En los medios
7/04/17
Recent releases: "Qué hacer con las drogas", by Juan Gabriel Tokatlian
El nuevo libro del profesor del Departamento de Ciencia Política y Estudios Internacionales fue destacado en la sección literaria del Buenos Aires Herald
Best-known for his analysis of international politics in newspaper articles and television appearances (not that drugtrafficking lacks an international dimension), Juan Gabriel Tokatlian here attempts a progressive approach to an issue which is all too often subject to political opportunism, especially in election years like this one. President Mauricio Macri has never actually said "zero drugs" alongside "zero poverty" (two of his three top priorities) but he joins many politicians in pointing towards total prohibitionism and the utopia of a drug-free society. In such rhetoric these politicians tend to compete in proposing harsher punishments, often directly seeking to militarise the fight against drugs.
Especially as regards Latin America and Argentina (with a view to the experience of Colombia and Mexico), Tokatlian regards these means and ends as not only impractical but also dangerous since brute force has failed everywhere, hurting the rights of the most vulnerable, wasting public funds and delaying the debate on alternative strategies which might work—strategies based on a gradualist and sustainable approach which look beyond organised crime to see the health, educational, social and economic dimensions of the problem.
Apart from the overacting politicians, Tokatlian also identifies the vested interests (including money-laundering) which do not want the drug problem to be solved.
