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*cigarettes only
Source U.S.: National Household Survey 1997 SAMHSA, Office
of applied studies Washington DC. Source the Netherlands: M. Abraham, P.
Cohen, M. De Winter: Licit and Illicit drug use in the Netherlands Uva/CBS,
CEDRO
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of Cannabis use, ages 12 to 18 |
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the past month, ages 12 to 18 |
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100,000 people |
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per 100,000 people |
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on drug related law enforcement |
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Compiled by Kendra E. Wright and Paul M. Lewin for Common Sense for Drug Policy, http://www.csdp.org/
Sources #1, #3: National Institute on Drug Abuse, Monitoring the Future Study, Washington D.C. (1997, December 20), press release.
Sources #2, #4: de Zwart, W.M., Stam, H. &; Kuiplers, S.B.M, Key Data--Smoking, Drinking, Drug Use &; Gambling among Pupils Aged 10 Years or Older, Netherlands: Netherlands Institute of Health and Addiction (1997), p. 26, Tables 13 &; 14.
Source #5: Abt. Associates, Inc., What America's Users Spend on Illegal Drugs, 1988-1995, Commissioned by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (1997, September 29); U.S. Bureau of the Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1996 (116th edition), Washington D.C. (1996).
Source #6: Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport [VMS], Drug Policy in the Netherlands--Continuity and Change, Netherlands (1995).
Source #7: Bureau of Justice Statistics; Based on total U.S. population in 1997 of 267,636,000 as per the U.S. Census Bureau.
Source #8: According to the Dutch Bureau of Statistics, CBS Voorburg, as of September 30, 1996 the Netherlands had 11,931 prisoners with an approximate population of 15,424,122. This data was provided by a statistician at CBS Voorburg and obtained from Statistics Netherlands: Statistical Yearbook 1998, p. 434, table 53.
Source #9: Office of National Drug Control Policy, National Drug Control Strategy, 1997: Budget Summary, Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office (1997); MacCoun, R. &; Reuter, P., "Interpreting Dutch Cannabis Policy: Reasoning by Analogy in the Legalization Debate," Science, 278: 47 (1997); Based on total U.S. population in 1997 of 267,636,000 as per U.S. Census Bureau.
Source #10: Drug-related law enforcement spending in the Netherlands in 1995 is estimated at 640 million Dutch Guilders according to the Dutch Justice Department.
Source #11: The FBI reported that the homicide rate in 1995 was 8 per 100,000 people, for a total of 21, 597 homicides. (Uniform Crime Reports: Dept. of Justice Press Release, 10/13/96).
Source #12: In both 1995 and 1996, the Netherlands recorded
273 homicides, which is a homicide rate of 1.8 persons per 100,000 inhabitants.
(Registered Murders in the Netherlands, Press Release, CBS Voorburg - Statistics
Netherlands, 7/14/98).
Recent accounts in the U.S. press about the Netherlands drug policy
have included incorrect and misleading statistics about drug use and drug-related
crimes in the Netherlands. What follows is a short list of facts
and comparisons to refute those accounts. Sources are given to permit
and encourage third party verification of facts.
Last month use of cannabis (marijuana) by high school seniors:
18.1% in the Netherlands (1996);
23.7% in the U.S. (1997).
(Sources: The Trimbos Institute, Amsterdam, the Netherlands;
Monitoring the Future Survey, University of Michigan and White House Office
of National Drug Control Policy)
Any lifetime use (prevalence) of cannabis by older teens (1994):
30% in the Netherlands;
38% in the U.S.
(Sources: Center for Drug Research, University of Amsterdam;
Monitoring the Future Survey, University of Michigan and White House Office
of National Drug Control Policy)
Recent (last month) use of cannabis by 15 year olds (in 1995):
15% in the Netherlands;
16% in the U.S.;
24% in the U.K.
(Sources: Trimbos Institute, Amsterdam, the Netherlands;
Monitoring the Future Survey, University of Michigan and White House Office
of National Drug Control Policy; Council of Europe, ESPAD Report)
Any lifetime use of cannabis by 15 year olds (in 1995):
29% in the Netherlands;
34% in the U.S.;
41% in the U.K.
(Sources: Netherlands Institute of Health and Addiction,
U.S. National Institute for Drug Abuse; Council of Europe, ESPAD Report)
Heroine addicts as a percentage of population (in 1995):
160 per 100,000 in the Netherlands;
430 per 100,000 in the U.S.
(Sources: Netherlands Ministry of Health, Welfare and
Sport; White House Office of National Drug Control Policy)
Murder rate as a percentage of population (in 1996):
1.8 per 100,000 in the Netherlands;
8.22 in the U.S.
(Sources: Netherlands Bureau of Statistics; White House
Office of National Drug Control Policy)
Incarceration rate as a percentage of population (1997):
73 per 100,000 in the Netherlands;
645 per 100,000 in the U.S.
(Sources: Netherlands Ministry of Justice; White House
Office of National Drug Control Strategy)
Crime-related deaths as a percentage of population:
1.2 per 100,000 in the Netherlands (1994);
8.2 per 100,000 in the U.S. (1995).
(Sources: World Health Organization; Uniform Crime Reports,
U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation)
Per capita spending on drug-related law enforcement:
$27 per capita in the Netherlands;
$81 per capita in the U.S.
(Sources: Netherlands Ministry of Justice; White House
Office of National Drug Control Strategy)
CLAIM : DUTCH MARIJUANA POLICY HAS BEEN A FAILURE
While American critics of marijuana prohibition often point to Holland as a model for an alternative policy, prohibition's supporters claim that Holland's permissiveness has had disasterous consequences, including escalating rates of drug use among youth.
This change in policy was based on several factors, including:
Since liberalization, marijuana use has increased in the Netherlands, although rates remain similar to those in neighboring European countries, and are generally lower than those in the United States.
| ever used | past month | |
| 1984 | 4.8 % | 2.3 % |
| 1988 | 8.0 | 3.1 |
| 1992 | 13.6 | 6.5 |
| ever used | past month | |
| 1985 | 23.2 % | 11.2 % |
| 1988 | 24.7 | 6.4 |
| 1993 | 11.7 | 4.9 |
| ever used | past month | |
| 1985 | 54.2 | 25.7 |
| 1988 | 47.2 | 18.0 |
| 1993 | 35.3 | 15.6 |
While marijuana use-rates have increased in Holland, cocaine use-rates have not- indicating that separation of the "hard" and "soft" drug markets has prevented a "gateway effect" from developing. In 1992, about 1.5% of 12 to 18 year-olds had ever tried cocaine and only .3% had used it in the past month.
Although there are some Dutch critics of Holland's liberalized marijuana policy, the government's official position remains steadfastly supportive of the 1976 initiative that decriminalized possession and retail sale.
From http://www.drugtext.org/articles/marijuan.htm Zimmer & Morgan on Myths.
