Edito: Nothing new in the national mobilization plan against addictions

The French Interministerial Mission for the Fight against Drugs and Addictive Behavior (Mildeca) has just published its annual report. National mobilization plan against addictions 2018-2022. The plan was approved by the Prime Minister's office on December 19. Unsurprisingly, the plan is sorely lacking in innovation, and barely mentions alternative policies to combat and manage addiction.

With regard to cannabis, the report notes that consumption is becoming commonplace in the French population, particularly among young people. According to the figures put forward, there are 700,000 daily users in France. Among 17-year-olds, 25% are said to be problem users. But if these figures indicate anything, it's the failure of current repression and prevention policies. Despite a few interesting ideas, the plan fails to renew in-depth thinking on cannabis policies, and reaffirms a repressive attitude.

Youth protection

The report notes that initiation to cannabis use is taking place earlier and earlier: 12% of 3rd graders have smoked cannabis at least once in the month. The government rightly wants to combat the trivialization of this substance among young people, but it adopts an excessively paternalistic stance. It emphasizes its «role as educator», proposing to «help parents in their educational role» and to create a «more protective environment» at school, at work and in the family. This involves «spotting elements at risk», a formula that frankly sounds like a consumer hunt.

As far as youth protection is concerned, liberalizing cannabis policies by making consumption less dramatic and guaranteeing controlled access has proved to be more effective than stigmatization and general prohibition of cannabis use. Numerous American studies show that, since the legalization of cannabis, juvenile consumption has not only not increased but has actually decreased in states where cannabis is legal. Although the plan mentions the desire to bring an objective and scientific discourse to bear on cannabis, the prohibitive French context does not allow for a de-dramatized discussion of cannabis.

Dusty thinking

One might think that, in the current context, thinking about cannabis and its addictive potential would include new variables such as the growing discovery of its addictive potential. multiple therapeutic potential or the rise of CBD, who has no addictive potential and can serve as a substitute for people wishing to give up smoking or cannabis, at least to categorize the uses that need to be combated and those that are acceptable.

But no. There is no mention of medical cannabis in the plan. CBD is mentioned once, only to reiterate the 0 % THC requirement, which still in breach of European legislation and is not justified under French law.

The plan mentions the famous fight against cannabis trafficking, which has been so effective to date, with the latter estimated to be worth 1.6 billion euros in France. Among the priorities put forward are :

• the development of fixed-rate fines, a new tool for repression
• more resources allocated to dismantling domestic and industrial cannabis cultivation. With this kind of measure, patients and recreational users who practice self-cultivation for the purposes of self-care or personal consumption are thrown into the category of traffickers, even as they fight in their own way against the growth of the black market.
• increased crackdown on growshops and online sites selling growing materials
• increased repression of all forms of «incitement»: clothing, accessories, consumption equipment. This strategy resembles a form of cultural censorship of cannabis. Would the French state be capable of demanding the rap regulation like in Russia (where cannabis is decriminalized)?

Finally, in an attempt to protect young people, combat trafficking and help people in addiction situations, the state is penalizing all consumers - including those who don't have a problem with cannabis and those who need it to improve their quality of life.

Yes, cannabis is a potentially harmful substance and addictive. Tobacco and alcohol too. The report recalls the mortality figures for alcohol and tobacco, respectively 49,000 and 73,000 deaths per year. It also lists 16 cannabis-related deaths the only one whose precise cause is not mentioned.

When the report finally mentions legislative developments in certain countries, it presents them as «hesitations between the search for a certain degree of individual freedom, the need to ensure effective protection of young people and the desire to reduce the burden on the entire penal chain».

Latent schyzophrenia? We can read that «cannabis is available everywhere», that «regular use is linked to situations of social vulnerability», that it is necessary «to adopt a clear, objective and shared public discourse on the risks and harm associated with consumption [...] based on the latest national and international scientific data», but few proposals go in the direction of resolving these observations.

The plan is certainly not all doom and gloom. Some risk prevention and reduction strategies, and the desire to disseminate scientific knowledge, are commendable. But, overall, the plan simply sanctions the renewal of déjà-vu policies with a lot of empty rhetoric. France is not ready to let go of its blinkers and, for lack of political courage and despite the international context, retains an extremely simplistic vision of cannabis and addiction issues.

Camille LEZAUN.