Past, present and future of drug laws in Malta

Abstract

This thesis focuses mainly on a way forward which will make a true difference in the lives of the people living in the Maltese society. It may be said that during the past decades there has been a particular attitude towards drug use; this has fluctuated in a way which created diverse trends. As brought out in this study, certain attitudes did not always deliver results. Indeed, a look at the data collected during the past years immediately exposes the fact that Maltese legislators and law enforcers have been focusing primarily on the “small business” rather than targeting the real problem. With this in mind, this thesis presents as starting point the definitions and the explanation of drug law related terms. Chapter One goes on to analyse the beginnings of drug laws in Malta and their sources. The way such laws evolved throughout the years in order to try and minimise the risks that drug abuse would result in, is explained and investigated. A further inquiry brings to bear the effects it would have on the Maltese society. Chapter Two analyses the prevailing legal framework, this being the one that was solely used before the drug law reform and the enactment of the Act which deals with first time offenders. This chapter brings forth a study of the laws applied by Maltese courts and the way punishments were being given. Additionally, this chapter focuses on the results that these types of punishments produced and the manner in which the Maltese legislator tried to tackle both offender and trafficker. This chapter moreover includes data covering a ten-year period, as provided by the Police Force and shows how Malta has managed to stabilize drug use, albeit it did not manage to decrease drug use. This, points to the need of a proper way forward. Chapter Three gives a preview of what one is to expect from the proposed reform and the way it should provide a remedy to the first time offender and the personal user. There are various grey areas revolving around this law which will inevitably result in creating more problems rather than solving them. Moreover, this law does not tackle the real problem, which is that of the black market. This chapter goes into the spirit of this newly enacted law and submits an explanation of what the legislator had in mind. Notably, although this law was enacted, the boards and the Chairman are not yet in function because the system is still in need of fine tuning. Chapter Four is a way forward for drug laws. In the light of the data and knowledge brought together to complete this study, including data from legal counterparts who have adopted a more liberal way of tackling drug use and abuse, this author proposes the possibility of legalising drugs in a manner which purports to address the defined problem. With this in mind, it is submitted that the way forward should cover six different areas which ought to be tackled in order to have appropriate and applicable results. These six areas incorporate: i. The creation of a proper educational system. ii. The control of supply. iii. Demand reduction. iv. The addict and his family. v. The black market. vi. Medical use. With focus placed on these six areas, this thesis moves on to propose a future law which aims to be more beneficial to society than the present laws and reform.