London, Monday the 18th February 2002
For Immediate Use
Contact Details: Dr Sean Gabb, 07956 472 199, sean@libertarian.co.uk
“LEGALISE ALL DRUGS NOW”, SAYS FREE MARKET AND CIVIL LIBERTIES
THINK TANK
While the Government’s proposed decriminalisation of
cannabis is a step in the right direction, full
legalisation of all drugs must remain the final objective.
So claims the Libertarian Alliance, Britain’s most
radical free market and civil liberties think tank.
Libertarian Alliance spokesman, Dr Sean Gabb, said:
“We want a situation where any adult can go into a
pharmacy and - without showing any permit or identification
- buy as many drugs as he or she may want and use them for
any self-regarding purpose. This means legalisation for
recreational use and for self-medication.”
He added that nearly all the evils blamed on drugs can
really be blamed on drug prohibition. For example:
Drug prohibition means that drugs are
dangerous, because they are sold by dealers who have no
concern for product safety;
Drug prohibition means that drugs are
expensive, because the law requires them to be supplied by
roundabout and uncompetitive means;
Drug prohibition breeds petty crime,
because of the high price of drugs and the need to
associate with criminals to get them;
Drug prohibition breeds organised crime,
because of the large profits to be made from drugs once
legitimate suppliers are driven from the market;
Drug prohibition breeds public
corruption, as police and revenue officers, intelligence
agencies, and politicians take bribes from organised crime
to look the other way;
Drug prohibition leads to a war on
freedom, because the only way of even trying to make
prohibition work is to remove rights to privacy and due
process - see, for example, the money laundering laws, and
the 1997 bugging and burgling law, and the creeping in of
asset forfeiture laws;
Drug prohibition brings the law into
general contempt, because it criminalises private acts that
in themselves cause no actionable harm to others, because
it breeds corruption, and because it is actually
unenforceable.
Of course, Dr Gabb added, as a libertarian, he believes
that adults have an absolute right to do with themselves as
they please, and this is independent of the utilitarian
reasons given above.
The only answer, said Dr Gabb, is a return to
“Victorian Values” - the situation that existed
in this country before the Dangerous Drugs Act 1920, when
adults were free to decide for themselves what drugs to
take and for what reason.
ENDS
Note to Editors
1) Dr Sean Gabb sits on the Executive Committee of the
Libertarian Alliance and edits its journal “Free
Life”. His latest book, “Dispatches from a
Dying Country: Reflections on Modern England”, is
available from Politico’s.
Dr Gabb can be contacted by mobile on 07956 472 199, or at
sean@libertarian.co.uk
2) Dr Gabb has written and broadcast extensively on the
drugs issue. One of his articles is added to this release
as an appendix.
3) Further publications against drug prohibition can be
found on the Libertarian Alliance web site:
http://www.libertarian.co.uk
Extended Contact Details:
The Libertarian Alliance is Britain’s most radical
free market and civil liberties policy institute. It has
published over 700 articles, pamphlets and books in support
of freedom and against statism in all its forms. These are
freely available at
http://www.libertarian.co.uk
Our postal address is
The Libertarian Alliance
Suite 35
2 Lansdowne Row
Mayfair
London
W1J 6HL
Tel: 07956 472 199
Associated Organisations
The Libertarian International - http://www.libertarian.to -
is a sister organisation to the Libertarian Alliance. Its
mission is to coordinate various initiatives in the defence
of individual liberty throughout the world.
Sean Gabb's personal website - http://www.seangabb.co.uk -
contains about 800,000 words of writings on themes
interesting to libertarians and conservatives
Candidlist - http://www.candidlist.com -
owned and maintained by LA Executive member Sean Gabb, it
lists Conservative MPs and candidates according to their
views on European integration. It had a major effect before
the 2001 general election, and remains an important
resource.
Liberalia - http://www.liberalia.com -
maintained by by LA Executive member Christian Michel,
Liberalia publishes in-depth papers in French and English
on libertarianism, anarcho-capitalism and the free market.
It is a prime source of documentation on these issues for
students and scholars.
Libertarian Samizdata - http://www.samizdata.blogspot.com
- works in association with the Libertarian Alliance and
has an ever larger following. Check it out.