Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has declared a war on drug trafficking, trading and consumption fulfilling a promise made during her election campaign.
At a ceremony, she announced the establishment of 49 Regional Centers of Reference on “crack” and other drugs in public universities.
In the centers, health professionals will be trained and drug addicts will have consultations with social workers for treatment and prevention.
Rousseff said that the fight against drugs will be conducted on three fronts: prevention, assistance to users and their families and combating drug trafficking.
“We have an extremely worrying situation concerning drugs and crime. My government will promote a systematic combat against crack. I have the commitment to a relentless struggle against crack,” Rousseff said.
“This drug has a very high capacity to spread because it is cheap and it disintegrates personalities and social relations,” she said.
According to the president, the fight against drugs requires a fight against organised crime, so it is necessary to strengthen the Federal Police and border control. (more…)
An increasing number of women are imprisoned for drug offences, many of them single mothers
Drug laws in eight Latin American countries have exacerbated their prison overcrowding problems and failed to curb trafficking, a study says.
The Transnational Institute and the Washington Office on Latin America say most of those convicted are not high or medium-level drug traffickers.
Imprisoning minor offenders is “useless“, as they are easily replaced by the bosses at the top, they warn.
But for most of those locked up, they add, “prison can destroy their lives”.
On Wednesday, a fire at an overcrowded prison in Chile killed more than 80 inmates.
Officials said the blaze at the San Miguel jail in the capital, Santiago, was started deliberately during a fight between rival gangs.
President Sebastian Pinera has promised to end overcrowding, calling the current system “absolutely inhumane“. Officials say there are 24,000 more inmates than places in Chile’s prisons. (more…)
