In the U.S. the number of people over 12 years old who use drugs increased from 5.8% in 1991-93 to 8.9% in 2008. In Mexico the war on drugs has killed over 50,000 people over the past 5 years.

Juan Carlos Hidalgo wrote an article for Nacion.com in February 2012. His approach, denouncing the harmful effects of drug prohibition, was based on a proposal by the President of Guatemala, Otto Perez Molina, to legalize drugs as a means to combat drug trafficking.

The submission to the Parliament of Uruguay of a proposal to legalize marijuana consumption revives an issue which Central Americans should hurt more than what we’ve shown, given the terrible cost in human life and development that the drug war taking place in our countries produces.

According to the latest National Assessment on the Drug Threat 2011 by the Department of Justice, “the abuse of several major illicit drugs, including heroin, marijuana and methamphetamine, appears to be increasing, especially among young people. There is no doubt that the ban has not stopped the use of illicit substances in the major world market.”

“Drug prohibition has made trafficking an extremely profitable business. This is because the price of an illegal substance is determined more by the cost of distribution than the cost of production.”

For example, in the case of cocaine, the price of coca leaf in the field and what a consumer pays on American streets for the white powder increases by more than 100 times. Depending on the drug, 90% or more of the retail price of the drug corresponds to the premium generated by the ban. For this reason, the profit margins of drug cartels are enormous and lead to a never ending circle of corruption and death.

Source: Nacion.com