Drugs and United States Foreign Policy (From Dealing With Drugs - Consequences of Government Control, P 137-176, 1987, Ronald Hamowy, ed. - See NCJ-106217)

• NCJ Number: 106220
• Author(s): J Marshall
• Date Published: 1987
• Length: 41 pages
• Sale Source: D C Heath and Co
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article examines the effects of international drug eradication and drug law enforcement efforts spearheaded by the United States in Latin America and Asia.

Abstract

A review of these efforts indicates that such efforts have had little effect and provide little return on the dollar investment. Massive resource expenditures have made hardly a dent in either world production or American consumption of drugs. In addition, such programs have had sizable costs, ranging from disruption of traditional economies in Peru and Bolivia, to the corruption of entire societies in Latin America and Asia where drug profits, artificially boosted by legal constraints, have lured political, judicial, and even church establishments. In many of these countries, the effect of police aid, drug enforcement, and related programs has been to militarize the society, put enormous strains on fledgling liberal institutions, and divert resources from more productive endeavors. In addition, the deep seated antidrug ideology has been used by Cold War practitioners to subvert the stated aims of United States foreign policy. 169 footnotes.