Romanian Senate president calls for more action to combat illegal drug use

Senate president Calin Popescu Tariceanu, who is also the leader of junior coalition partner ALDE, believes Romania needs to do more to combat illegal drug use and keep this phenomenon under control. He also thinks that the politicians should get more involved in solving this problem.

Tariceanu’s statements came after well-known Romanian designer Razvan Ciobanu died in a serious car accident on Monday, April 29. He was reportedly returning from a party at the seaside and was driving at a very high speed when the accident happened. He was alone in the car and was not wearing the seat belt. At some point the car left the road and, after about 850 m, Ciobanu completely lost the control of the car, which hit several trees and overturned. The designer died in the accident. Local media reported that preliminary blood tests revealed that Razvan Ciobanu had consumed drugs.

In this context, Tariceanu said in a Facebook post that the sad news of Razvan Ciobanu’s death should “make us all think,” as drug consumption is not a theme “to hide under the rug.”

“Drug use is on the rise in Romania, from one year to the next, as statistics show. It’s not yet at alarming levels because, fortunately, we are still among the last in Europe at this, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t have to take effective measures to control it. The good news, that Romania is not really the paradise of drugs, is doubled by the less good news - that our ability to react and mobilize to combat this phenomenon is lower than in other states,” Tariceanu wrote on Facebook on the day of the funeral of Razvan Ciobanu.

The Senate president believes Romania should take more action to combat illegal drug use, and said that one of the main problems is related to the legislation in the country, which is too complicated.

“For example, the legalization of cannabis in the medical field – a topic of great interest worldwide – the prohibition of ethnobotanical drugs or the creation of so-called supervised consumer chambers can be discussed, analyzed with specialists, can be transposed into practice, but require a series of amendments to several laws and the involvement of many ministries,” Tariceanu said, adding that the European legislation doesn’t help too much either.

“In the coming period, we will have to start extensive discussions on this issue, both with state authorities and with NGO leaders, school directors and civil society representatives, to identify the best and fastest solutions.”

Tariceanu hopes his proposal will also have the support of the Church and big companies, as well as the support of the parents and teachers, and even the owners of clubs, who should not “close their eyes to drug consumption or alcohol abuse.”