parliamentary debates, MPs used the term but the law referred to habitual ‘toxicomania’ drug abusers. A magistrate could order compulsory commitment for detoxification in a nursing home or psychiatric hospital of someone who, because of severe mental impairment because of habitual drug abuse, was dangerous to himself or to other people. A ministerial decree in 1962 promoted the establishment of special centres for ‘social diseases’, amongst which was included toxicosis from narcotics and psychoactive ‘the substances’. The major focus of drug policy in this period was not disease and illness but rather crime. A 1956 law included as enemies of public morality illicit traffickers in narcotics; the illegal traffic and drug smugglers were of more concern than addicts in the 1950s. Politicians were concerned about the international criticism of Italy as a major hub in the international drugs trade, especially that voiced during the UN Narcotic Drugs Committee meetings at Lake Success in 1950 and in New York in 1953. The language used in parliamentary debates was thus focused on the moral and criminal aspects of drug use, while laws described mental impairment’ and drug abuse’ or intoxication’. Despite ‘severe ‘habitual ‘chronic Italy’s involvement in international regulation, the language used still belonged to an earlier era. In Austria, during the pre and immediate post war period, the government was controlled by external influences. The country, which had been a province of Nazi Germany for seven years, was then occupied by the Allies for another 10 years, until 1955. The political situation was a consensus-focussed collaboration between Christian conservatives and social democrats which shaped and promoted an addiction related discourse. Overall in the period under consideration, there were 15 laws relating to alcohol and other drugs, with nine on alcohol and six on other drugs. Although drug consumption only increased in the
parliamentary debates, MPs used the term ‘toxicomania’ but the law referred to habitual drug abusers. A magistrate could order compulsory commitment for detoxification in a nursing home or psychiatric hospital of someone who, because of severe mental impairment because of habitual drug abuse, was dangerous to himself or to other people. A ministerial decree in 1962 promoted the establishment of special centres for ‘social diseases’, amongst which was included ‘the toxicosis from narcotics and psychoactive substances’. The major focus of drug policy in this period was not disease and illness but rather crime. A 1956 law included as enemies of public morality illicit traffickers in narcotics; the illegal traffic and drug smugglers were of more concern than addicts in the 1950s. Politicians were concerned about the international criticism of Italy as a major hub in the international drugs trade, especially that voiced during the UN Narcotic Drugs Committee meetings at Lake Success in 1950 and in New York in 1953. The language used in parliamentary debates was thus focused on the moral and criminal aspects of drug use, while laws described ‘severe mental impairment’ and ‘habitual drug abuse’ or ‘chronic intoxication’. Despite Italy’s involvement in international regulation, the language used still belonged to an earlier era. In Austria, during the pre and immediate post war period, the government was controlled by external influences. The country, which had been a province of Nazi Germany for seven years, was then occupied by the Allies for another 10 years, until 1955. The political situation was a consensus-focussed collaboration between Christian conservatives and social democrats which shaped and promoted an addiction related discourse. Overall in the period under consideration, there were 15 laws relating to alcohol and other drugs, with nine on alcohol and six on other drugs. Although drug consumption only increased in the
CDP%202014-0512%20Final%20accepted.docx