World Drug Report 2017 – A quarter of a billion people worldwide use drugs
According to the latest World Drug Report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), nearly a quarter of a billion people
News briefing – Week of 22 May
The medical journal Scientific Reports unveiled that cocaine was more addictive than first thought, the drug being able to cause addiction after just one use, even amongst recreational cocaine users. The study showed that dopamine release may trigger the same addiction on non-dependant users than on cocaine dependent users and way earlier than previous studies asserted.
News briefing – Week of 3 April
Venezuela’s capital Caracas has been ranked by the Citizen’s Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice (CCSPJP) as the world’s deadliest city for a second year in a row, with a homicide rate of 130 per 100.000 inhabitants. The city is notorious for its high rates of street and organised crime, becoming a major drug…
Boletín de noticias – Semana del 24 de octubre
40 funcionarios de las Fuerza Armada Nacional Bolivariana (FANB), la Guardia Nacional Bolivariana (GNB) y altos funcionarios del gobierno nacional aparecen involucrados en el tráfico de drogas en un periodo entre agosto del 2015 y agosto del 2016, según el Observatorio de Delito Organizado. De esta manera, la corrupción hace vulnerable la lucha contra el…
Boletín de noticias – Semana del 19 de septiembre
En lo que va de 2016, más 64 toneladas de estupefacientes se han incautado en Ecuador, según el Ministerio del Interior. La mayoría estaba destinada al tráfico internacional, sobre todo hacia el continente europeo. Ecuador es considerado ruta de tránsito de drogas y de insumos para elaborarla. La Policía Federal de Argentina ha detenido una…
The 2016 EU Drug Markets Report presented in Brussels
On April 6th, the EMCDDA and Europol presented in Brussels the new 2016 EU Drug Markets Report. The report, presented by EMCDDA Director Alexis Goosdeel, provides a state-of-the-art analysis of the EU illicit drug market, covering the trends along the supply chain from production and trafficking to marketing, distribution and consumption. It also analyses the…
Weekly Briefing – Week of 22 February
Around 300 Ecuadorian fishermen have been arrested in the last three years by foreign authorities for being involved in international drug-trafficking rings. According to the Ecuadorian authorities, the fishermen are now under the custody in the United States, Guatemala or Colombia. The EMCDDA is currently developing estimates of the size of the drug market in the…
News briefing – week beginning on 14 September
Brazil’s Supreme Court justices have been discussing the possibility of decriminalise the personal possession of marijuana. Six votes are needed for the bill to pass and three out of the 11 judges have already voted in favour. According to the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) approximately 62 tons of cocaine were seized last…
Is Italy about to become the “New Netherlands”?
The traditional Italy might soon wind up on the podium of liberalism, after 218 members of the Parliament from left and right wing parties have supported a proposal that would largely legalise production, distribution, sale and consumption of marijuana. Anyone over the age of 18 would be allowed to grow up to five marijuana plants…
According to the Global Drug Survey cocaine remains the most expensive drug per gram in the world
The vast majority of cocaine users (80%) consumed cocaine less than 10 times in the last 12 months, at an average dose of 1/2gm. This raises questions about the medical risk and dangers assumed to go with the drug. Retail prices vary, with the highest prices per gram recorded in New Zealand and Australia, though…