To be both in the world and yet not of it : Swedish drug policy and the international context

This chapter aims to understand the connection between Sweden's very restrictive drug policy and this international commitment. It begins by briefly describing and explaining the development of Swedish drug policy. The chapter then gets to grips with the connection to the international arena in which Sweden becomes active after the mid-1980s. It describes the international launch of a successful Swedish drug policy culminating in the UN-meeting in 1998. The chapter illustrates how Sweden retreats from the argument of an effective policy in relation to drug abuse and instead defends its policy by references to the protections of general values like democracy, welfare, and human rights. It demonstrates how Sweden's international entrepreneurship serves as a national resource and is a moral mission with long historical roots