Against the tide: current perspectives in Brazilian drug policy

Abstract

The year 2012 brought some unpleasant surpri-ses for us Brazilians in drug policy and related issues. Some local governments, the most no-torious example of which is the city of Rio de Janeiro, have been enforcing a policy of compul-sory detention and rehabilitation of drug users, including adults and even children and adoles-cents. A harsher drug policy bill is now under review in the National Congress, including not only compulsory hospitalization but also a ma-jor turn in drug policy concerning sentencing with incarceration, which the existing national policy has at least attempted to avoid, although with limited success