Fight against drug abuse and trafficking
Recommendation 989
(1984)
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly debate on 27 September 1984 (10th and 11th Sittings) (see Doc. 5276, report of the Committee on Social and Health Questions,Doc. 5283,Doc. 5283, opinion of the Legal Affairs Committee, and Doc. 5284, opinion of the Committee on Culture and Education). Text adopted by the Assembly on 27 September 1984 (11th Sitting).
- Thesaurus
The Assembly,
1. Considering with dismay that the use of drugs, both narcotics and psychotropic substances, is still on the increase in the majority of the member countries ;
2. Noting that in the member states of the Council of Europe over the last few years there has been a major rise in the sale of cocaine, wider availability of heroin, the price of which has fallen, and an unprecedented increase in the use of cannabis which has benefited from the laxity of public opinion in some countries ;
3. Also noting that traditional narcotics have been joined by the dramatic appearance of new forms of abuse, such as multiple drug addiction, psychotropic drugs used for other than their therapeutic purpose, and the inhalation of glues, ether and solvents such as trichloroethylene ;
4. Alarmed by the fact that the average age of users is continuing to fall and ranges often from 13 to 16 ;
5. Noting that a large number of national and international bodies are studying means to control drugs, are carrying out experiments and are trying to take effective action, but that, unfortunately, the results obtained, in the form of penal action, reintegration or prevention, are very limited in comparison with the resources invested ;
6. Considering that, as regards co-ordination both on the national level (between the various departments such as medical officers, judges, social services and police) and on the European level (research, customs co-operation, the exchange of information, the establishing of common criteria), the position is far from satisfactory, and that, as a general rule, both theoretical and practical activities are conducted in isolation in each country with increasing duplication and waste of resources ;
7. Recalling that over the last fifteen years the Council of Europe has made significant efforts in this field which have resulted in numerous recommendations by the Assembly and the Committee of Ministers, the most recent of which are Recommendation No. R (82) 5, on the prevention of drug addiction and the particular role of health education, and Resolution (73) 6, on the penal aspects of drug abuse ;
8. Noting that :
8.1 since this work started, it has been possible to begin a dialogue between the member states and to obtain some practical results, but it has not been possible to make any joint assessment of the effectiveness of preventative measures ;
8.2 it has proved impossible to produce comparable data to facilitate an exchange of national experiences ;
8.3 the preventative and educational approach is not sufficiently advanced, at least in some countries, compared with traditional control methods ;
8.4 finally, some striking differences have come to light as regards the punitive approach ;
9. Considering that the Committee of Ministers' decision of 1980 to integrate the "Pompidou Group" (Co-operation Group to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking in drugs)- set up in 1971 to enable close multidisciplinary co-operation - into the Council of Europe, as the Assembly had asked in
Recommendation 843 (1978), is a step forward
10. Welcoming the final declaration of the 7th Ministerial Conference of the Pompidou Group Ministers and its positive outcome ;
11. Noting with satisfaction the recent decision of the Spanish Government to join in the Pompidou Group, thus bringing up the number of members to fourteen ;
12. Believing that the problem of drugs, like that of violence, is linked to wider problems of modern society such as increasing stress, unemployment, leisure time or uncertainty about values ;
14. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers draw up, as part of its medium-term plan, a consistent multidisciplinary strategy for the fight against drug abuse and trafficking, using all the resources of the Council of Europe and paying particular attention to the following proposals :
a Action against drug trafficking
14.1.1 To reaffirm that it should be a punishable offence to traffic in both "hard" and "soft" drugs, seeing that whilst the former certainly have a more devastating effect, the latter, because they are easier to obtain and to use, considerably increase the number of users and lower their average age, thus adding a quantitative dimension to the problem ; each country's legislation should differentiate between both types of trafficking and provide for the punishment of the offenders in both cases ;
14.1.2 To step up measures to combat large-scale drug trafficking, in particular :
14.1.2.1 by stressing the international dimension of this trafficking and the proven links with the networks of arms trafficking and terrorism and, being extremely concerned by the evidence that large sums of money made by selling drugs illegally are being used to finance international terrorism, by taking steps to encourage strong international efforts to stop the destabilising effects of this traffic ;
14.1.2.2 by intensifying the co-operation between the national authorities by improving the exchange of information on the flow of international capital associated with drugs and, more generally, on detecting, freezing and confiscating drug traffickers' financial assets ;
14.1.2.3 by examining, in specific cases, the possibility of stopping and searching vessels suspected of drug trafficking outside territorial waters, without losing sight of the provision of Article 108 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea which provides that "all states shall cooperate in the suppression of illicit traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances engaged in by ships on the high seas contrary to international conventions" ;
