Dato Otiashvili – Alternative Georgia

Avarage of drug use in 2009 – 13 %

How much is spent by the state?
Per drug user gets 10 EURO for the treatment

Drug legislation:

Drug use – punishable – administartive offence
Repeated drug use is punishabe under the criminal sanction – 1 year in prison
Possession of any amount of uncontrolled drugs is punishable under criminal code (small, large, extremly large quantities – soveit style scheduling);

Drug related offences – small amount – 1 years
Illicit preparation, possession or dealing of large amounts of drugs – 7-14 years in prisons;

2007 Statistics:
57 375 people stopped in the streets with the susoicion of usiong drugs;
9 788 people where imprisoned;
2 414 of them (-25%) for drug law offences;

Prison population since 2004 inctreased four times;

6th in the world with prison population per capita

Financial implications:
30 ml GEL (20.6 USD) paid as related fines
1 ml GEL invested in preventiobn and treatment
Avarrage salary ~ 195 USD
Administrative fine – 345
Criminal fine – 1400 USD
Two weeks detox – 1 000 – 1 400 USD

~ 40 000 problem drug users in Georgia.

Survey was undertaken if the punishment works for them:
289 responses – negative;
Quit using drugs (positive) – 36.

Results:
– drug testing and punishment does not result in positive outcomes;
– it causes negative results; family punishment and worsening of social status, criminalization;