Publications

Beckley Report Number 15: Drug Markets and Urban Violence: Can tackling One Reduce the Other

29 January 2009

This new report undertaken by The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme is concerned with one of the most worrying aspects of the global trade in illicit drugs - the link to urban violence. This is a leading cause of death in many countries. It is also linked to other harms, such as morbidity, reductions in economic growth and the opportunity costs of investments in incarceration, police forces and private security which attempt to control violence. This report looks specifically at the strength of the link between drug markets and urban violence, and policies and tactics that can be used to reduce this link.