ANTIPROHIBITIONIST OF THE ENTIRE WORLD ....

Year 4 #12, May 24 1998 (SPECIAL EDITION 9th CONGRESS)

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Weekly Action Report on Drug Policies

Edited by the CORA - Radical Antiprohibitionist Coordination, federated to

- TRP-Transnational Radical Party (NGO, consultive status, I)

- The Global Coalition for Alternatives to the Drug War

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director: Vincenzo Donvito

All rights reserved

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http://www.agora.stm.it/coranet

mailto:cora.news@agora.stm.it

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*** 9th CORA CONGRESS

*** PARIS 5 - 7 JUNE 1998

*** PROHIBITIONISM ON DRUGS IS A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY

Dear friend,

CORA is an association of European antiprohibitionist citizens and politicians, which works towards legalization as a method of coping with the drug problem. CORA looks positively upon the growth of political strategies involving depenalization or harm reduction, but believes they are still insufficient in relation to the end they pursue: defeat of illegal and criminal drug traffic.

* THE PARIS CONGRESS

CORA will hold its congress in Paris, from the 5th to the 7th of June, and launch its campaign "Prohibitionism on drugs: A crime against humanity". Although the congress is open to everyone, only CORA members will have the right to intervene during speeches. One of our goals is to achieve at least 100 new memberships in France, and therefore invite you to let us know as soon as possible your intention to participate in the congress. We have chosen to hold this political convention in Paris for two reasons. The first is that many political signals from France lead us to believe that CORA could find fertile grounds for asserting its presence there, as it has done already in Italy and Belgium. Emmanuel Raiter, a personality close to Jean-Marie Le Pen's National Front, in the confidential letter included in his report on drug lobbies describes CORA in fact as the propelling force behind European antiprohibitionism. The second reason is that France is becoming, together with Sweden,the bulwark of prohibitionism b

y using aggressive political strategies which eliminate every internal debate while trying to impose crude repressive policies on other EU countries -in particular, and in illegitimate ways, on the Low Countries and the pragmatic, tolerant stance they hold in regard to the drug question.

* PROHIBITIONISM ON DRUGS IS A CRIME

Together with those who do not believe in the illusion of compromises such as permissiveness or plain harm reduction CORA has always chosen a road which implies at one time great responsibilities and unique opportunities of political battle: that of a radical denunciation of prohibitionist politics. The bureaucrats of prohibitionism are surely aware of this, and not only in France. Proof of this are the procedures that Swedish Eurodeputee Mr.Anderson has started to expel CORA from its offices in the European Parliament.

In this moment it is necessary to strengthen our ideas and widen our political goals. After the last congress in Brussels, during which the idea of politically organizing European antiprohibitionists was born, our Parisian congress will launch the "Prohibitionism on drugs: A crime against humanity" campaign. This slogan is meant to evidence the fact that we should not passively accept prohibitionism on drugs as a mere political error which time will eventually heal. It is necessary to fight those moral and ethical stances which inevitably end up being fatal for democracy, legality and science and which have also disastrous social, economic and sanitary consequences.

* THE PRESENT PROHIBITIONIST POLITICAL STRATEGY

No matter which way one looks at it, prohibitionism contains all elements of a criminal plan. Every year it kills thousands of drug consumers; it reduces thousands of others in precarious conditions; it facilitates, willingly, the spreading of deadly diseases; it allows, directly and concretely, international criminal organizations to strive upon drug traffic; it finances all sorts of other criminal activity; it is the basis and justification for the repressive politics of dictatorships and pseudo democracies. These crimes are committed intentionally and with great lucidity. Prohibitionism is the most sophisticated form through which barbarity fights civilization. It is therefore not only a crime, but a war crime at that.

These crimes hit tens of thousands of drug consumers that get thrown by the State into the hands of criminal organizations, or exposed to the contact of lethal viruses. They hit drug cultivators, once plain farmers, who are now slaves of the international drug racket and get in turn treated as criminals. They hit all those citizens who are victims of the daily violence which derives more from the need of getting hold of drugs and from the gigantic profit behind drug traffic than from the drugs themselves.

