The Historical Foundations of the Narcotic Drug Control Regime
This paper outlines the institutional history of the international narcotic drug control regime. It details the evolution of the control system, from its foundations at the beginning of the twentieth century - a period of mass, unregulated narcotic...
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| Format: | Policy Research Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2012
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2008/03/9072180/historical-foundations-narcotic-drug-control-regime http://hdl.handle.net/10986/6571 |
| Summary: | This paper outlines the institutional
history of the international narcotic drug control regime.
It details the evolution of the control system, from its
foundations at the beginning of the twentieth century - a
period of mass, unregulated narcotic drug use - to the
current period. The paper argues that the contemporary
control model is ill-positioned to address the dynamic and
rapidly changing nature of the global narcotics trade. The
persistence of anachronistic guiding first principles,
specifically the utopian idea of prohibition, is identified
as the key impediment to the adoption of a more humane and
effective policy approach. But while there is growing
pressure for a revision of founding ideas, this is not
supported by a host of powerful actors that includes the
United States. |
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