Voters in Switzerland say a program that allows opiate addicts to receive heroin from the government should continue, but they rejected a marijuana-decriminalization initiative, the Guardian reported Dec. 1.

The heroin program, which was begun 14 years ago, is credited with reducing street crime and improving quality of life for the country's opiate addicts. Voters decided to make the program permanent, with 68 percent voting their approval in a national referendum.

The initiative to decriminalize the consumption of marijuana and cultivation of the plant for personal use was opposed by the Swiss government and supported by only 36.8 percent of voters.

The government argued that decriminalization could cause problems with neighboring countries. "This could lead to a situation where you have some sort of cannabis tourism in Switzerland because something that is illegal in the EU would be legal in Switzerland," said Oswald Sigg, a government spokesman.

Although the U.S. and the United Nations narcotics board have been critical of the Swiss heroin initiative, other governments have begun programs modeled on its success.

The 23 supervised heroin facilities in the country offer addicts an injected dose of heroin intended to satisfy cravings without producing intoxication.