A Defense Expert Witness on Ayahuasca

In a 2018 interview, Dr. José Carlos Bouso recounts his 2006 experience as a defense expert witness on ayahuasca in Spain, alongside Dr. Jordi Riba. During the trial, misinformation from the Spanish Agency of Medicine contradicted their research on ayahuasca's effects, reflecting ignorance that blocked access to the plant medicine despite Santo Daime's religious status. Bouso describes how his work with the Ayahuasca Defense Fund addresses stigmas and persecutions against ceremonial ayahuasca use worldwide, combining scientific knowledge with advocacy. The interview reflects on strategies and lessons from this ongoing effort.

Study at a glance

Abstract

In this interview, performed in 2018, anthropologist and ayahuasca researcher Dr. Bia Labate speaks with Dr. José Carlos Bouso, who is a clinical psychologist with a PhD in pharmacology and is Scientific Director of the International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research & Service (ICEERS). Dr. Bouso speaks on his first experience being a defense expert witness on ayahuasca in Spain along with Dr. Jordi Riba (in memoriam) in 2006. During this trial, it seemed that there was much misinformation presented from some members of the Spanish Agency of Medicine (AEM) which directly contradicted the research of Dr. José Carlos Bouso and Dr. Jordi Riba surrounding the effects of ayahuasca. This was a classic case of ignorance surrounding ayahuasca in an effort to block accessibility and importation of this plant medicine into Spain, regardless of Santo Daime's religious status there. This is just one example of the work that Dr. Bouso and his team at the Ayahuasca Defense Fund (ADF) have been doing to address stigmas and persecutions to the ceremonial use of ayahuasca and other plants worldwide. This interview reflects on strategies and lessons learned from this work that combines scientific knowledge and advocacy.