Portugal took a radical step to decriminalise drugs. Now it’s having second thoughts

Catarina Fernandes Martins and Anthony Faiola on how the country’s groundbreaking decision has played out

Municipal workers dispose of a used syringe at the Mata da Pasteleira park in Porto (Demetrius Freeman/Washington Post)

Addiction haunts the recesses of the ancient city of Porto as people with gaunt, clumsy hands lift crack pipes to lips; syringes to veins. Authorities are sealing off warren-like alleyways with iron bars and fencing in parks to halt the spread of encampments. A siege mentality is taking root in nearby enclaves of pricey condos and multimillion-euro homes.

In 2001, Portugal decriminalised all drug use, including marijuana, cocaine and heroin, in an experiment that inspired similar efforts elsewhere, but now police are blaming a spike in the number of people who use drugs for a rise in crime. In one neighbourhood, state-issued paraphernalia – powder-blue syringe caps, packets of citric acid for diluting heroin – litters sidewalks outside a primary school.

Porto’s police have increased patrols to drug-plagued neighbourhoods. But given existing laws, there’s only so much they can do. On a recent afternoon, an emaciated man in striped pants sleeping in front of a state-funded drug-use centre awoke to a patrol of four officers. He sat up, then defiantly began assembling his crack pipe. Officers walked on, shaking their heads.