Addiction should be seen as a disease and not a crime, said Dr Joao Goulao.
“Drug addiction is a health problem,” he said. “In Portugal, it was once treated as a criminal problem. The laws were tough and people could be jailed just for using drugs.
“Many still do not consider drug addiction a disease, but it is. We treat diabetes as a disease commonly caused by lifestyle habits, but we don’t put someone in jail to cure it.”
Goulao began pushing for decriminalisation of drug use in his country in 1998, when an estimated 1% of Portugal’s population were heroin addicts.
“It was almost impossible to find a Portuguese family that didn’t have a relative who wasn’t a heroin user,” he said.
Seeing that the country’s narcotic laws did not curb the problem, the government decided to gather a team of experts to find a solution.
“The committee turned to decriminalising drug use, but at the political level, conservatives argued that this would lead to Portugal becoming a drug paradise for users from around the world,” he said.
However, in 2001, Portugal officially decriminalised drug use.
“Drug use went from being a jailable offence to something akin to not using a seatbelt while driving. If you don’t use your seatbelt you’re liable to a fine or you have to retake a driving test,” he said.
Instead of jail time, drug users with less than 10 days’ supply are referred to health ministry facilities for an assessment, treatment and support. Those with more than the permitted amount can be prosecuted for possession.
“The most important turning point in Portugal’s war against drugs was the removal of the stigma attached to drug use, which then allowed former users to easily integrate back into society, including getting help, finding a job, applying for loans and even renting a house,” Goulao said.
“Before 2001, we had on average one overdose death each day. That’s 365 deaths a year. In 2019, there were only 65 deaths.
“Indicators on HIV cases, overdose and addiction have also improved significantly.”
He said Portugal’s success was a result of combining decriminalisation with the provision of health and social support measures, including free treatment at public health facilities and tax incentives for employers of former addicts.
He also said countries wanting to address their drug problems should develop methods consistent with their situations and cultures.
In Malaysia, the Pakatan Harapan government in 2019 announced that it wanted to decriminalise drug use, but the coalition fell from power a year later.