ZURICH, Dec – Switzerland’s capital is examining a pilot scheme to allow the sale of cocaine for recreational use – a radical approach to the war on drugs that is not thought to have been tried elsewhere.
Parliament in Bern has supported the idea, which still needs to overcome opposition from the city government and will also require a change in national law.
Drugs policy around the world is evolving, with the U.S. state of Oregon, for example, decriminalising possession of small amounts of cocaine in 2021 in favour of drug treatment.
Many European countries, including Spain, Italy and Portugal, no longer have prison sentences for possession of drugs including cocaine, although nowhere has gone as far as the proposal under discussion in Bern.
Switzerland is re-examining its stance on the drug after some politicians and experts criticised complete bans as ineffective, with the proposal – currently in its early stages – following trials now under way to permit the legal sale of cannabis.
“The war on drugs has failed, and we have to look at new ideas,” said Eva Chen, a member of the Bern council from the Alternative Left Party who co-sponsored the proposal.
“Control and legalisation can do better than mere repression.”
HIGH COCAINE USE
Wealthy Switzerland has one of the highest levels of cocaine use in Europe, according to the levels of illicit drugs and their metabolites measured in waste water, with Zurich, Basel and Geneva all featuring in the top 10 cities in Europe
Swiss cities, including Bern, are also showing increasing usage, while prices of cocaine have halved in the last five years, according to Addiction Switzerland, a non-governmental organisation.
“We have a lot of cocaine in Switzerland right now, at the cheapest prices and the highest quality we have ever seen,” said Frank Zobel, deputy director at Addiction Switzerland.
“You can get a dose of cocaine for about 10 francs these days, not much more than the price for a beer.”
Bern’s education, social affairs and sport directorate is preparing a report on a possible cocaine trial, although this does not mean it will definitely take place.
“Cocaine can be life-threatening for both first-time and long-term users. The consequences of an overdose, but also individual intolerance to even the smallest amounts, can lead to death,” the Bern government said.
Bern parliament member Chen said it was too early to say how a pilot scheme would develop, including where the drug would be sold or how it would be sourced.
“We are still far away from potential legalisation, but we should look at new approaches,” Chen said. “That is why we are calling for a scientifically supervised pilot scheme trial.”
