From: Radical Party Mosc. Office <[r p moscow] at [glas.apc.org]>
Newsgroups: talk.politics.drugs
Subject: DRUGS/RUSSIA: CASE OF ALINA VITUHNOVSKAJA
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 1995 00:04:03 +0400

From: [r p moscow] at [glas.apc.org] (Radical Party Mosc. Office)
Subject: DRUGS/RUSSIA: CASE OF ALINA VITUHNOVSKAJA

DRUGS: "CASE OF ALINA VITUHNOVSKAJA HIGHLIGHTS ONES MORE THE
ABSURDITY OF RUSSIAN DRUG POLICY" - DECLARATION OF NIKOLAJ
KHRAMOV

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - SEPTEMBER 18, 1995 - 5:00 PM

RADICAL PARTY
MOSCOW OFFICE
Trubnaja Ul. 25-2-49
103051 Moscow - Russia
E-mail: [r p moscow] at [glas.apc.org]


In connection with today's hearing in Golovinsky Inter-Municipal
Court of Moscow city the criminal case of Alina Vituhnovskaja,
Nikolaj Khramov, coordinator ad interim of Radical Party in
Russia and CIS, made following declaration:

"The case of Alina Vituhnovskaja, a 20-year old poetess who is
accused in a unique drug sale on the sum of 7 US dollars and who
spent already almost one year in jail before the trial,
highlights ones more the absurdity of current Russian drug
policy.

There are many unclear things in Vituhnovskaja's case, and there
are reasons to suppose that her arrest and one-year imprisonment
without trial are nothing as a punishment for her refusal to
collaborate. But, not touching now the question of her guilt in
the "crime" alleged, it is possible to state: the fact itself -
punishment a young lady for a seven-bucks deal, while our
narcobosses are still free and continue to derive surplus profit
- is deeply symbolic.

The profit of drug traffickers directly depends on intensity of
"war against drugs": the more rough are prohibitionist measures
(which nevertheless give no result), the more expensive become
drugs and - respectively - more become mafia's profit. Such a
connection which day by day becomes more and more evident for
scientists, jurists, lawmakers all over the world, continues to
be hidden for our government, our parliament, our law
enforcement bodies. Moreover, Russian government prepares now an
attack against essential achievement: abolishing of criminal
punishment for drug using without goal of its distribution.
There is no doubt: if this trick will succeed and State Duma
will approve respective amendments to the new Criminal Code,
such consequences as increasing the amount of latent drug users,
AIDS spread, strengthening narcomafia will appear soon.

Drugs legalized and controlled by the State - it is what could
knock out the ground from under the foots of narcomafia. It is
necessary to begin with light drugs (cannabis and its derivants)
using the positive experience of Netherlands, with organizing in
Russia the program of distributing of methadone and syringes
among drug users in accordance with experience of many European
cities where it was possible to press AIDS backwards by such a
way.

Will Russian drug policy be changed? It depends from those sane
forces in Russian society and political life who - as I hope -
will manage to realize their responsibility for security of
everybody among us."


For More Information:
tel. +7-095-9239127

                     - END OF PRESS RELEASE -