Hungary Needs A New Drug Strategy

The policy of the Government brought changes in the views, attitudes and directions, comparing to the previous years. The new drug strategy is part of these changes. It is based on prevention, strengthening the families, school education, and reconstruction of the rank of teachers, supporting young people, offering help for those, who got into trouble and on a strong law interdiction against drug dealers. These will form the basis of a new drug strategy, to be elaborated by the end of 2011, together with an action plan.

During the past 8 years new drugs emerged in the illegal marketplace and new forms of drug trafficking and distribution among young people were domesticated. Hungary having been a transit country of drug trafficking became a target country. The children and young people can access drugs and mind altering substances much easier than earlier. Drug liberalization came into the forefront and nothing happened to stop these negative trends. The drug strategy implemented by now had failed, as it was not capable to prevent or reduce the increasing drug problem. Those, who induced this situation, would not be able to create and implement an appropriate new drug strategy.

The drug strategy of the past years, which placed the emphasis on drug liberalization and harm reduction, cannot be continued any more. This policy benefited those, who preferred drug liberalization. Trafficking of yet non-scheduled, harmful substances became profitable, similarly to distribution of illicit drugs.

The task of the state is the protection of society, especially those groups who are the most deprived and endangered, against those, who want to gain profit by damaging them. In the focus of the Government stands now the strengthening of families, raising awareness of parents about their responsibilities and improving the societal solidarity. These goals are met by the measures of Government taken now, e.g. the family tax benefit, earlier retirement of women, sanctioning of avoiding school for more than 50 hours by pupils, stricter penalization of shoplifting. Positive effects of these measures have become visible in a short term.

Source: World Federation Against Drugs Jan. 2011

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