MOSCOW, October 7 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's judiciary is not yet ready for introduction of the death penalty for drug dealers, the head of the country's antidrug agency told a government daily.
"It is not ruled out that with our judicial practice, still far from perfect, death penalty will be used in regard to a large percentage of people who are not drug dealers," Viktor Ivanov, director of the Federal Drug Control Service, told Rossiiskaya Gazeta.
Ivanov said many young people could fall victim to provocations on the part of dishonest law enforcers should the moratorium on the death penalty be abolished, adding that there are cases when people are arrested on false accusations of being drug dealers.
"They are just drug addicts, but are made drug pushers for better reporting," he said.
He also said special courts for drug addicts should be established in Russia. "In America, when minor crimes are committed, drug addicts are offered an alternative: compulsory treatment and rehabilitation instead of jail," he said.
"The use of drug courts will help withdraw a huge number of addicts here from the criminal environment," Ivanov said.
Ivanov earlier cited statistics in line with which there are about 550,000 officially registered drug addicts in Russia. However, the real figures are believed to be at least five times higher.
