Abstract
In a public survey conducted in the Spring of 1993, a randomly selected sample were asked about their attitudes toward counter measures in drug policy. According to the survey there is general support for both preventive, therapeutic and repressive actions. Also more controversial measures such as electronic room bugging, which the Norwegian Parliament rejected, has public support. However, the respondents seem to give priority to preventive actions, such as working with young people, in preference to society's main answer so far: sharper punishment.
In public discussion about the level of punishment, it seems to be accepted as a premise that the penal practice has its correlate in public opinion, which supports sharper punishment. In response to a general question about the penalties for drug offences, a clear majority of the respondents said they are “too lenient”. When specifying the crimes, however, the respondents were not more repressive than the courts.
This paradox indicates that the correspondence between public attitudes and legal sanctions, thought to be of almost causal nature, has to be reconsidered.
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