The head of Geelong’s ice task-force, Tony Francis, has said the idea of decriminalising the drug was being explored by the group. While the notion of decriminalising one of the most dangerous drugs on the planet was known to be a ‘radical’ idea, the positives—which include destroying the profits of the drug making/dealing syndicates and reducing crime as addicts wouldn’t need to “go robbing and thieving from cars and the like to get money to pay dealers and get ice” have been seen as potentially outnumbering the negatives.

The Victorian town of Geelong has seen the full force of the drug in recent months, with it readily being available in local private and public schools and the amount of rehab beds greatly overwhelmed by the amount of addicts in need. The plan to decriminalise ice was compared to the situation in Portugal, where all drugs have been de-penalised, meaning that while they’re still not legal, you wouldn’t be arrested for being in possession of drugs. This allows all the money that would normally go into policing the drug to go towards treatment measures instead. Unsurprisingly, not everyone is in favour of the idea, with health expert Emeritus Professor David Penington not advocating “legalising crystal amphetamine”.

Luke Karakas.

[Via.]

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