligence networking and sharing across jurisdictions. • Increasingly sophisticated trafficker techniques coupled with greater linguistic diversity among traffickers are frustrating Chinese law enforcement officials, who find these traffickers more difficult to investigate, detect, and interrogate. • Even though law enforcement analysts confidently assert a significant link between terrorism and drug trafficking, sources reviewed for this study provide very little solid evidence that the two are connected.

Details: Alexandria, VA: CNA Analysis & Solutions, 2011. 52p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 19, 2011 at: http://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/China%20Confronts%20Afghan%20Drugs...%20D0024793.A1_1.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Asia

URL: http://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/China%20Confronts%20Afghan%20Drugs...%20D0024793.A1_1.pdf

Shelf Number: 122784

Keywords:
Drug Smuggling
Drug Trafficking (China)
Drug Trafficking Enforcement
Drugs

Author: Navarro, Ignacio A.

Title: Cocaine Cities Exploring the Relationship between Urban Processes and the Drug Trade in South America

Summary: The relationship between the cocaine trade and urban land markets in South America has been overlooked by the mainstream economics and urban studies literature. This paper examines two avenues through which the cocaine trade can have a large impact on urban development in producer countries: (i) through an employment multiplier effect similar to that of other legal exports, and (ii) through money laundering using urban real estate. We test our hypotheses using the Bolivian case and find that urban growth patterns are closely related to fluctuations in cocaine production. Further, even though our estimates suggest that the cocaine trade affects urban growth through the two avenues presented in the paper, we find that formal urban employment generated by the cocaine trade has a modest effect on urban growth and most of the effect seems to be explained by money laundering using real estate and other paths.

Details: Helsinki: United Nations University, World Institute for Development Economics Research, 2011. 15p.

Source: Internet Resource: Working Paper No. 2011/09: Accessed September 21, 2011 at: http://www.wider.unu.edu/publications/working-papers/2011/en_GB/wider-working-papers-2011/

Year: 2011

Country: Bolivia

URL: http://www.wider.unu.edu/publications/working-papers/2011/en_GB/wider-working-papers-2011/

Shelf Number: 122802

Keywords:
Cocaine (Bolivia)
Drug Trafficking
Drugs
Money Laundering
Urban Areas