Podemos no se rinde y vuelve a traer al Congreso de los Diputados el debate sobre la legalización de la marihuana para uso medicinal y recreativo, como ya han hecho Uruguay, nueve Estados de Estados Unidos y Canadá a partir de este jueves. “La discusión ya no es si se va a legalizar, sino cuándo y cómo. España puede ser líder en Europa si lo hace”, asegura Michael Collins, director de la Oficina de Asuntos Nacionales de la Alianza para las Políticas de Drogas en Washington.

El experto (Glasgow, 1983) es uno de los invitados al foro que organiza este jueves la formación de Pablo Iglesias en el Congreso con el título 

Hacia la regulación integral del cannabis en España

. El líder de Podemos asegura que “una industria estatal de producción generaría ingentes ingresos al Estado, lo que redundaría en la mejor sanidad pública del mundo”. El objetivo es modificar la ley actual sobre estupefacientes que tipifica como ilegal la venta y el cultivo de esta sustancia y restringe el consumo y posesión a espacios privados. "Es absurdo que se pueda comprar tequila o ginebra en un supermercado y que la marihuana sea ilegal", considera el dirigente político.

España puede ser líder en Europa si legaliza el cannabis

BUENOS AIRES (Sputnik) — Casi siete de cada diez mujeres privadas de libertad en Argentina se encuentra sin condena firme, un porcentaje superior al de los hombres en la misma situación, advirtió un informe de la Procuración Penitenciaria de La Nación (PPN) enviado al grupo de Trabajo de la Organización de las Naciones Unidas (ONU).

El "aumento alarmante" del número de mujeres en prisión preventiva "denota el uso abusivo de este instituto por parte de la justicia", afirmó la PPN en el documento.

"Este tipo de discriminación que sufren las mujeres frente al sistema de justicia se refuerza si tenemos en cuenta que la gran mayoría de ellas se encuentra detenida por delitos no violentos, ya sea transporte, comercialización o tenencia simple de droga y, en segundo término, por hurto o tentativa de hurto", agregó el organismo.

Casi 70 % de las mujeres presas en Argentina están en prisión preventiva

Un reciente informe señala que, si no se cambia la legislación actual, será muy difícil reducir el número de mujeres provenientes de sectores marginales de Bolivia que están presas por delitos menores relacionados con drogas.

El informe, de la Oficina en Washington para América Latina (WOLA por sus iniciales en inglés) y la Red Andina de Información (RAI), señala que la reducción de penas y los programas de amnistía para madres y cuidadoras de menores, junto con los programas de reducción de la pobreza, contribuyeron a una disminución del 84 por ciento en el número de mujeres encarceladas por delitos menores relacionados con drogas entre 2012 y 2017 en Bolivia.

Según el informe, casi el 40 por ciento de las mujeres encarceladas en Bolivia están pagando penas por delitos menores relacionados con drogas, como cargar o transportar pequeñas cantidades de estupefacientes. La mayoría vivía en condiciones de pobreza al momento de su detención.

La legislación actual impide reducir la población de mujeres reclusas en Bolivia

ONG subrayan la necesidad de reformar la justicia penal para reducir el impacto negativo de la fiscalización de drogas en los derechos humanos. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

Human Rights Council, 39th Regular Session: Agenda item 3

Item:3 General Debate (Cont'd) - 13th Meeting, 39th Regular Session Human Rights Council14 Sep 2018 - CONTINUED- Presentation of the thematic reports of the Secretary-General and High Commissioner for Human Rights on agenda Items 2,3 and 8 followed by General Debate on agenda Item:3 - Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development.

Statement by Penal Reform International, the International Drug Policy Consortium and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network.




Thank you, Vice President,



Penal Reform International, the International Drug Policy Consortium and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network welcome the report of the Office of the High Commissioner on the implementation of the joint commitment to effectively addressing and countering the world drug problem with regard to human rights.



