The war on drugs is lost – legalise the heroin trade

I did not believe it before I went to Afghanistan. But it's now clear that prohibition is no answer to this deadly scourge
William Patey, British ambassador to Afghanistan from 2010-2012
The Guardian (UK)
Wednesday, June 25, 2014

When Tony Blair deployed British troops in Afghanistan, ending the illicit production and supply of opium was cited as a key objective. In 2001 the prime minister linked heroin use in the UK with opium cultivation in Afghanistan. Yet after 10 years of effort with tens of thousands of troops in the country, and having spent billions trying to reduce poppy cultivation, Afghans are growing more opium than ever before. For the sake of both Afghans and British citizens, politicians must take responsibility for the failings of global prohibition, and take control of the drug trade through legal regulation.