This evening (September 18, 1997) the United States Congress, through the Subcommittee on National Security, International Affairs and Criminal Justice, which is chaired by Congressman J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL), examined the issues of "needle exchange, drug legalization and the failure of the Swiss Heroin experiments."

After testimony from six noted experts, including two witnesses with direct experience in the U.S. needle exchange experiments, two Americans who have studied the Swiss heroin project experiments, and two Swiss experts who proffered testimony from three Swiss legislators, the committee appeared to uniformly reject the Swiss experiments or their application to the United States. The Swiss legislators were Messrs. Kuendig, Morniroli, and Scherrer.

Republicans praised the Swiss people for supporting, as 140,000 did in a recent petition, the 'Youth Against Drugs' anti-drug referendum. Said Congressman Bob Barr (R-GA), "The Swiss people are, and especially those who organized this anti-drug referendum, extremely courageous and patriotic." He noted that he had, himself, visited Switzerland to see how these heroin giveaway clinics worked, and was "shocked" that so "civilized" a nation would be "flirting with disaster and gambling with the future they pass to their children."

Said Chairman Hastert, "this is a real national security issue, and I can only say that we applaud the Swiss people for understanding the nature of the threat and organizing to oppose the immoral act of giving away heroin and expanding the risk of ever higher youth drug abuse."

Said Barr, echoing the sentiments of others on the five-hour panel which lasted until 10 p.m., "I think this should send a clear message to the people of Switzerland and to any who would advocate legalization, medicalization or risky schemes of this nature in America, that we whole-heartedly oppose this sort of government gambit, and we stand shoulder to shoulder with the Swiss people to reject this incursion on human dignity and the decency for which both our nations have long stood." Chairman Hastert added that, "The Swiss have long resisted forces such as Germany in World War II and Cold War Communism, and they are again resisting a threat to both our cultures when they stand up to this insidious, international effort to legalize these poisons."

Recently, the U.S. House of Representatives rejected federal funding by their Department of Health and Human Services for needle exchange programs in the United States. During the debate, two recent studies, the Montreal and Vancouver studies, were cited; they indicate that there was no reduction in HIV or AIDS transmission from needle exchange or giveaways. Said Congressman Mark Souder, "We cannot let our country proceed down the slippery slope confronting the Swiss, and we wish them every success in their vital 'Youth Against Drugs' referendum. Congress members also inquired why the U.S. State Department had not been more active in opposing the legalization effort in Switzerland, suggesting future action.
 

For further information contact: Robert Charles, Staff Director and Chief Counsel Phone: (202) 225-2577 Fax: (202) 225-1154