With data suggesting that the number of prisoners exceeds official prison capacity in at least 120 countries, we note that OHCHR have reiterated the fact drug policies are fueling the crisis of prison overcrowding in several regions. These policies include tougher law and order approaches, mandatory use of pre-trial detention, disproportionate lengths of sentence, frequent delays in the judicial system, poor monitoring of inmate status and release entitlement and the failure to grant parole. Furthermore, the report notes the ongoing concern that many women are imprisoned disproportionately for low-level drug dealing offences.



The recommendation remains the same: alternatives and additional measures and proportionate sentencing as human rights-compliant measures should be adopted by states urgently in response to drug offences.



We acknowledge the work of the Human Rights Council, including this OHCHR report, in documenting the impacts of punitive drug policies on human rights and encourage the human rights system to further address this issue. This can be done by:

 

The human rights systems’ contribution to the 2019 Review of the Plan of Action on International Cooperation to Counter the World Drug Problem, and the implementation of the UNGASS Outcome Document would bring the required human rights perspective in the design and implementation of drug policies.



Distinguished delegates, it is clear from the Office of the High Commissioner’s report that such a perspective is desperately required to counter the human rights violations committed under drug policies every day.



Thank you.





Firstly, assessing and reporting on the implementation of the UNGASS on drugs Outcome Document with regard to human rights-relevant commitments, and;

Secondly, given the impact of drug policies on human rights, the human rights system should contribute to the work of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs to strengthen inter-agency cooperation and UN-wide coherence on drug policies.

Declaración de PRI, IDPC y la Red Jurídica Canadiense sobre VIH/Sida en la 39ª Sesión del Consejo de Derechos Humanos

El Tribunal Constitucional sudafricano declaró ayer, martes, nula la ley que hasta ahora prohibía el consumo privado de cannabis, así como su cultivo para uso personal, en una decisión histórica anunciada desde su sede de Johannesburgo.

La ley que prohíbe el uso de marihuana en el hogar por parte de adultos es "inconstitucional y, por lo tanto, nula", sentenció el juez Raymond Zondo en su veredicto, según recoge el diario sudafricano 

"Ya no será un delito para un adulto consumir o poseer cannabis en privado para el consumo personal en el hogar", agregó el magistrado.

No obstante, su uso en espacios públicos sigue estrictamente prohibido y tampoco es legal su venta con fines lucrativos a terceros.

El tribunal no precisó la cantidad de marihuana que se puede consumir en privado y ordenó al Parlamento redactar una nueva ley, en un plazo de dos años, de conformidad con su fallo unánime.

Durante el proceso, se presentaron estudios médicos que avalan que la penalización no reduce el consumo dañino que de ella pueda hacerse, y otros que señalan al alcohol como más nocivo que el cannabis.

Sudáfrica despenaliza el consumo privado de cannabis

El Primer Ministro malayo discutirá el caso con el Fiscal General, al tiempo que sugiere una revisión a la ley. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir has indicated that the government should review the case of a man who had been sentenced to death for having medicinal cannabis oil.

Dr Mahathir said: " I think we should review that," when asked about the case of Muhammad Lukman, a 29-year-old father of one who was sentenced to death for possessing, processing and distributing medical marijuana (cannabis oil).

He was arrested in 2015 for the possession of 3.1 litres of cannabis oil, 279 grams of compressed cannabis and 1.4kg of substance containing tetrahydrocan nabininol (THC). Muhammad Lukman was given the death sentence by the Shah Alam High Court on Aug 30.

Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar said she will be writing an appeal to the Attorney-General seeking a pardon for Muhammad Lukman.

Dr Mahathir: En Malasia, debemos revisar la pena de muerte a Lukman en relación al cannabis medicinal

Escocia ofrece kits de naloxona a las personas usuarias, pero el miedo a represalias por la policía obstaculiza su uso. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

The levels of fatal overdose in the UK are catastrophic. More than 4,500 people died of a drug-related death in 2017 alone. In Scotland, the figure totalled 934, the highest ever annually recorded. Drug mortality rates in Scotland per head of population are roughly two and half times higher than the UK average, and among the highest in Europe. The vast majority of these deaths continue to involve opioids such as heroin, morphine and methadone.

In Scotland, around 40,000 naloxone kits have been supplied to date. Mortality rates among those at greatest risk – people recently released from prison – have plummeted, from roughly 10% to 4% in a decade.

