Plataforma Democrática: Declaration of the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy

With the support of Plataforma Democrática, a network where CADAL is member, the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy just presented her conclusions. Created by former presidents Fernando Henrique Cardoso (Brazil), César Gavíria (Colombia) and Ernesto Zedillo (Mexico) and formed by 17 independent figures, the Commission has evaluated the limits and undesirable effects of repressive policies of ''war against drugs'' applied in Latin America.

With the support of Plataforma Democrática, a network where CADAL is member, the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy just presented her conclusions. Created by former presidents Fernando Henrique Cardoso (Brazil), César Gavíria (Colombia) and Ernesto Zedillo (Mexico) and formed by 17 independent figures, the Commission has evaluated the limits and undesirable effects of repressive policies of "war against drugs" applied in Latin America.

The proposals of the Commission for more efficient and humain strategies, presented in the document Drugs and Democracy: Toward a Paradigm Shift, are based in three directions:

Las propuestas de la Comisión para estrategias más eficientes y humanas, presentadas en el documento Drogas y Democracia: hacia un cambio de paradigma, se apoyan en tres grandes directives:

• Treating drug users as a matter of public health.
  

• Reducing drug consumption through information, education and prevention.
  
  
• Focusing repression on organized crime.

The Commission also invites governments and society to "Evaluate from a public health standpoint and on the basis of the most advanced medical science the convenience of decriminalizing the possession of cannabis for personal use".

To break the silence and crack the taboo that block the opening of a wide debate on the subject of drugs is a precondition for each country to be able to find innovative solutions, appropiate to her history and culture.

For more information on the work of the Commission and her proposals, go to the site: www.drugsanddemocracy.org