U.S. DRUG CHIEF TRIES TO DOWNPLAY CRITICISM OF DUTCH SYSTEM

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Drug policy chief Barry McCaffrey, returning from an
eight-day European tour where the Dutch criticized him for his condemnation
of their policies, sought to temper the outcry Monday. ``Friends are
allowed to disagree,'' he said.

McCaffrey's visit to Sweden, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland, England and
the Netherlands was intended to provide a close view of their treatment and
prevention programs and overall drug-fighting programs.

But his declaration during a TV interview before the trip that Dutch policy
was an ``unmitigated disaster'' overshadowed the visit.

The Dutch have a laissez-faire drug policy. Marijuana and hashish are
technically illegal, but the sale and consumption of small amounts of these
drugs is ``coffee shops'' are tolerated by Dutch authorities. Hard drugs
like cocaine and heroin cannot be sold that way, but are also cheap and
easily available.

After days of harsh criticism from Dutch officials and legalization
supporters, McCaffrey downplayed the incident Monday.

``There are areas of agreement between the Netherlands and the United
States,'' McCaffrey told reporters back on his home turf. ``I listened very
carefully to their ideas,'' he said, but he believes U.S. treatment policy
should be based ``not on ideology but on science.''

He said he was most impressed by the availability of methadone treatments
for heroin addicts and said he wants to increase this country's capability
to offer them. But he warned that they must be monitored closely to prevent
diversion into the mainstream population.

``It can kill you deader than a doornail if you take the normal dosage rate
for a heroin addict,'' he said.

The United States has an estimated 455,000 heroin addicts, with about
115,000 in methadone treatment at 800 clinics.

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)