Russia Liberalizes Drug Policy
A new Russian drug policy is aimed at keeping small-time drug offenders
out of prison, the New York Times reported June 13.
"It is a liberalization of thinking, and in this sense it
is a revolution," said Dr. Oleg Zykov, a member of President
Vladimir Putin's Human Rights Commission and president of No to
Alcoholism and Drug Addiction, a non-governmental organization counseling
drug users.
For years, people convicted of possessing small amounts of illegal
drugs received harsh penalties. For instance, having five-thousandths
of a gram of heroin was defined by the police and courts as possessing
a "large" amount of the drug, and was punishable with
a prison sentence. But Zykov said, "We are talking about dust."
Under the new policy, possession of up to 10 doses of illegal substances
for personal use is subject to fines. A new table of weights developed
by a special commission defines 10 doses of heroin as a gram. The
new policies also define the threshold for cocaine as one and a
half grams and for marijuana as 20 grams, or more than half an ounce.
"It brings the criminal regulations in the country closer
to those accepted by the world community," said Alexander Petrov
of Human Rights Watch.
Drug-treatment specialists said the new policy would reduce prison
overcrowding and the spread of infectious diseases, which are often
contracted in prisons. |
