Experts of the Finnish
government’s leading health agency, the National Institute for Health and
Welfare (THL), call for the decriminalisation of all drugs. Professor Pekka
Hakkarainen, the head of THL’s Alcohol, Drugs, and Addictions Unit, and Tuukka
Tammi, a senior researcher, wrote recently an article calling
for decriminalisation. They argue that ending criminal sanctions for drug use
would reduce the marginalisation of young people, and encourage people who use
drugs to engage with health and social services. Neighbouring Norway’s
Parliament voted to do the same in December 2017.