We find ourselves now in a situation pervaded by new synthetic drugs like Ecstasy which do not have to be grown and can be concocted anonymously in any kitchen, in any European country. This happens because the new frontier of the war against drugs needs a monstrous bureaucratic machine, capable of systematically spreading violence through the force of ideology.

Does all this seem exaggerated? The last report of the International Organization for Control on Drugs (an independent body composed of selected personnel chosen by the State members of the UN that has the sole task of monitoring drug diffusion) says that drug consumption is going up because of rock music and Internet and because antiprohibitionist organizations which are favorable to legalization are responsible for the diminishing of controls. Antiprohibitionist organizations, they say, should be limited as much as possible, even through use of special laws which could restrict their freedom of speech, a superfluous freedom, after all...

While it is still available we will continue to use that freedom, and will do so on the occasion of our congress in Paris, in the European country which gave birth to human rights but in which mere talking about legalization constitutes a crime punishable according to a Nazi-Stalinist law (the sadly famous LC630 article of the Penal Code) that sees any unconventional discourse on drugs suspectable of wanting to portray them in a positive light. We, instead, will talk about drugs. We will do so in Paris, in one of the Parliament halls where our congress will open on the 5th of June. Those being the premises, we are certain that someone will try to ban our congress.

* THE DEMONSTRATION IN FRONT OF THE UNITED NATIONS

On the 7th, eve of the UN conference that will repropose, under the careful sponsorship of UNDCP President Pino Arlacchi, a planetary version of prohibitionism (as denounced by the Transnational Radical Party to the Commission on Drugs in Vienna) we will hold a demonstration in front of the UN building, contemporarily with other similar events in the rest of the world to celebrate the "1998 Global Days Against the Drug War".

* FUTURE PROJECTS

This is how we intend to act now with the arms of nonviolence for the right to freedom, legality and democracy:

- Promoting and/or supporting the ANTIPROHIBITIONIST ELECTORAL LISTS IN THE EUROPEAN UNION in sight of the next European Parliament elections in 1999 and asking other organizations, parties and public personalities to bring forth the instance of legalization. The object, at this very moment, is not to directly organize those lists, but to create the necessary conditions for a stronger presence of antiprohibitionists in the future Parliament.

- Organizing a special campaign of auto - financing that may allow us to gain the minimum but indispensable tools of action, namely the adequate technological means of communication.

- Organizing and craeting a net of nonviolent activists throughout Europe, who are ready to substantially support their hopes and goals, also through subscribing memberships and contributions to CORA (the minimum entrance-fee is of 100.000 Lire for year 1998) and announcing their participation to the congress.

Dr. Eric Picard Marco Cappato

(secretary) (treasurer)

* If you intend to participate in our congress please contact the following people in Brussels:

- Guendaline De Sario, phone 0032-2-2482827

- Ottavio Marzocchi, phone 0032-2-2842258

- mailto:cora.belgique@agora.it

We attend your answer thanking you for your kind attention, no matter what you decide to do.

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The congress is open to everyone. For reasons of organization it is necessary that you file in your membership in due time.

Name______________________________________________________

Last name_________________________________________________

Address___________________________________________________

Zip Code_________________City_____________________________

Email___________________Phone_____________________________

Fax_____________________

Age_________Profession____________________________________

- I intend to participate in the Paris congress, during the following period:

( ) Friday 5th of June in Parliament

( ) Saturday the 6th of June at the Maison de la Chimie

Sum deposited (indicate currency)_______________ for ( ) membership or ( ) contribution to CORA

to the following accounts:

* PARIS

C/O Reseau Voltaire

F-93201 Saint-Denis cedex

Tel. ++33. (0) 1.48092054

FAx ++33. (0) 1.48092015

Account No. 10067.00101.10320834404

* BRUSSELS

C/O PE rue Wiertz D3-7H252

1047 Brussels

Email: cora.belgique@agora;it

Tel. ++32. (0) 2-2847189/2842258

Fax ++32. (0) 2-2949198

Account No. 310.1075919.81

URL HTTP:// www.agora.stm.it/coranet

MINIMUM FEE FOR CORA MEMBERSHIP IS 100.000 LIRE

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Cora, the Radical Antiprohibitionist Co-ordination is the political organization of atiprohibitionists in the European Union.

