Poland's parliament on Thursday approved a bill which stiffens penalties against drug users and sellers.
Published:
24 September 2000 y., Sunday
Poland's parliament on Thursday approved a bill which stiffens penalties against drug users and sellers, hoping to combat the mounting narcotics-related crime. The bill, approved in a 367 to 18 vote with two abstentions, introduces jail terms of up to three years for the possession of drugs, including soft ones. Under the current law, carrying drugs in small quantities for personal use is legal.
The draft law, which still needs to clear the senate and be signed by the president, imposes prison terms of up to two years for owners of bars and other entertainment business, who fail to notify the police about drug transactions on their premises.
Retail sellers of drugs, who now often escape punishment, will face up to 10 years in jail. The bill's advocates say it will help crack down on a multi-billion-dollar narco-business in Poland, which has flourished since the fall of communism in 1989.
Official statistics show that the number of drug addicts reached 600,000 in 1999 among Poland's 38 million population. Some 5,000 of them were undergoing treatment. Last year, every fourth high school student at least once used drugs, compared with one in ten in 1995.
Šaltinis:
centraleurope.com
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
Preparations for the traditional Mexican Day of the Dead get underway in Mexico City as residents erect alters and bake bread for the deceased.
more »
In three resolutions adopted in Strasbourg on Thursday, the European Parliament restates its solidarity with O. Orlov, a member of the Russian human rights organization Memorial and winner of the 2009 EP Sakharov Prize, who is now facing trial, denounces the imprisonment of Cambodian opposition leader S. Rainsy and calls on Zimbabwe's President R. Mugabe to put an end to the threat of mass forced evictions.
more »
Marrying diligent driver behaviour, quality road infrastructure and sound vehicles for safer roads across Europe.
more »
A group of journalism students in Moscow pose semi-naked for a steamy calendar wishing Russia's prime minister a happy birthday.
more »
In the EU27 in 2008, 20% of women and 32% of men aged 25 to 34 lived with at least one of their parents.
more »
“Vertical” health funds targeting specific diseases such as AIDS, malaria or TB have achieved some success, but only at the cost of draining resources from basic “horizontal” health infrastructure such as clinics.
more »
This autumn, the 2010 European Job Days give jobseekers a chance to meet employers from all over Europe, and find out about working in other EU countries through seminars and workshops.
more »
During his visit to New York, on 27 September at the City University of New York, Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs A. Ažubalis, opened a photography exhibition dedicated to the Lithuanian Jewish cultural heritage and conferred an award of Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on former Executive Director of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
more »
The 26th of September marks the European Day of Languages. Perhaps the Knights of the Order of St John in the Middle Ages prided themselves about the fact that they had eight “langues” but Parliament does better with its daily “Headlines” on its website in 22 languages.
more »
A proposed new plan focuses on closing the pay gap and opening up company boardrooms to more women. Tackling domestic violence is also a top priority.
more »