Merchant, priest and humble engineer: Observations from Rotterdam's drug scenes

Abstract

The object of the study is the drug scene and the administration of drug-related services in Rotterdam. The focus is on the relationship between drug users and the drug control system. The study draws upon observations and documents, and numerous interviews with civil servants, treatment staff, and drug users. The Dutch view on the nature of the problem and appropriate ways to treat drug users is different from what is common elsewhere. No legal sanctions relate to smoking of cannabis or to possession of small amounts, whereas large-scale trade, smuggling, and commercial cultivation are criminal activities. Neither is the use of hard drugs or possession for personal use criminalized. The core of the drug problem is seen to be on one hand the nuisance caused by those addicted hard drug users, and on the other hand the threat to the economy and politics of the country created by criminal drug organizations. In dealing with drug-related nuisance the aim is harm reduction. The central idea is the normalization of the drug problem. This means that efforts are made to keep drug users in contact with society, instead of pushing them outside by pursuing repressive policies. The threshold to health and social services and to treatment is kept as low as possible. At the same time addicts are held responsible for their behavior, and they are required to follow the regulations of the institutions providing support and treatment. Two remarkable aspects of the administration of drug-related affairs are a close co-operation between health authorities and the police, and an emphasis on Japanese-style neighborhood policing. The support and treatment services for drug users are run by private foundations that are fully financed by the government and the city. The extensive system of municipal services is supplemented by voluntary aid mainly provided by the churches and religious organizations. The Dutch way of dealing with the drug problem derives from the traditions of governance and political culture in Dutch society. These are crystallized in three character masks: those of the pragmatic and prudent merchant, more concerned with practical problems than lofty ideals, the charitable and paternalistic priest, and the humble engineer who in his age-long fight against floods has learned that nature can be controlled but never fully tamed.