CORA was founded in 1988. Its prime end is to defeat the prohibitionist strategy against drugs that has favored the continuous growth of an international system of mafias, violence and corruption and nourished authoritarian regimes, endangering civil rights and democracy throughout the world.

CORA supports legalization of drugs. It is in favor of effective laws to regulate production, sale and consumption of drugs. It wants to prevent repression which, transforming a social problem into one of criminal and public order, is an obstacle in the way of curing and reintegrating drug addicts.

CORA is committed to eliminate the widespread ignorance about different kinds of drugs and their effects. This type of confusion exposes consumers to serious risk and does not allow a rational attitude when confronting the drug problem.

CORA pursues legalization of drugs as a method to control consumption, diminish risks of drug abuse and hence reduce deaths for overdose and spreading of diseases like AIDS.

CORA does NOT want liberalization of drugs, because that already exists. Drugs are circulate profusely and without any type of control. Drug traffic is in the hands of the Mafia, and in any city, in any country there are bars, parks, private houses, stores, streets and squares where every day, at any given hour, it is possible to buy illegal drugs. Prisons and military barracks are no exception. Drug pushers strive, because drugs, if prohibited, are enormously profitable. The drug addict, who continuously is in need of his dose, has no choice but to steal and resell. Ultimately, organized crime makes gigantic profits which get recycled through legal activities and allow it to gain control of politics, economy and State.

CORA is an association open to everyone. It counts among its members citizens and politicians of every extraction. CORA finances itself through membership fees, contributions and auto-financing campaigns.

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- transferal of present financing for repression to treatment and cures;

- more flexibility and accessibility to cures and reintegration for drug addicts, with consequent reduced spreading of diseases like AIDS;

-Guaranteed quality standards of drug production and elimination of all poisonous substances today used for cutting drugs sold on the illegal market;

-A correct campaign of information on risks of drug consumption and abuse;

- Ending infiltration of recycled money from drug traffic in the financial markets;

-Freeing courts from the thousands of trials that involve drug consumers, addicts and small dealers;

-reducing overpopulation in prisons ;

- reduction of controls on the frontiers.

-Reduction of theft and petty crime usually committed by those who need money to buy drugs;

-Higher safety in cities;

-higher efficiency of police forces, who can concentrate on serious crime;

-freeing of those economic resources for southern countries, which are today controlled by the power of drug mafias.

- taxation of drug products to cover social costs of drug abuse;

-politics which are more honest and freed from corruption and criminal intimidation;

-wider respect for freedom of citizens;

-higher respect of laws;

- end of criminal infiltration in politics, economy and justice;

CORA is an association federated to the Radical Transnational Party, a Non Governmental Organization of first category as recognized by the UN

CORA has instituted the Observatory of Laws on Drugs (OLD) with the intent to periodically verify the impact of anti-drug politics. The Observatory of Laws on Drugs stands upon donations from official organizations and works with statistical and scientific methods. It publishes reports and monographies.

An international parliamentary campaign for the revision of international conventions. Started by CORA in July of 1996

CORA adheres to the Global Coalition for an Alternative to the Drug War, an international net involving over 70 organizations that work for a reform of laws on drugs. The CORA congress will take place contemporarily with the -Global Days Against the Drug War, 5-10 June 1998+ during which demonstrations will occur in over 40 cities around the world. The aim is to exsert pressure on Governments meeting in New York for the Special Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, in which International Conventions on Drugs will be discussed.