Law enforcement against narcotics crimes in Indonesia is still dominated by a repressive approach oriented toward punishment, particularly for drug users. This approach has given rise to various serious problems, including overcrowding in correctional institutions, high recidivism rates, and the suboptimal rehabilitation of perpetrators as individuals who are also victims of addiction. On the other hand, developments in modern criminal law encourage the implementation of restorative justice, which places drug users within a humanitarian and public health perspective. This article analyzes the paradox of narcotics law enforcement in Indonesia, which lies between repressive and restorative justice approaches, and examines the factors contributing to the suboptimal implementation of restorative justice in criminal justice practice. The research method used is normative legal research with legislative, conceptual, and case-based approaches. The results show a lack of synchronization between normative policies that open up space for rehabilitation and restorative justice, and law enforcement practices that remain formalistic and repressive. This paradox results in the failure to achieve the goal of just and beneficial punishment. Therefore, this article recommends the need for reconstruction of drug law enforcement through a reorientation of criminal policy that consistently integrates health, rehabilitation, and restorative justice approaches into the Indonesian criminal justice system.