Move grows in Puerto Rico to legalize pot
Posted: Tue 15th Jul 2008 10:32 pm
Danica Coto | The Associated Press
June 20, 2008
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A former health secretary and an ex-university president want to legalize marijuana in Puerto Rico, saying it will reduce a burgeoning prison population and prevent young adults from being exposed to violent criminals.
Under the plan, marijuana would be taxed as liquor and tobacco are now, with proceeds going toward drug-treatment programs, said former Health Secretary Enrique V�zquez Quintana.
The proposal, also supported by other former public officials and a medical doctor, calls for stricter penalties against drug traffickers, and comes as the U.S. Caribbean territory prepares to launch drug-treatment programs to wean addicts from crack, heroin and other substances.
About 24 percent of the island's 13,500 inmates have been convicted on drug charges, and an estimated 80 percent of crimes are drug-related, according to the Department of Corrections.
"The fight against drugs, using punishment, has not worked," said Jos� Manuel Salda�a, former president of the University of Puerto Rico. "This is a social reality."
People should not go to jail for smoking pot, he said. Too many young adults become criminals in prison and also risk contracting hepatitis and AIDS while there, Salda�a and V�zquez said.
Puerto Rican Sen. Mar�a de Lourdes Santiago said she opposes legalizing any kind of drug but is pushing to eliminate penalties for possessing drug paraphernalia.
"Sometimes that serves as an excuse to put a young man in jail when he needs a different kind of treatment," she said.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/services ... 7669.story
June 20, 2008
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A former health secretary and an ex-university president want to legalize marijuana in Puerto Rico, saying it will reduce a burgeoning prison population and prevent young adults from being exposed to violent criminals.
Under the plan, marijuana would be taxed as liquor and tobacco are now, with proceeds going toward drug-treatment programs, said former Health Secretary Enrique V�zquez Quintana.
The proposal, also supported by other former public officials and a medical doctor, calls for stricter penalties against drug traffickers, and comes as the U.S. Caribbean territory prepares to launch drug-treatment programs to wean addicts from crack, heroin and other substances.
About 24 percent of the island's 13,500 inmates have been convicted on drug charges, and an estimated 80 percent of crimes are drug-related, according to the Department of Corrections.
"The fight against drugs, using punishment, has not worked," said Jos� Manuel Salda�a, former president of the University of Puerto Rico. "This is a social reality."
People should not go to jail for smoking pot, he said. Too many young adults become criminals in prison and also risk contracting hepatitis and AIDS while there, Salda�a and V�zquez said.
Puerto Rican Sen. Mar�a de Lourdes Santiago said she opposes legalizing any kind of drug but is pushing to eliminate penalties for possessing drug paraphernalia.
"Sometimes that serves as an excuse to put a young man in jail when he needs a different kind of treatment," she said.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/services ... 7669.story