Coca Leaf
Topic category
Drugs and Democracy
The coca leaf has been chewed and brewed for tea for centuries in the Andean region – and does not cause any harm and is probably beneficial to human health. Yet the leaf is treated as if it is comparable to cocaine or heroin. The inclusion of the coca leaf in the list of narcotic drugs raises questions about the logic behind the current system of classification under the UN conventions. TNI believes we can find a more culturally sensitive approach to plants with psychoactive or mildly stimulant properties, and should distinguish more between problematic, recreational and traditional uses of psychoactive substances.
Latest
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Prohibited Plants : Environmental Justice in Drug Policy
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The ‘deja vú’ of aerial crop spraying in Colombia
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Featured
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Coca leaf: Myths and Reality A beginner's guide to Coca
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Land rights and wrongs What role does land titling play in helping coca leaf farmers switch to legal alternatives in Colombia?
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Migrants and traditional use The coca leaf travels from the Andean Amazon to the European courts
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The Global Forum of Producers of Prohibited Plants (GFPPP)
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Key documents
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Coca leaf: Myths and Reality A beginner's guide to Coca
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Coca Myths
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Fact Sheet: Coca leaf and the UN Drugs Conventions
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