Next Steps for Australian Drug Policy
A Brief History
The issue of drug abuse has been a major problem is Australia over the years. In order to fight the problem of drug misuse in the country, the government has developed a national drug policy. Most people use prohibited drugs for recreational purposes, making it hard to control their usage. Illicit drugs that are mainly misused in the country include cannabis, opium, heroin, cocaine, among others. According to the Australian government and other community organizations, illicit drugs pose social and health problems to the users and have an illegal market worth billions of dollars.
Before the formation of the Australian Federation, there was no sound policy framework to respond to the usage of illicit substances. Opium, which was the main illicit substance at the time, was controlled through colonial trading laws. The government only intervened to warn the users over the dangers of overdose. This was done through warning labels. Indeed, the usage of opium posed a major health problem to the users. This forced the Australian government to respond immediately to reduce deaths occasioned by the usage of opium. Most of the deaths were attributed to overdose. Therefore, the first policy was aimed at controlling drug usage (Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy, 2004).
A Comparison with other European Countries
The death rates associated with drug abuse in Australia are the highest in Europe. This trend has been on an upward trend over the years. In 1997, Australia’s death rate stood at 32.7% per million people (Barton, 2012). Currently, the death rate stands at about 24% per million people (Barton, 2012). In the Netherlands, only about 2.5% per million deaths are attributed to drugs (Barton, 2012). Indeed, the Netherlands has the lowest cases of drug-related deaths in Europe. This makes the country a role model in addressing the drugs issue across the nations.
Drug Policy in the Netherlands
The Netherlands has pursued a successful drug policy over the years. This is unlike other countries, especially in the aspects of prevention and care. Although the number of users in the country is not as large as in other countries, the drug-related deaths in the country are the lowest in Europe. The Dutch government recognizes that it is not possible to prevent people from taking drugs (Government of the Netherlands, 2013). Accordingly, the country has coffee shops that sell soft drugs to people for personal use. This gives the government an opportunity to give attention to large-scale dealers in hard drugs (Holland.com, 2013).
The Netherlands’ drug policy, for a long period, has been pegged on the health interests of the citizens. The country’s policy is based on two principles. First, drugs are seen as a public health issue and not a matter of criminal activity. Secondly, there is a clear distinction between hard drugs and soft drugs. It is on this perspective that it has been a major success. In other countries like Australia, the case has been disastrous. The Netherlands has a policy of decriminalisation of the possession of soft drugs for own consumption. In addition, the country allows sale points that are permitted within given parameters by the authorities. These have not resulted in an increase in the abuse of drugs among young people in the country.
Policy of Tolerance
Drugs in the Netherlands are illegal and their possession constitutes a criminal offense. However, the country has a policy of tolerance, which operates within given guidelines. Drugs like marijuana and hashish have less harm to people compared to hard drugs, like cocaine. The health of the public is of major concern in the country. The country sees the need to give priority to its citizens, especially the users as well as the environment in which they live. Experimentation with drugs, although not disallowed in the Netherlands, is not regarded as a big problem by the authorities (Taylor, 2012).
One of the best-known approaches in dealing with drug issue is the tolerance to cannabis use in the country. The Netherlands has cafes that sell Marijuana in small doses for personal use. This has become a symbol of the country’s drugs policy in the international arena. Indeed, the Dutch policy on the use of Marijuana is based on the assumption that social factors influence people to shift from the use of soft drugs to hard ones (Holland.com, 2013). Although some countries have a certain degree of tolerance to cannabis, the Dutch are more open on how they allow its use. Nevertheless, the Dutch believe that young people, who are most likely to use soft drugs, should be provided an environment where the hard drug culture is conspicuously missing. Therefore, the policy allows access to soft drugs for personal use, while at the same time making sure the hard drugs market is not easily accessible to young people. Indeed, keeping the two markets separate creates a social barrier (Holland.com, 2013). This barrier has made transition from soft to hard drugs rather difficult.
Harm Reduction
The Netherlands pursues a harm reduction campaign to minimize infiltration of drugs to young people and those around them (Government of the Netherlands, 2013). Young people are the most vulnerable since they do not understand the repercussions of drug abuse. Education campaign are widely used to pass the message across to the targeted groups. In addition, drug users are given treatment to cure their addiction. Other measures are used to decrease risks associated with drug abuse if rehabilitation does not achieve the desired results. For instance, drug users can exchange their needles for sterilized ones for free to minimize risks of HIV/AIDS transmission (Government of the Netherlands, 2013).
Current Australian Policy
As a result of the growing misuse of drugs in the country, the government developed the National Illicit Drugs Strategy “Tough on Drugs” in 1997 aimed at controlling the usage of drugs in the country. However, the policy did not achieve the desired results as more people continued to abuse drugs (Taylor, 2012). This led to a modification of the National Illicit Drugs Strategy “Tough on Drugs” in 1998/98. The recently adopted National Drug Strategy- Australia’s Integrated Framework of 2004-2009 later followed the “Tough on Drugs” policy.
The realization of the need for a drug policy was based on two assumptions. First, drug usage poses a major threat to the economy of Australia as the country loses thousands of people to illnesses that are related to usage of illicit substances. Secondly, the government is using billions of dollars to treat diseases that are caused directly and indirectly by the usage of drugs. The rational behind the 2004 framework was to mitigate these socio-economic consequences of drugs (Docteur, Paris & Moise 2008). To achieve its results, the Australian model focused on three aspects of drug control. These included demand reduction, harm reduction, and supply reduction.
