In 2004 the majority of seizures were made by the police, the highest number of seizures for particular drugs made by all law enforcement agencies remains the same compared to last year for herbal cannabis followed by heroin, cannabis plant, cocaine, cannabis resin and ecstasy-type substances. The highest average prices remains for a gram of cocaine powder followed by heroin, an LSD, cannabis resin for and cannabis on average.
Availability and supply
NO NEW INFORMATION AVAILABLE
Production, sources of supply and trafficking patterns within countries as well as from and towards other countries
NO NEW INFORMATION AVAILABLE
(for more information here please see the previous report) Seizures
In the RS seizures of illicit drugs can be made by different authorities (police, customs etc.) with diverse powers. According to the ZPPD (Article 37) only the ministry competent for internal affairs, i.e. the Ministry of the Interior, is authorised to keep all seized illegal drugs in the RS. The Ministry of the Interior (the police) is also the only agency with the competence to analyse and measure seized illicit drugs.
Quantities and numbers of drug seizures
Table 10.1 shows seizures of illicit drugs in quantities made by all law enforcement agencies in Slovenia. Seizures of heroin (grams – ‘g’), cocaine (g), amphetamines (g), pieces of cannabis plants and hashish, methamphetamine tablets, methadone tablets and methadone in ml, as well for benzodiazepines (tablets and in ml), grew in 2004 compared to 2003.
Decreases in 2004 in comparison with 2003 were reported in seizures of heroin in ml, amphetamine tablets, ecstasy (g) and tablets, cannabis plants in g, marijuana in g, and methadone in g.
Table 10.1 Seizures of illicit drugs in quantities made by all law enforcement agencies, Slovenia,
Cannabis (marijuana) g 219,571.3 84,838.9
Cannabis resin (hashish) g 588.7 8.093.9
g 18.2 529.2
Source: Ministry of Interior, 2005 Annual Police Report
In 2004 the majority of seizures were made by the police (see Table 10.2). The highest number of seizures for particular drugs made by all law enforcement agencies remains the same compared to last year for herbal cannabis (2,401 seizures); followed by heroin, cannabis plant, cocaine, cannabis resin and ecstasy-type substances.
Table 10.2 Number of seizures of illicit drugs made by different law enforcement agencies, Slovenia, 200451
Source: Ministry of the Interior, 2005
The Customs Administration of the RS records seizures of illicit drugs according to its competencies (for more information here please see the previous report). According to data reported by the Customs Administration of the RS seizures of marijuana fell from 2002 to 2004; compared to previous years the biggest seizure of cocaine was made in 2004;
seizures of heroin vary between years, with a decrease in 2004.
51 Data refer to Standard Table 13 reported by the Ministry of the Interior in 2005 and include data for all law enforcement
Price/Purity
Price of drugs at street level
Table 10.3 indicates the prices of some illicit drugs in euros at street level estimated by police sources through their monitoring system covering the national level on the basis of all seizure reports (user’s report) made by the police. The highest average price remains for a gram of cocaine powder (€ 54.12), followed by heroin (€ 35.4) per gram, an LSD dose for € 10.6, cannabis resin for € 10.4 and cannabis herb for € 5.2 on average.
Table 10.3 Price in euros of some illicit drugs at street level, Slovenia, 2004
Substance Min. Max. Average
Cannabis resin (g) 6.25 14.58 10.4
Cannabis herb (g) 2.1 8.33 5.2
Heroin (g) 25 45.8 35.4
Cocaine powder (g) 33.3 75 54.12
Amphetamine powder (g) - - 4
Ecstasy (tablet) 3 8.33 5.6
LSD (dose) - - 10.6
Source: Ministry of Interior of the RS, 2005
Note: - no data available
Purity at street level and composition of drugs/tablets
According to data from the Ministry of Interior and the Police Forensic Centre, the routine analysis done by the forensic laboratory from July to December 2004 covering the national level and taking a sample framework of all seizures with a sample amount above 0.1 g, an analysis of the purity of drugs at street level was done for brown heroin and cocaine (see Table 10.4).
Table 10.4 Purity at street level, Slovenia, 2004
Substance Number Min Max Average
Heroin brown 366 2.5% 31.5% 12.1%
Cocaine 144 10.4% 57.4% 36.7%
Source: Ministry of Interior of the RS, 2005
New developments and trends regarding the key topics
According to police observations and information, there is growing supply and demand for cocaine on the Slovenian illegal market. As well, the price of cocaine is decreasing;
consequently, cocaine is becoming available to a wider population.
Part B
Selected Issues
Overview summary on Gender differences
The section on gender differences is mainly represented by studies and analysis of drug treatment demand data in public health services and non-treatment sources; as well data on mortality of drug users and clinical and socio-demographic characteristics of heroin users by gender are presented.
Research in the field of problem drug use revealed the higher prevalence of male drug users, with the average male/female ratio being 3:1. Analysed data on drug treatment demand from the NIPH database, which closely follows the health status of illicit drug users describing the characteristics of female drug users and the situation in Slovenia for the period 1991-2003, showed that on average females in Slovenia seek treatment for problem drug use at a younger age than their male counterparts, and they enter the treatment programme earlier than men (mean age of 21 years). Females are younger than males when they start using a primary drug or injecting a drug. Most female and male problem drug users in Slovenia enter treatment programmes because of an addiction to heroin as the primary drug, yet a growing number of women seeking treatment for cannabis abuse has been noted in recent years (Lovrečič et al. 2004b).
In recent years drug use in Slovenia has been on the rise. The most serious and dramatic consequence of drug use is acute drug-related death (due to intentional and non-intentional overdoses). The population most at risk here is younger male drug users who die frequently because of a combination of drugs. The most frequently used illicit drug is heroin. There is a growing interest in the problems of drug misuse, especially in fatal consequences.
No specific policy or action plan which would define gender differences in drug field is available in Slovenia. In the Resolution there is a statement regarding responses to women related to drug use in the following points: greater attention must be paid to programmes intended for female drug addicts; specially adapted programmes of fieldwork and programmes of informing about various risks, including prostitution and the risks to children during the pregnancy of an addicted mother, will be provided for that purpose in treatment programmes and social care programmes in Slovenia.
Overview summary onOfficial endorsement by the National Drug Strategy
Another of the general aims of the Resolution is to encourage preventive action in the area of drugs and various programmes for reducing the demand for drugs.
Several suggestions have been made by experts and politicians in the last few years to join all (licit and illicit) drugs together within a common drug policy, strategy or action plan, but to date they have not been successful. The intention of the OD was also to include alcohol and tobacco in the national programme in the area of drugs.
Overview summary ondevelopments in drug use within recreational settings
Dance drug use is most prevalent at events featuring electronic and dance music. Data on the basis of observations in Slovenia show the biggest consumption of dance drugs is at hard techno parties, where a younger clientele is present. Also a trend where dance drugs are being used in a non-dance-party way of entertainment, such as bars and home parties, has been noticed.