Clark: Stop treating drug users as criminals
The war on drugs has failed and it is time for New Zealand to take a fresh look at its policy, says former prime minister Helen Clark.
Clark told a conference at Parliament that the passing of a private member’s bill – calling for an increase in the maximum penalty for suppliers of drugs like synthetic cannabis – was a step in the wrong direction.
‘‘That is heading in the war-ondrugs direction which isn’t going to work, but going to a select committee with a bill is one thing, it’s what will come out the other end,’’ Clark said.
‘‘And I think all the people who know about drug policy, who know what’s happening around the world, need to come to the [select] committee and spell it out how it is.’’
Clark, who last year lost her bid to become secretary-general of the United Nations, is a member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, which aims to reform drug policy in order to reduce societal harm. She has previously advised the evidence lies with countries like Switzerland and Portugal, where decriminalisation and extensive social policies have reduced Portugal’s rate of drug users from the highest in western Europe to the lowest.
‘‘It’s a tough issue because it’s almost counter-intuitive to what has to be done,’’ Clark said. ‘‘We’ve got drug policy wrong, and I very much want to stop treating people who use drugs as criminals.
‘‘We have to look at the evidence of what works – and if we looked at Portugal or to Switzerland or any number of countries now we see more enlightened drug policies, which are bringing down the rate of death and not driving up prison populations.’’
Clark was responding to Pakuranga MP Simeon Brown’s bill, which would amend the Psychoactive Drugs Act 2013, increasing the penalty for dealing the substances from two years’ imprisonment to eight years.
While Labour and the Greens opposed it, NZ First has agreed to support it through the first reading, which gets it to the select committee stage. National’s 56 votes and NZ First’s nine gave it a clear majority in the House, of 65 to 55.
Police Minister Stuart Nash said synthetic cannabis was a real issue in communities but harsher penalties were not the way to go.
Longer, harsher penalties are out of sync with the Government’s plan to reduce the prison population by 30 per cent in the next 15 years by reviewing bail laws and taking a health-focused – rather than punitive – approach to addiction and drug-related crime.
Last year the NZ Drug Foundation recommended that referrals to health services should replace criminal convictions for drug possession, cannabis should be strictly regulated, and government spending on drug education and treatment should be increased.
‘‘Our 42-year-old drug law is based on the flawed but wellintentioned assumption that a punitive response will keep drug use low. By any measure that hasn’t worked,’’ said Ross Bell, executive director of the NZ Drug Foundation.
‘‘We spend millions of dollars to convict thousands of people every year for using drugs but are left with some of the highest rates of drug use in the world, particularly among young people.
‘‘Our harsh drug law prevents people accessing help when they need it, and leaves thousands every year with a conviction that impacts on employment, relationships and travel.’’
Dr Kate Baddock of the New Zealand Medical Association (NZMA) said drug use was primarily a health problem with social overtones.
‘‘To treat drug use as criminal is to bypass the important aspects of the problem and its ramifications for health and societal issues, for all those who use and abuse both illicit or prescription drugs.’’
NZMA also supports a change to redefine illicit drugs primarily as a health and social issue, with funding for health and social interventions increased to the same level as that for law enforcement.
Its chief executive, Lesley Clark, said the NZMA believes addiction should be regarded as a disease, and individuals suffering from drug dependency should be diverted, whenever possible, from the criminal justice system to treatment and rehabilitation.
NZMA supports the recommendations made by the New Zealand Law Commission in its review of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975, in particular it would like to see drug courts piloted in New Zealand. DRUG LAWS Portugal: In 2001, Portuguese law was changed to decriminalise the possession of small amounts of proscribed drugs for personal use. If police discover someone carrying a small dose of a drug, they will confiscate the substance and refer the user to a ‘‘Dissuasion Commission’’. This body assesses their level of addiction, and the appropriate education or treatment required. In other words, the state treats a user less like a criminal and more like a patient. The Portuguese Government claims that under the system there has been a decrease in deaths and the number of people being treated for addictions has risen.
Switzerland: The national drug policy of Switzerland was developed in the early 1990s and comprises the four elements of prevention, therapy, harm reduction and prohibition.