ABSTRACT
Th is chapter examines initiatives carried out by the Brazilian Federal Police in recent decades to combat illicit cannabis cultivation. We see these measures as largely a reaction to external criticisms of government drug policies and practices. Th e actions that were taken in response, in order to diminish illegal cultivation, were fundamentally repressive in character. Th ey focused on the forced eradication of cannabis plants, the elimination of seedlings, and the destruction of processed marijuana. No broader initiatives were envisioned. For example, no consideration was given to programs aimed at replacing illegal plantations with functioning farms that would also employ and feed people, nor to incentives for traditional farming in the area. Such alternative, nonrepressive strategies could have worked in concert with a policy of eradication driven by repressive actions, but they were not considered.
