Sorry for any cross-posting


This week we have published our August Policy Brief, written by Irmgard 
Eisenbach-Stangl, Arno Pilgram and Christine Reidl.

"The Vienna Drug Policy 1970 to 2005: External and Internal Views"

Abstract:
The present study examines the formation of a regional drug policy using 
the example of Vienna in the period of 1970 until 2005. The 
investigation starts at a time when the Austrian authorities began to 
react to fundamental changes in drug consumption: Cannabis had become 
the most-used illegal substance and the drug consumers were younger and 
better educated. In the course of this process, the penal - "repressive" 
instruments of drug policy (national level) were gradually complemented 
by "integrative" measures from the areas of health, social assistance, 
and education (regional level).

The development of the Viennese drug policy over a period of 35 years is 
looked at from different angles: from an "external" viewpoint - 
scientific and as much as possible objective - as well as from two 
"internal" angles - i.e. from the subjective perspectives of two groups 
of the persons concerned.

For the "external view", the development of the different branches of 
the municipal drug policy apparatus as well as the national context - 
especially drug legislation and the activities of the executive 
authorities - were studied on the basis of reports and statistics. The 
material allowed the distinction of five developmental stages of 
Viennese drug policy.

The "internal views" are based on interviews with "actors" - 
professionals who were, in the period of investigation, active in 
implementing the Viennese drug policy - from the areas of 
administration, treatment and care, prevention, justice and penal 
system, and with "addressees" of drug policy - drug users and relatives 
of drug users.

The study draws the success story of a regional drug policy that is 
based on the organisational combination of the drug-related activities 
of the city ("cross-sectional policy") and the professionalisation of 
the drug services, with the aim of social integration. In recent years, 
the limitations of Viennese drug policy have become more obvious. These 
limitations result, on the one hand, from the lacking influence of the 
municipality on the national drug policy as well as on the activities of 
the drug policy organisations at this level. On the other hand, they 
result from their restricted reach that cannot influence all policy 
areas that determine the drug situation, such as poverty, unemployment, 
and lack of education. It would therefore be desirable to consider a 
more "holistic" drug policy on the national and supranational levels, 
and not to forget about the fight against basic social problems.

More: http://www.euro.centre.org/detail.php?xml_id=1298 (in English), 
http://www.euro.centre.org/detail.php?xml_id=1299 (in German).


Please feel free to forward the Policy Brief to people who might be 
interested.



Best regards,

  Annette Hexelschneider, Dipl.-Ing.
  Head of Knowledge and Information Management Support Unit
  European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research 
  Berggasse 17 
  A-1090 Vienna (Austria)
  Tel: +43-1-319 45 05-23
  Fax: +43-1-319 45 05-19 
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  http://www.euro.centre.org 
  http://www.euro.centre.org/hexelschneider