Portugal anticipated many of the greatest political transformations in Western Europe (Léonard 2016). After leaving behind the monarchical regime that characterized the region during the nineteenth century, it became one of the first republics in 1910.1 Although it was the last European power to accept the independence of its African colonies, Portugal was involved in the first uprisings that ultimately led to Africa's decolonization process in the 1950s. Most importantly, the Revolução dos Cravos (Carnation Revolution) in 1974, which overturned the longest dictatorship in Western Europe during the twentieth century, paved the way for the ‘Third Wave’ of democratization throughout much of the developing world (Huntington 1991).

In July 2001, Portugal also became one of the first countries in the world to decriminalize the consumption, acquisition, and possession of all types of illicit drugs. The so-called conservative, isolationist, and Catholic European country broke with the prevailing punitive paradigm, placing illicit drugs and psychotropic substances outside the criminal justice system framework. Focusing on prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and other social regulation initiatives gradually launched by the Ministry of Health, Portugal thus became a world pioneer in drug liberalization policies.

Opponents and advocates of drug liberalization policies have provided alternative evidence, pointing to the benefits or drawbacks of decriminalization. Where is Portugal after more than 20 years of the radical drug policy reform?