After nearly 80 years of war, Colombia is on the cusp of closing a historic peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, FARC), the country’s largest guerrilla group. The parties have set a March 23, 2016 deadline to conclude talks. Drug cultivation and trafficking are crucial aspects of the deal, as drug profits have long enabled the country’s violent conflict.

In a major breakthrough, the Colombian government and the FARC have agreed on a joint counternarcotics strategy. As it should be, developing alternative livelihoods—couched within a larger rural development plan—is core to the policy.

What would a peace deal between the Colombian government and the FARC mean for drug production and routes? Production won’t disappear from the country any time soon, but sustained efforts to improve rural livelihoods can pull Colombians away from coca production in the long run, while well-designed interdiction can reduce some of the harms, including violence, associated with drug trafficking.

Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.

How to break free of the drugs-conflict nexus in Colombia

Trained members of the public are to be allowed administer life-saving rescue medicines in emergency situations, under new laws signed by Minister for Health Leo Varadkar.

The change will allow for the wider use of adrenaline epipens to treat people suffering severe allergic reactions, glucagon for low blood-sugar levels experienced by diabetics, and naloxone to treat cases of drug overdose.

Other emergency medicines covered by the new regulations are salbutamol for the treatment of asthma attacks, glyceryl trinitrate for unstable angina, and entonox, a gas mixture of nitrous oxide and oxygen used by mountain rescue teams to manage severe pain.

Mr Varadkar has also expanded the vaccines that can be administered by pharmacists. Both measures have been brought in through statutory instrument.

The family of Emma Sloan, who died on Dublin’s O’Connell Street in December 2013 after suffering an allergic reaction, has been campaigning for epipens to be made more widely available.

The 14-year-old girl died after mistaking satay sauce for curry sauce in a Chinese restaurant, causing her body to react to the peanuts. Her mother, Caroline, ran to the nearest pharmacy to get the epipen injection that would have saved her life but was refused because she didn’t have a prescription with her. The pharmacist later said he didn’t realise the epipen was for Mrs Sloan’s daughter.

Public to be allowed administer more emergency medicines

On 13 December 2015, our region lost one of the most ardent activists of harm reduction programs, the leader of an organization of sex workers and the community of people who use drugs and a friend who inspired others. Lena Tsukerman died suddenly of heart failure at the age of 44.

We knew Lena as a harm reduction activist since 2004. She helped develop information and communications at the All-Ukrainian Charitable Foundation Drop In Center and filled the online newspaper Motilek (motilek.com.ua) with interesting materials.

Since 2011, Elena devoted her strength and vitality to developing the Ukrainian organization of sex workers and helping ensure the establishment and operations of the charitable organization "The All-Ukrainian League LEGALIFE".

It was a great honor for EHRN to elect Lena Tsukerman to the Steering Committee for the sub-region Belarus-Ukraine-Moldova. Her understanding of the needs of people who use drugs and her expertise in the development of harm reduction programs were invaluable to our network.

Elena’s death is a shock for our team. Our region lost an individual whose example inspired others and whose advocacy efforts truly changed the world for the better.

We mourn and sincerely condole with Lena’s family and friends.

It hurts to lose activists. We mourn Lena Tsukerman

Last month, more than 1,500 people from 71 countries gathered in the suburbs of Washington D.C. with one common goal: to end the War on Drugs. Attendees included diverse groups of people with strikingly different perspectives on drug policy; doctors, lawyers, Rastafarians, war veterans, and formerly incarcerated people amongst others. The diversity of this dynamic group reflects both the widespread impact of drug laws, and the urgent need for their reform.

There is growing consensus that the prohibitionist policies propagated by the U.S. have failed. Not only have they failed to decrease drug use and production, they have also led to a multitude of human rights violations worldwide.

The global drug regime has long been characterized by punishment and repression. The use, possession, cultivation, distribution, or trafficking of any narcotic drug invites criminal charges and lengthy prison sentences. After more than five decades of this approach, individuals and governments are beginning to acknowledge what those in the drug policy reform movement have been saying for years -- prohibition doesn't work. The goal of a 'drug free society' is unrealistic, as it fails to take into account human tendencies, cultural context, and the medical importance of the outlawed substances.

The focus on punishment has not decreased drug use or trade. Instead, the drug trade is more dangerous and profitable than ever and drug laws are used as tools of oppression against racial and ethnic minorities. Communities of color are consistently punished disproportionately for drug offences in the West. In the U.S., for example, though African-Americans constitute 13 percent of drug users in the country, they make up 37 percent of those arrested for drug use. Sentencing can also vary greatly based on which community is perceived to use a particular drug. As per the U.S "Fair Sentencing Act," 'crack' cocaine, a drug associated with the African-American/economically disadvantaged communities, is punished 18 times more severely than powder cocaine, a drug used by wealthy white folk. Higher arrests and incarceration rates for people of color have led to mass incarceration and a fractured criminal justice system. American politicians are finally making a pledge to decrease their prison population, beginning with the release of many non-violent drug offenders.

Drug policy reform is the new human rights movement on the block

Around the world, more governments are beginning to openly question the effectiveness of enforcing repressive drug control policies. Overwhelmingly in Asia, however, the use and supply of controlled drugs are still seen as a social evil that must be eradicated; justifying the implementation of severe, disproportionate punishment ranging from compulsory detention for people who use drugs to the death penalty for trafficking.

As rapidly expanding drug markets emphasise the failure of current drug policy approaches, along with their negative consequences for people who use drugs (e.g. high rates of HIV and Hepatitis C amongst people who inject drugs) and broader society (e.g. growing rates of arrest and imprisonment for low-level drug offences), and the UN General Assembly Special Session on the world drug problem scheduled for April 2016 approaches, what are the prospects for drug policy reform in Asia?

Gloria Lai is a senior policy officer for the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC). Based in Thailand, she leads IDPC's Asia regional programme. She previously worked as a senior policy advisor on law enforcement and drugs, and as a lawyer for the Australian government.

A human rights case for drug policy reform in Asia

A film to explain why families around the world are campaigning for reform of international drug laws. This contains five stories - each with a different perspective - but all demonstrating how drug laws cause more harm than drugs themselves. The families are asking for donations so they can go the U.N. next year to tell their stories. Something that has never been done before.

Video: Families who lost loved ones to the war on drugs break their silence

The decree also authorises the sale of medicines containing derivatives of the plant.

The document has not officially been published, but Associated Press obtained a copy ahead of the formal announcement.

Under the law, the sale of cannabis, as well as the planting and transporting it, will still be illegal and carry a prison sentence of five to 10 years.

Chile’s Congress will now debate the legality of the drug, and could possibly relax the laws on medical and personal use. It comes after a Chilean municipality became the first in the country to legalise medical marijuana as part of a Government-backed pilot programme to help ease the pain of cancer patients.

Cannabis removed from 'hard drugs' list by Chile

This is a statement from Dana Asbury of Healthy and Free TN on their invitation to present information about the Tennessee pregnancy criminalization law to a United Nations working group examining human rights and discrimination against women:

“The United Nations Working Group on the Issue of Discrimination against Women in Law and in Practice [UN WGDAW] is comprised of independent human rights experts. They contribute to the development of international human rights standards and report annually to the Human Rights Council of the UN. They are convening advocates in Montgomery, Alabama to look at issues affecting rural and Black women, including laws that criminalize pregnant women.

Healthy and Free TN will be discussing the law that is currently in effect in Tennessee that allows a women to be charged with assault for the use of narcotics while pregnant. As a result of this policy, women are being separated from their families and put in jail or forced into drug court treatment programs that are often inappropriate or insufficient to meet their health and recovery needs.

We are telling women that they can seek treatment in order to avoid jail time, but there are not enough programs that are licensed and able to treat pregnant women and mothers. Further, we know that the cost of medication assisted treatment, the recommended protocol for pregnant women, is pushing it out of reach for many people.

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United Nations working group set to consider pregnancy criminalisation law

By American Association for the Advancement of Science

(NEW YORK - December 10, 2015) Access to harm reduction programs such as syringe exchange is lowest in rural and suburban areas, where rates of addiction to heroin and other opioids are on the rise, according to a study led by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published online today in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Over the last decade, there has been an increase in drug injection in the United States, primarily the injection of prescription opioids and heroin among persons who started opioid use with oral analgesics before transitioning to injecting. Syringe service programs (SSPs) allow people who inject drugs to exchange used needles and syringes for new, sterile needles and syringes. These programs reduce the chances that people who inject drugs will share injection equipment and thereby contract infections like HIV and hepatitis C. Many SSPs also distribute a medication called naloxone, which is proven to reverse opiate overdoses.

Researchers assessed the landscape and availability of syringe service programs across the United States, finding that 69 percent of SSPs surveyed were located in urban areas, leaving only 20 percent in rural areas and 9 percent in suburban locations. The findings indicate that harm reduction services are lacking for people in communities where they are often needed most. A recent study published in the Journal of Urban Health reports that half of all IV drug users live outside of major urban areas. The range of services offered at SSPs also varied by region. For example, only 37 percent of programs surveyed in rural areas offered naloxone, compared to 61 percent of urban programs that provided this service.

Harm reduction services less available in areas plagued by rising IV drug use and HIV infections

8 December 2015 - More than 30 researchers from around the world who work in the field of drug demand reduction, together with over 200 participants from 85 countries, are gathering in Vienna this week to discuss the latest findings in drug prevention and drug dependence treatments. They will also discuss programmes that have proven to be effective in stopping or reducing the negative health and social consequences of drug use. Running from 8 to 10 December, the 

Scientific Consultation on Prevention of Drug Use and Treatment of Drug Use Disorders

 aims to strengthen global drug policy with the latest research, considering the dignity of people affected by drug use disorders as a priority.

The event, hosted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), highlights the science behind evidence-based prevention and treatment interventions. It also supports Member States in developing policies, strategies and methods based on scientific research and ethical standards. The meeting, additionally, adheres to Sustainable Development Goal 3: "To ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages'', and its corresponding target 3.5: "Strengthening prevention and treatment of substance use disorders.''

"This meeting provides a space for experts to share their research and views on the most urgent and crucial issues related to the science of drug use prevention and treatment and care of drug dependence," said UNODC Executive Director, Yury Fedotov, at the opening. Also present were Ambassador Khaled Shamaa, Chair of the Board tasked with the preparations for the Special Session of the General Assembly on the world drug problem (UNGASS); Vladimir Poznyak, WHO Coordinator of Management of Substance Abuse, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse; and Esbjörn Hörnberg, Chair of the Civil Society Task Force.

Science of drug prevention and treatment discussed by global experts

Preparations are well under way for next April’s UN General Assembly Special Session on the World Drug Problem, the outcome of which will be a “short, substantive, concise and action-oriented outcome document comprising a set of operational recommendations”.

The discussion is currently focused on what the outcome document should say. Various nations, regional bodies and members of civil society have submitted their proposals for what they would like to see in the “zero draft”.

Here, you can read excerpts from some of the submissions for the outcomes document. It is clear that drug policy is still highly controversial, and achieving consensus at UNGASS will be a difficult task.

Responses based on a survey filled in by civil society organisations between April and July 2015. The preliminary report summarises data (where available) only from the English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Italian, Persian, Turkish and some Spanish surveys, as translations from Arabic, French, Russian and some Spanish were not yet available.

Harm reduction services should be widely available and freely accessible to all people who use drugs.

It is crucial that substance dependence treatment is grounded in evidence and is culturally appropriate. Such treatment should be accessible, affordable or free for those who seek it. Governments and UN agencies should continue efforts to ensure that the right of all people to health care is recognised and that all efforts are directed at ensuring that discrimination against people who use drugs does not prevent the fulfilment of this fundamental human right.

Members of civil society have expressed concern for the disparities in arrest and sentencing for drug charges, as well as the proportionality of punishment for drug offences.

Civil society organisations around the world feel that the death penalty is an extreme punishment that is disproportionate to the harms of drug possession or drug trafficking and is a violation of the right to life.

Reaffirm that drug use should be treated as a public health issue, not one related to criminal justice. Drug use should be treated as an issue of access to information, harm reduction and public health, meaning using drugs should not make people subject to punishments such as criminal sanctions, Police extortion, arbitrary arrests, harassment and imprisonment or other forms of repression.

Ensure that policies and health programmes on drugs are not limited to prevention and treatment and ensure public policies prioritise harm reduction perspective in all health programmes. Recognise harm reduction strategies as a set of evidence-based and respectful of human rights interventions and rely on the examples of good practices set by other countries such as Portugal.

The preamble of the outcome document should firmly oppose legalisation of drugs in any form.

Calls upon member states to promote the prevention of drug use through educational programmes targeted and involving children and youth.

Early days for UNGASS 2016 declaration

Stop and searches may be decreasing in England and Wales, but those carried out for drugs are on the rise as a proportion of the overall figure. Can the police still reasonably say this power is being used to tackle violent crime?

According to the latest Home Office data, police carried out 539,788 stop and searches under section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence (PACE) Act 1984 in England and Wales during the year ending March 31, 2015. This marks a dramatic decrease of 40 percent compared to the 2013/14 period and is the largest year-on-year fall.

The number of drug-related stops and searches under section 1 also fell (34 percent) but less significantly than for other reasons. As a result, drug-related stop and searches as a proportion of the overall number increased to 59 percent.

Sadly, this trend is far from new; the proportion of drug-related stop and searches has been on the increase since 2006/7 when it constituted 42 percent of the overall figure. Alarmingly, the proportion of stop and searches carried out for stolen property and offensive weapons decreased on the year by 4 percent and 3 percent respectively.

Additionally, though the rate of arrest rose for drug-related stop and searches to 11 percent of all those searched, this is below the already paltry arrest figure of 14 percent for all suspected crimes.

Not only does the low arrest rate raise serious questions over the use and efficacy of this power, it also undermines police claims that stop and search is vital tool in tackling violent crime. For example, this is taken directly from the London Metropolitan Police's website:

"The use of stop and search powers allow the police to tackle crime (particularly violent crime) and keep our streets safe. [It] is targeted and intelligence led, taking place predominantly in areas where violence is taking place and on people who are known or suspected to be involved in violent crime."

Keeping the focus on London, from September 2014 to August this year, stop and searches for drugs as a proportion of the total outstripped the 2014/15 national stats.

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