Development sector recognizes importance of advocating for drug policy reform...
On April 17, representatives from the development sector gathered to discuss the negative impacts of current drug policies on impoverished populations, and the importance of bringing the development...
View ArticleU-turn in New Zealand legal highs regulations
New Zealand took a step backwards Sunday night with proposed changes to their New Psychoactive Substances legislation.Last year, the Psychoactive Substances Act was introduced. This piece of...
View ArticleUnhealthy laws in need of emergency response: Tennessee criminalises pregnant...
This week, despite an extremely inclusive and far-reaching campaign of multiple agencies both in US and internationally, US state Tennessee passed a law that permits assault charges for women who...
View ArticleAll about NPS – Different sectors come together to learn about “legal” highs
An event organised last week by the Criminal Justice Centre, School of Law, QMUL and DrugScience titled “New Psychoactive Substances : Science, Law and Policy” offered in-depth discussions of NPS by...
View ArticlePromise of civil society engagement from Thailand in global drug policy debates
At a regular ‘drug policy watch’ meeting organised by Thai CSOs in April, attended also by IDPC and the Law Reform Commission of Thailand , I reported on some of the key outcomes of the UN Commission...
View ArticleWar on drugs in the global south – Standing in the way of development
From left to right: Isidore Obot, Daniel Mejía Londono, Alejandro Madrazo Lajous and Nicola Palmer. Photo courtesy of Kasia Malinowska. The room was full at “How the war on drugs impedes economic...
View ArticleOpening up the policy debate in West Africa
Kofi Annan and Dr. Mary Chinery-HesseTwo years ago, I was invited by Kofi Annan – the former UN Secretary-General – to join a group of high-profile political and public figures from West Africa to...
View ArticleSupport people who use drugs in Malaysia - Join Support. Don’t Punish. on 26...
I met Apit for the first time when I visited Penang, Malaysia, in December. He is the President of the Malaysian Welfare Association of Recovering Drug Users , which was set up to provide care services...
View Article2014 The World Drug Report: The Titanic sails at dawn
As it its customary practice, the UNODC released its flagship publication on June 26th, the UN's designated 'International day against drug abuse and trafficking' as well as the occasion of the...
View ArticleCOPOLAD: Protecting health, rethinking policies
On 17th June, I attended the final annual meeting of the Partnership Cooperation Programme between the European Union and Latin America– a four-year project funded by the European Commission, aiming to...
View ArticleA global day of action for drug policy reform in more than 100 cities
On 26th June – the UN’s International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking – the Support. Don't Punish campaign hit new heights around the world as people in more than 100 cities, and on...
View ArticleDrugs and the over-incarceration of women in Thailand
Women languishing in prison for up to 25 years for possession of 15 methamphetamine pills, women being low-level hostages between the drug trade and law enforcement agencies, women taking the blame for...
View ArticleUS drug policy – from creating the problem, to part of the solution?
The US government has been the most influential actor in the history of the global drug control system, promoting an international approach rooted in its own faith in harsh punishment and aggressive...
View ArticleBrazil discusses medical cannabis at international symposium
Professor Elisaldo Carlini from the Universidade Federal de São Paulo has promoted medical marijuana since 1970. He is the head of all the four symposia about cannabis which recently happened in...
View ArticleWorld Health Organisation calls for the decriminalisation of drug use
This month, the World Health Organisation – the UN agency that coordinates international health responses – launched a new set of guidelines for HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care for key...
View ArticleDrug related deaths in Russia – The best indicator of drug policy success or...
The Deputy Chief of the Russian Drug Control Service, Olga Mishina, is reported by the TASS news agency and Russia Today to have announced that there are around 100, 000 drug-related deaths in Russia...
View ArticleGlobal bid to end AIDS is being undermined by funding crisis for harm reduction
To coincide with the 20th International AIDS Conference taking place in Melbourne, Harm Reduction International , the International Drug Policy Consortium and the International HIV/AIDS Alliance have...
View ArticleUNAIDS slams Russia and calls for decriminalisation of drug use
The International AIDS Conference is always accompanied by high-profile report launches and announcements, and the 2014 event in Melbourne is no different. One of the highlights, however, has been “The...
View ArticlePreparing for the 2016 UNGASS on drugs: An opportunity we can’t afford to miss
Delegates from member states, representatives from UN agencies and members of civil society gather to discuss the necessary preparations for the 2016 UNGASS on Drugs.The United Nations General Assembly...
View ArticleWhy the Global Fund has it wrong on ‘Willingness to Pay’
Earlier this year, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria launched a New Funding Model – a shift away from annual funding ‘rounds’ where countries submitted proposals that were judged...
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