SOROS AND FRIENDS CALL FOR REFORM OF HARMFUL POLICIES

A drug reform institute financed by the billionaire George Soros has
amassed signatures of hundreds of prominent people throughout the world to
a letter that says the global war against drugs is causing more harm than
drug abuse itself.

The petitioners include the former United Nations secretary-general Javier
Perez de Cuellar, the former United States secretary of state George
Shultz, the Costa Rican Nobel peace laureate Oscar Arias, the former CBS
television anchorman Walter Cronkite and the South African human rights
activist Helen Suzman.

Mr Soros has spent millions of dollars trying to change the way Americans
think about drugs. He has promoted medicinal use of marijuana and financed
programmes that distribute clean needles to people who inject drugs.

The letter, drafted by the Lindesmith Centre in New York, was addressed to
UN secretary-general Kofi Annan. It says: "Persisting in our current
policies will only result in more abuse, more empowerment of drug markets
and criminals and more disease and suffering."

The letter, which was signed by about 600 people, proposes no clear
alternatives beyond asking Mr Annan to stimulate "a frank and honest
evaluation of global drug control efforts".

"I hope it will foster an open discussion, which is very difficult," Mr
Soros said. "By having so many distinguished people sign on, it should make
people want to discuss whether our policies are counterproductive or not."

Ethan Nadlemann, the Lindesmith president, said: "This was my initiative.
George agreed to help."

Broad language was used to attract as many signatories as possible, he
said, prompting some to complain it was not strong enough.

"When people look back on the UN drugs summit in 1998, it is not going to
be because of the platitudes," Mr Nadlemann said. "It will be a moment at
which the truly international movement for drug reform had begun."

The secretary-general's spokesman said Mr Annan had not yet received the
letter, but welcomed ideas.

Washington's director of national drug policy, General Barry McCaffrey,
called the letter "a 1950s perception" of the fight against drugs. - New
York Times.

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)