Portugal

Abstract

Portugal provides a strong example of a country that has, in terms of illegal drug policy, relatively recently made a bold move from a fairly central position along the liberal-repressive continuum to a much more liberal one. In 2001, radical new laws were introduced, greatly increasing the influence of harm reduction principles in general and removing criminal sanctions from the personal possession and use of all illegal drugs in particular. Initially surrounded by doubt and uncertainty, the implementation of these new laws has now been extensively evaluated, on both a national and an international basis, and the result has been overwhelmingly positive. A historical exploration of the development of drug policy in Portugal highlights the factors that have resulted in this fundamental change to national drug strategy.