JUSTICE TRENDS JUSTICE TRENDS Nr. 1 | June 2017 | Page 114

BEST PRACTICES / MEJORES PRÁCTICAS
JT: Are there any challenges still, regarding the implementation
of the policy? ..........................................................................
JG: Not really… I would say that this issue, and considering the
level we are in now, is perfectly solved. And the way we, nowadays,
look at the mechanism that has been created for the implementation
of this new law – and therefore the set of commissions for the
deterrence of drug addiction – hence, the administrative body which
has the possibility of applying sanctions in the field of misconduct.
It also has the responsibility, above all, of identifying the needs
of the drug addicted citizen and to monitor them according to the
specific situation they are dealing with. Thus, our action is directed
either at the addicted person who requires care and treatment for
his/her addiction, or at the recreational user (in whom certain risk
factors coexist and upon which it is possible to intervene – or
intervene early – to prevent that his/her drug use path becomes
more problematic in the future) ...
Therefore, the great objective today is to dissuade and interrupt
the path that can lead the person to addiction and this is achieved
through the offer of answers both in social and in psychological
levels. One should intervene in life areas that, often, people only
become aware when they are confronted with and when they
have the opportunity to discuss the framing of their drug use with
professionals. In practice, we are, nowadays, operating as a device
to prevent all kinds of drug addictions.
“
I think we enjoyed a window of
opportunity to peacefully get the
decriminalization proposal through
in the Portuguese society... We had
a drug problem diffusion pattern that
was different from most countries: it
was transversal to all social groups
and classes. ”
JT: Does it seem to you that the resources that were
previously used in the implementation of justice
measures have been reallocated to Prevention and Health? ..........
JG: I wouldn’t say so... I would not say that there was a system
of direct communicating vessels, so to speak, in which the
resources allocated to actions prior to the decriminalization had
been reallocated to Health ... I think that the budgets available
for the area of Justice, the police force, etc., have reasonably
remained. What we have witnessed is a significant increase and
an improvement in conditions... For example, within the prison
system: by keeping its resources and having a smaller population,
it was possible to offer better conditions to the prison population,
and to actually improve the provision of health care within the
prison system ... But I would not say that they have cut off some
of the resources and that this part has been directly allocated to
Health. In the Health sector there was an investment that was
growing gradually and that allowed us to increase and solidify a
care network that today is very solid and capable of meeting the
needs of the citizens.
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JUSTICE TRENDS //  J U N E / J U N I O 2 0 1 7
hoy, más de 15 años después, podemos mirar hacia atrás y darnos
cuenta, de hecho, que ninguna de esas perspectivas oscuras llegó
a ocurrir...
JT: ¿Existe todavía algún reto con respecto a la i mplementación
de la política?..............................................................................
JG: En realidad no... Yo diría que esta cuestión, y este nivel
en el que estamos, está perfectamente resuelta. Y la forma en
que hoy consideramos el mecanismo que se ha creado para
la aplicación de esta nueva ley – y por lo tanto el conjunto de
comisiones para la disuasión de la drogadicción – por lo tanto,
el órgano administrativo que tiene la posibilidad de aplicar
sanciones, pero que tiene también la responsabilidad, sobre todo,
de identificar las necesidades del ciudadano adicto a las drogas y de
vigilarlas de acuerdo con la situación específica con que se enfrentan.
Por lo tanto, nuestra acción se dirige tanto a la persona adicta que
requiere atención y tratamiento para su adicción, o al usuario recre-
ativo, pero en el que coexisten ciertos factores de riesgo y sobre los
cuales es posible intervenir o intervenir temprano para prevenir que su
trayectoria de uso de drogas se vuelva más problemática en el futuro ...
Por lo tanto, el gran objetivo de hoy es disuadir e interrumpir el
camino que puede conducir a la persona a la adicción y esto se
logra a través de la oferta de respuestas en los niveles social y
psicológico, interviniendo en áreas de vida de las cuales muchas
veces las personas solo se dan cuenta cuando tienen la oportunidad
de discutir sus patrones de consumo de drogas con los profesionales.
En la práctica, hoy en día, estamos operando como un dispositivo
para prevenir todo tipo de adicciones a drogas.
“
Creo que disfrutamos de una
ventana de oportunidad para conseguir
pasar la propuesta de despenalización
pacíficamente en la soc