Malaysia plans to decriminalize drug use to battle addiction

[Chip (OP)]

source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/malaysia-plans-to-decriminalize-drug-use-to-battle-addiction/2019/06/28/03e3e5e8-995c-11e9-9a16-dc551ea5a43b_story.html?utm_term=.26f97b628676

WOW: SE Asian countries are not this nice, usually. One day, we will be legal !

Malaysia plans to decriminalize drug use to battle addiction

June 28, 2019



This June 26, 2019, photo shows customs officials display seized drugs at the customs office in Sepang. Malaysia’s government has announced plans to remove criminal penalties for the possession and use of drugs in small quantity to battle addiction, but stressed the move is not akin to legalizing drugs.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia’s government plans to drop criminal penalties for the possession and use of drugs in small quantities to battle addiction, but stressed the move is not akin to legalizing narcotics.

Malaysia has one of the world’s harshest penalties for drug possession. Anyone found with 200 grams (7.05 ounces) of cannabis, 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of opium, 40 grams (1.41 ounces) of cocaine, and 15 grams (0.53 ounces) of heroin or morphine face being charged with drug trafficking, which carries the death penalty.

More than 1,200 prisoners are on death row, most of them convicted of drug crimes.

Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said in a statement Thursday that the proposal for the decriminalization of drug addiction will be a significant game changer. He said drug addiction is a complex, relapsing medical condition and throwing an addict into jail will not cure them.


“Drug decriminalization will indeed be a critical next step toward achieving a rational drug policy that puts science and public health before punishment and incarceration,” Dzulkefly said. “An addict shall be treated as a patient, not as a criminal, whose addiction is a disease we would like to cure.”

He said the move mustn’t be mistaken as legalizing drugs as drug trafficking will remain a crime.

More than 30 countries have adopted a drug decriminalization policy and research showed that it didn’t increase drug use or drug-related crimes but helped to cut legal cost and improved social outcomes, he said. Officials said the proposal is still in an initial stage and details have not been worked out.

Earlier this week, Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said most of the 70,000 prisoners in Malaysia’s jails were drug addicts. With the proposed decriminalization, he said the addicts will be rehabilitated and given treatment, with strong support from family members and the community.


His ministry will look into the repealing of drug laws that criminalize the use of narcotics, he said but didn’t give further details.

More than two dozen medical and health groups have lauded the government’s plan. In a joint statement, the groups including the Malaysian Medical Association and the AIDS Council said the present approach of punitive actions has led to harmful consequences including severe overcrowding in prisons and the spread of infectious diseases.

They said criminalization creates a cycle of imprisonment and poverty, with many drug users afraid to seek medical help for fear of punishment and a criminal record. In contrast, they said local evidence has shown that treatment of drug use reduces relapse and allows addicts to return to gainful employment, reconnect back with families and contribute meaningfully to societies.

see https://www.nst.com.my/opinion/letters/2019/07/500456/decriminalising-personal-drug-use-good-move for more on Decriminalising personal drug use a good move:



THE proposed change in government policy to decriminalise personal use and possession of crystal methamphetamine (“ice”) and other illicit drugs is welcome news.

July 1, 2019

THE proposed change in government policy to decriminalise personal use and possession of crystal methamphetamine (“ice”) and other illicit drugs is welcome news.

However, under the plan, production, trafficking and supply of illicit drugs, including ice and other narcotics, would continue to be criminalised.

The model draws on the approach taken by Portugal, where personal drug use was decriminalised in 2001. It has been stated that “no other justice programme has been proven to be effective in reducing recidivism, and all at a lower cost than incarceration”.

It is based on the premise that criminalising personal drug use “may result in greater harm to the individual, and to society more broadly” than the harm caused by the use of drugs.

With almost 20 years of history, Portugal decriminalised personal drug use and channelled its savings into drug treatment and social programmes. The result is awesome: drug-related deaths and crime dropped dramatically and overall drug use also fell.

Decriminalisation of personal acquisition, possession and use of illicit drugs would pave the way towards the implementation of a comprehensive public health approach.

Drug users should be required to comply with a range of orders to engage in appropriate treatment and rehabilitation at approved centres manned by suitably qualified doctors. Failure to comply should result in non-criminal sanctions.

This programme is cost-effective for the government in that the cost of maintaining the system could be offset by savings from other departments, like the police and courts.

The law enforcement and justice arms can focus on serious drug trafficking and community safety offences, such as driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs.