NCJ Number
210971
Journal
Journal of Scandinavian Studies in Criminology and Crime Prevention Volume: 6 Issue: 1 Dated: 2005 Pages: 57-73
Date Published
2005
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This article analyzed Swedish Government drug policy in the face of increasing drug use among citizens.
Abstract
Although the Swedish Government has claimed that its restrictive drug policy has been successful in curbing drug use, data suggest that drug use in Sweden has been increasing since the early 1990s. Drawing on central government documents and statements from government ministers, public authorities, and voluntary organizations, this article analyzed how the Swedish Government reacted to these indicators of drug use increase among its citizens. The official goal of the Swedish drug policy is a “drug-free Sweden” and officials have attempted to reach that goal through the increased penalization of drug consumption, an increase in police force attention to drug crimes, and an increase in the numbers of persons sentenced to prison for drug offenses. One of the central themes of the drug policy has been rehabilitation, although empirical evaluations of this aspect of the policy have turned up meager results. The author illustrates how the ultimate goal of the Swedish drug policy is a welfare society with active citizens engaged in dignified lives. This goal goes a long to explaining why the Swedish drug policy demands rehabilitation and drug-free treatment, which is also a common demand of grassroots bureaucrats. This goal requires drug users to be completely rehabilitated and remain in society free from drug use, which also may explain its current challenge and rising drug use rates within Swedish society. Footnotes, references