14.1.3 To consider urgently ways of countering the wave of glue, solvent and ether inhalation, for example by forbidding the sale of these products to minors without the express permission of their parents, by informing shopkeepers and encouraging them to co-operate with parents and the police ;
b Prevention, treatment and reintegration
14.2.1 To implement specific measures to achieve the declared objective of Committee of Ministers Recommendation No. R (82) 5 : primary prevention as a priority policy with a view to improved health education so that young people adopt a healthy way of life ;
14.2.2 To accompany policies to combat such problems as drugs or violence by long-term positive strategies, preparing young people to play a constructive and creative role in democratic society and encouraging the continued cultural development of adults ;
14.2.3 . To consider within this context integrating these problems into the programmes and curricula of educational establishments and community groups, the focus of the information being to make young people aware of their responsibilities for their own well-being, but also the penal consequences resulting from it ;
14.2.4 To organise training schemes for those in the education, health, social services and legal professions, in order to make these gradually more complementary, a situation which does not at present exist between teachers and families, judges and doctors, police and the social services ;
14.2.5 To pay particular attention to the information that should be given to the general public, in order to change tolerant attitudes towards drugs, and to parents and children in recognising early symptoms of drug abuse ;
14.2.6 To put more emphasis on the useful role which could be played in combating drug abuse by the mass media ;
14.2.7 To examine the development of therapeutic communities where young people receive help from teams with sufficient training to do an all-round job, encompassing health, psychological and social requirements and capable of listening actively to young people in difficulties, since these latter frequently reject traditional institutions, such as psychiatric centres, for example ;
14.2.8 To find a middle way between the extreme positions of compulsory treatment for every young user under 18, on the one hand, and on the other, a method of therapy which relies excessively on voluntary attendance ; this new approach might, for example, lie in a suspension or remission of sentence if the user agrees to treatment ;
14.2.9 To improve the co-operation among the different authorities of the countries that produce and consume drugs, having in mind that an important amount of psychotropic and somniferous products exported to developing countries produce drug addiction ;
15. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite the member states who have not already done so to join the "Pompidou Group", and show the political will to transform this Group into a real European centre for co-ordination, selection and implementation of methods of assessment ; it could also provide systems of exchanging information, of liaison between researchers and experts, and for the transfer of specialised documentation and publications- in this context it would be necessary to provide a periodical review to be sent to those working in this field ;
16. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite the governments of the member states to act together in the international organisations which are preparing worldwide programmes, and to ensure that the various measures planned correspond with the general spirit of the North-South dialogue, as, for instance, the proposal concerning the diversification and substitution of farming production from which natural drugs are extracted ;
17. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite the governments of the member states to implement in full the appropriate recommendations adopted by the Committee of Ministers as listed in Appendix I to this recommendation ;
18. Reiterates its recommendation to the Committee of Ministers to invite the governments of the member states who have not already done so to sign and ratify the conventions listed in Appendix II to this recommendation ;
19. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite the governments of member states to encourage multidisciplinary epidemiologic studies, with the clear purpose of trying to find the relationship, if any, between the different types of drug and psychotrope consumption and sociological studies about distribution of drugs, detecting epidemic zones of great risk for the population, and factors of risk in specific groups of population.
Appendix 1 APPENDIX I
Resolution (78) 11 on response of diplomatic and consular services of member states to the problems of their nationals abroad caused by their misuse of drugs ;
Resolution (78) 12 on measures in the field of information and education to be possibly undertaken by member states directed to the problems of young people who travel to areas where drugs are readily available ;
Recommendation No. R (80) 10 on measures against the transfer and safe-keeping of funds of criminal origin ;
Recommendation No. R (82) 5 concerning the prevention of drug dependence and the special role of education for health ;
Recommendation No. R (82) 6 concerning the treatment and resocialisation of drug dependants.
Appendix 2 APPENDIX II
a.United Nations Conventions :
1 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 ;
2 Protocol of 1972 modifying this Convention ;
3 1971 Convention on psychotropic substances ;
b. Council of Europe Conventions :
1 European Convention on Extradition of 1957 and its Protocols of 1975 and 1978 ;
2 European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (1959) and its Protocol of 1978 ;
3 European Convention of 1970 on International Validity of Criminal Judgments ;
4 European Convention of 1972 on the Transfer of Proceedings in Criminal Matters ;
c. Convention of the Council for Customs Co-operation on mutual administrative assistance for the prevention, investigation and repression of customs offences, so called Nairobi Convention which came into force in 1980, and in particular Appendix 10 on assistance with regard to the prevention of smuggling narcotics and psychotropic substances.