It may be that people who inject drugs are not aware of Police Scotland’s new approach – or they may still feel at risk of being stopped anyway. The reduction in stop and search rates is certainly likely to have been more marked for people in general than for opioid users. This points to an urgent need for the police to reassure people that no action will be taken if they are found carrying the kits – and more generally to raise awareness around the code of practice.

El miedo a la policía continúa a disuadir a las personas usuarias de opioides de llevar kits anti-sobredosis

Pese a las pruebas, en algunos países el uso de droga sustancia la denegación de tratamiento. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

Researchers are calling on an end to discriminatory health and illicit drugs policies, based on overwhelming evidence that new hepatitis C therapies are effective at curing the virus in people who inject drugs.

The Kirby Institute research, being presented tomorrow at the 7th International Symposium on Hepatitis Care in Substance Users in Cascais, Portugal and published in 

The Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology

, provides the strongest evidence-base to date to support the removal of restrictions to accessing hepatitis C therapy based on recent drug use.

Globally, more than one in three people who have injected drugs in the past year are living with hepatitis C. New therapies for hepatitis C can cure the virus in more than 95% of people, however in many countries the treatment is inaccessible to people who inject drugs, due to restrictions on treatment reimbursement related to an individual's recent drug use. In addition, many clinicians are hesitant to prescribe hepatitis C therapy to people who use or inject drugs, as there are concerns about adherence and the chance of reinfection.

"The results of our research show that the response to hepatitis C therapy among people who inject drugs was very favourable. Across almost 40 studies worldwide, involving more than 3,500 people with recent or ongoing drug use, hepatitis C was cured in almost 9 out of 10 people," said Dr Behzad Hajarizadeh, from the Viral Hepatitis Clinical Research Program at the Kirby Institute, and lead author on the study. "We conducted a systematic review, which means we examined all the available evidence from studies conducted globally on this topic. It means we can be very confident about these results."

Abundante evidencia sobre la efectividad del tratamiento para la hepatitis C para personas que usan drogas

La evidencia de otros países indica su potencial para reducir muertes por sobredosis y los costos sociales del uso ilícito. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

Norway will offer free heroin prescriptions through a heroin-assisted treatment (HAT) programme by 2020 in an attempt to improve the living conditions of people dependent on the drug. The Norwegian scheme sets out to provide the drug to up to 400 people, although details on quantities are unclear while authorities formulate specific plans. Health professionals will also be on-hand when the heroin is administered so that they can intervene should an overdose occur.

Prescribing and administering heroin in a safe environment will allow people to avoid illegal heroin which may have been cut with potentially harmful substances, including the powerful opioid fentanyl.

Norway's Health minister Bent Høie said “we hope that this will provide a solution that will give … a better quality of life to some [people dependent on heroin] … who are today out of our reach and whom current programs do not help enough”.

Norway currently has one of the highest drug-induced mortality rates among adults in Europe, 81.23 deaths per million in 2015, compared to the European average of 21.8 deaths per million.

Elsewhere in Europe, HAT (Heroin-assisted treatment programme) has been an important part of drug treatment for many years. Such schemes are already offered – albeit restrictively in some cases – in Denmark, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Switzerland, and the UK. Evidence from some of these jurisdictions indicates that effectively-implemented HAT can reduce overdose mortality rates, as well as reduce the societal costs of drug harms and the illegal heroin trade.

Noruega será el 7mo pais europeo a ofrecer tratamiento asistido con heroína

Su presidente ha dicho que los ensayos pudiesen mostrar potencial para educar y reducir los daños a las personas que asisten a festivales. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

The peak body for Australian doctors has called for clinical trials on pill testing after two people died of suspected overdoses at a Sydney music festival.

A 21-year-old Victorian woman and a 23-year-old Sydney man died and three more revellers were taken to hospital in a critical condition after the Defqon.1 music festival at Penrith on Saturday.

Australian Medical Association president Tony Bartone says law enforcement can't be the sole strategy when it comes to dealing with illicit drugs.

