Agreements related with drugs from the Ibero-American Summit of Cadiz
The outcome document from the Ibero-American Summit, holded between 16th and 17th November 2012, focused on six key areas:
- the economic development of the public service;
- the development of infrastructure in transport, telecommunications, energy and sustainable use and management of water;
- the promotion of small and medium enterprises;
- institutional strengthening;
- education and the promotion of Latin American cultural space; and
- promoting the creation of work.
The need to take action with regards to the fight against drugs was mentioned under the heading of institutional strengthening in the declaration. Three of the eight paragraphs in this section focused on drugs. The language appears quite clear and strong, it does not seem that this is just window dressing especially given the fact that similar comments have been made by heads of states outside of the declaration. The heads of state agreed to:
- Recognise that violence caused by transnational organized crime by the world drug problem is a serious threat to the welfare of citizens, economic development and democratic stability.
- Promote institutional strengthening related to the prevention, investigation and criminal prosecution against organized transnational crime through greater co-operation.
- Analyze the political, economic and social measures that have been taken or are being discussed in some countries to legalize the consumption of certain drugs.
- Support holding a special session of the General Assembly of the United Nations on the world drug problem, no later than 2015. The objective would be to assess the achievements and limitations of current policies to address the problem, in particular the violence generated by the production, trafficking and consumption of drugs in the world.
Further comments were made on drug policy by several head of states whilst addressing the summit.
- Mexican President Calderon said: he was tired of calling on the US and Europe to curtail drug use; US drug consumers alone fuelled Mexico's drug war by $20 billion a year; the legalisation of marijuana in Colorado and Washington marked a huge imbalance - in south American countries a peasant is persecuted and jailed for growing half a hectare whilst in those two U.S. states you can grow industrial amounts of marijuana and sell them with complete liberty.
- Ibero-American Secretary-General Enrique Iglesias said there was consensus in Latin America that the so-called war on drugs was not working, and called for new approaches to the problem.[1]
- The Honduran vice-chancellor also called for greater collaboration saying that the fight against drugs required not just national action but regional as well.[2]
[1] http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/17/iberoamerica-summit-drugs-idUSL5E8MG4W020121117
[2] http://www.elnacional.com.do/internacionales/2012/11/17/141733/Cumbre-Iberoamericana-de-Cadiz-pide-una-reflexion-mundial-sobre-las-drogas
Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.