NEW BEDFORD — There are no easy answers, only layers of complexity, in the ongoing battle against illicit narcotics, according to local law enforcement and drug-addiction specialists reacting to a new report declaring the global drug war a failure. ��Police officials bristled at the Global Commission on Drug Policy's suggestions that countries should experiment with legalizing certain drugs, especially marijuana, while taxing and regulating their sales.

NEW BEDFORD — There are no easy answers, only layers of complexity, in the ongoing battle against illicit narcotics, according to local law enforcement and drug-addiction specialists reacting to a new report declaring the global drug war a failure. ­­Police officials bristled at the Global Commission on Drug Policy's suggestions that countries should experiment with legalizing certain drugs, especially marijuana, while taxing and regulating their sales.



In that regard, New Bedford Police Chief David Provencher called the report "misguided."



"I think there's absolutely a place for treatment in the fight against drugs, but you cannot ever consider doing that at the expense of law enforcement and suppression," Provencher said.



"I think there is a lot more work to do. I'm not comfortable that their findings make any sense for us as a society. It makes no sense at all to remove (law enforcement) from intervening, and trying to shut down this activity."



Meanwhile, Carl Alves, executive director of Positive Action Against Chemical Addiction, said "everything needs to be on the table" when re-evaluating options for stemming the flow of illegal drugs and treating addiction.



"I've never been a big fan of the 'War on Drugs.' I really think we need to find more effective approaches to dealing with this," Alves said.



Released on Thursday, the Global Commission on Drug Policy — an international group consisting of former and current heads of state — said the 40-year global drug war had failed with "devastating consequences for individuals and societies around the world."



Rather than weakening organized crime syndicates, violent drug cartels remain as powerful as ever. Meanwhile, millions of nonviolent addicts are imprisoned, marginalizing and stigmatizing them while stretching thin prison budgets and police resources.



The international commission urged countries to end the criminalization of marijuana and other controlled substances, and argued that decriminalization initiatives in Portugal, Australia and Holland had not led to



significant increases in drug use.



The controversial report also urged governments to get past stale talking points and political gridlock and consider regulating drug sales, arguing that such a move would undermine organized crime and safeguard the health and security of citizens.



The report said: "Law enforcement efforts should focus not on reducing drug markets per se but rather on reducing their harms to individuals, communities and national security."



Provencher said illicit narcotics should not be sold on the regulated market, because of their "inherent dangerousness."



"Legalization wouldn't cure the problem," Fairhaven Police Chief Michael Myers said.



"We deal with more issues related to alcohol than anything. And our biggest battle now is dealing with prescription drugs, which are already legal and regulated, so doing that to any other drug is not going to solve the problem."



Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson said the drug war has failed "for a lot of different reasons."



"We should try to figure out what we're doing wrong and do it better, instead of throwing up our hands and say, 'Legalize it.' To think that will solve the problem of drug use in our country is misguided," Hodgson said.



Alves conceded that the drug "war" may have failed, but suggested that many battles have also been won.



"We've seen a reduction in the stigma of drug addiction. More people are accessing treatment. More families are talking about it more freely," said Alves, who believes that marijuana is a gateway drug to stronger substances. He is also ambivalent on decriminalization.



"If you look around at some of the most successful outcomes in terms of drug addiction, it really is about treating the person, and sometimes that requires law enforcement to be involved in the intervention," Alves said.



"People want absolutes in this conversation, but there are no simple, clear-cut solutions, because there are too many factors, as unique as the individuals we all are."