Pill testing allows people to anonymously submit samples for on-the-spot forensic analysis to determine their composition.

A trial at a major Australian music festival in 2016 found two in three people wouldn't consume a pill if a test showed it contained methamphetamine.

"It's an opportunity to try and inform ... about the dangerous consequences and try to get an opportunity to give them education and access to rehabilitation in terms of trying to reduce their drug dependency," Dr Bartone told Sky News on Monday.

El gremio de doctores australiano llama a ensayos de verificación de sustancias

Las autoridades públicas se han disculpado y prometen un fin a la política de tolerancia cero, así como también avanzar a un enfoque más compasivo. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

Thousands of public housing tenants in New Zealand will receive millions of dollars in compensation and an apology from the government for being wrongly evicted after incorrect meth testing of their homes. Under the previous government, Housing New Zealand (HNZ) ended more than 800 tenancies on the basis that the houses could be contaminated because methamphetamine had been cooked or smoked on the premises. Evicted tenants were advised to leave all their possessions behind, and were often barred from accessing state housing again, meaning they had to foot the bill for new homes, bonds, furniture, clothing and household goods. Some evicted tenants became homeless as a result of their evictions.

“There is currently no evidence that methamphetamine levels typically resulting from third-hand exposure to smoking residues on household surfaces can elicit an adverse health effect,” Gluckman concluded. “This means that, because the risk of encountering methamphetamine on residential surfaces at levels that might cause harm is extremely low, testing is not warranted in most cases.” said chief science adviser Sir Peter Gluckmen

Tenants who were evicted from their homes – regardless of whether they had smoked methamphetamine or not – would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, HNZ said. The tenant holder would receive up to NZ$3,000 (£1,500) in compensation, which would include costs associated with moving, securing new accommodation and buying new furniture and household goods.

Ross Bell from the New Zealand Drug Foundation said the compensation was too little given the devastation wrought, and said the housing minister, Phil Twyford, had indicated to him more money would be made available soon.

“The country got caught up in this widespread hysteria regarding meth contamination that drove all of the decision making. When experts tried to inject some science and rational thinking, they were ignored,” said Bell, who added that state housing stock that was urgently needed during the housing crisis was also unavailable due to ill-founded contamination fears.

“A lot of people just left their house with all the stuff in in because they were so fearful that everything was contaminated. The scale of this is just huge.”

Nueva Zelanda pagará millones después de haber desalojado por error a miles de personas por uso de drogas

MONTEVIDEO — Las carpas de marcas, de estilos musicales, de comidas y bebidas, son parte habitual del escenario de los festivales de música.

Pero desde hace cinco años, en los festivales de Uruguay, México y Colombia también hay otro tipo de puestos. En la última edición de Estéreo Pícnic —celebrada en marzo en Bogotá— muchos jóvenes hacían fila frente a una carpa distinta: la de Échele Cabeza Cuando Se Dé en la Cabeza, un programa que promueve la reducción de riesgo y la mitigación de daño en el consumo de drogas. Más que una tienda de campaña parecía un laboratorio ambulante lleno de frascos, reactivos y colorantes para hacer pruebas rápidas de drogas de tráfico ilícito pero de uso regular. Aquella noche, Échele Cabeza analizó 548 muestras.

“Las personas que consumen drogas no son kamikazes, lo hacen por placer y diversión, no porque quieran morir”, dice Nuria Calzada, miembro de Energy Control, una organización que hace veintiún años testea drogas en España y que ha entrenado en el uso de reactivos químicos y luces UV a grupos de activistas en México, Colombia y Uruguay.

Calzada subraya que, por lo general, la mayor fuente de información de alguien que usa drogas es otra persona que también las consume. Pero el boca a boca no garantiza la seguridad de los consumidores. En cambio, las organizaciones sociales que analizan sustancias hablan su mismo lenguaje, sin preconceptos ni juicios morales. Montan su estand en una fiesta y explican los efectos esperados de tal o cual sustancia y sus adulterantes más frecuentes; además, ofrecen recomendaciones sobre hidratación, alimentación y cómo actuar frente a una mala experiencia.

Noticias