To start with, the reduction of supply strategies was aimed at disrupting production and supply of illicit drugs to various parts of the country. These policies were also aimed at controlling and regulating the usage of illicit drugs. Firm measures were put in place in various parts including the customs department and strengthening of border security. Those found culpable of trading in drugs faced prosecution and jail term, if convicted (Barton, 2012). Secondly, the demand reduction aimed at preventing the usage of harmful drugs. The policies have programs aimed at discouraging usage and treating those who are abusing drugs. Finally, the harm reduction policies are directed toward reducing the harm that result from usage of illicit substances (Government of the Netherlands, 2013). The main goal of this strategy is to ensure enhanced safety for people who use drugs. This is usually done through providing safe avenues of using drugs such as needles and other educative programs that help to reduce harms to individual users.
Policy Change
Drug possession and usage in the Netherlands is illegal. However, the country has a policy of tolerance as discussed above. Australia should pursue a policy shift and model its strategy to the one used in the Netherlands. This is so because the current Australian policy has been ineffective in dealing with drug abuse in the country (Government of the Netherlands, 2013). Despite, the policy being in place, the number of those who are engaged in drug abuse has been on the rise. This means that the national drug policy that was developed with aim of reducing usage of illicit substances has not being able to work effectively towards achieving its intended goal. The policy tends to encourage usage instead of discouraging. For instance, the strategies of harm reduction have been blamed mainly for encouraging the people to continue abusing various drugs. Therefore, there is an urgent need to change the policy and introduce some aspects that will make the national drug policy effective (MacCoun & Reuter 2002).
The Australian method of harm reduction can benefit greatly from the Dutch model. The Netherlands’ harm reduction campaign focuses on minimizing infiltration of drugs to young people and those around them (Barton, 2012). In addition, Australia should allow a limited usage of drugs for recreational purposes, just as the Netherlands has done. Indeed, Australian government should understand that a hard policy stand on this issue is counterproductive. This is attested by the large number of users in the country compared to the Netherlands. In addition, the Netherlands understand that it is impossible to avoid abuse of drugs. Therefore, the country gives great attention to treating and rehabilitating perennial drug abusers instead of pursuing a harsh policy on the victims.
The National Illicit Drugs Strategy “Tough on Drugs” as well as the National Drug Strategy of 2009 adopted by the Australian government should be modified to fit into the Netherlands model for best results. Therefore, Australia should embrace the same and come up with a policy that will target recreational drug users to discourage them from using drugs that are dangerous to their health. If the policies are to be effective in reducing drug abuse, then the main users must be targeted. The aim is to help them as much as possible, while at the same time, minimizing effect on potential users (Bewley-Taylor, David & Cindy 2003). Another aspect of the Netherland policy is diminishing nuisance to the public by drug users. This discourages users from taking drugs, as they know they will end up in prison. This approach can be done through educational programs. Australia has done so in the past and the same should be continued for maximum results.
Summary of Findings
It is very clear that for the drug policies to be effective in Australia, all aspects that contribute their usage should be properly addressed. The policy should focus first on reducing supply of drugs in the country. For the policy to be effective, those who are found engaging in trafficking of illicit substances should face the full wrath of law. This will deter continued tirade on hard drugs. The policy should also look at the aspect of reducing harm to the users (Barton, 2012). Those involved in the usage of illegal substances and addicts should undergo rehabilitation. This will help reduce the negative effects of drugs in Australia.
Another aspect that is critical in the fight against drug falls on the demand side. People should be cushioned against drugs through educational programs. Such programs can be effective if they tell users as well as potential ones the dangers of taking illicit drugs. Therefore, it is crucial for the policy framers to ensure that the three aspects are in place and that there is a close coordination between the policies (Greg, 2013). Therefore, the Australian government should borrow from some other aspects of the Netherland drug policy to make it effective given that the country has been in the forefront in the fight against illicit drugs.
Conclusion
Australia, like other developed economies, had a significant increase in the use of illegal drugs in the 1960s. The first responses to contain this menace had little effect since drug abuse and its related death cases rose sharply. This showed that the response mechanisms adopted by successive governments were not effective. Although subsequent regulations aimed at reducing harm to society, these had only limited success in maintaining low HIV/AIDS infections. However, drug abuse continued to rise over the years.
The upward trends in drug abuse have not changed much although Australia has adopted various laws to mitigate the problem. The National Illicit Drugs Strategy (1997) and the National Drug Strategy of 2009 continued to pursue the harm minimization strategy. However, for the country to achieve low levels of abuse like other European countries, it should shift its policy and imitate the Netherlands model. Netherlands has the lowest levels of drug abuse. Its policy focuses on four pillars in fighting the drug menace. First, it aims at preventing recreational abuse and rehabilitating users. Secondly, it focuses on reducing harm to society. This is based on the realization that people will always use drugs. Thirdly, the policy tries to reduce the nuisance to society brought by drug users. Finally, the policy aims at combating the production and trafficking of recreational drugs. If Australia modifies its current ineffective National Drug Strategy, it might as well enjoy low levels of deaths emanating from drugs.
Reference List
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Government of the Netherlands. 2013. Drugs. Available at<http://www.government.nl/issues/alcohol-and-drugs/drugs> (Accessed 1 March 2013).
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Holland.com. 2013. Dutch Drug Policy. Available at <http://www.holland.com/global/tourism/Article/dutch-drug-policy.htm> (Accessed 1 March 2013).
MacCoun, R. J., & Reuter, P. ,2002, Cross-National Drug Policy. Sage Publications, London.
Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy, 2004, The National Drug Strategy: Australia’s Integrated Framework. The Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.
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Taylor, B. 2012. International Drug Control: Consensus Fractured. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
