Anyone they suspect may be under the influence of an illegal drug may suddenly find themselves thrown against a wall while a flashlight is shone in their eyes to look for tell-tale pupil reactions before being dragged away for compulsory blood tests. Sweden must be the only country in the world where looking unduly happy, laughing or dancing too energetically can get you arrested, with the possible exception of some Islamic Fundamentalist states. Despite their draconian laws, drug use and drug related crime are escalating uncontrollably in Sweden. Acording to an article in Dagens Nyheter 5.6.98, the number of hard drug abusers in Sweden has increased from 12,000 to 22,000 since the repressive laws were introduced in 1980. Youth unemployment is record high and smoking heroin is rapidly escalating in Stockholms suburbs.
Society has no power to act.
We are sitting on a powder keg. Hard drug abuse is no longer a problem confined to the larger cities. The daily Aftonbladet reported 3.11.97 in an interview with Goran Petterson, chief of the anti street pushers squad of Norrkoping that last year the small town had a handful of heroin addicts, now there are well over 300. From Halmstad, Karlstad, Eskilstuna, Lund, Sundsvall, Skelleftea and Gothenburg come reports from the police of heroin that has become more and more common the last two or three years. The country's 20.000 hard drug abusers spend 2500 kronor each per day to support their habit.