INCB recalls that the three conventions were adopted to safeguard the health and wellbeing of people. It is for this reason that INCB is concerned about continued reports of human rights violations, including arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, other forms of mistreatment, and extrajudicial killings, being committed in the name of drug control. These violations undermine the rule of law and are contrary to the human rights instruments and drug control conventions. INCB would like to remind Member States that the drug control conventions, the Political Declaration adopted by the General Assembly at its twentieth special session, and the Political Declaration and Plan of Action on International Cooperation towards an Integrated and Balanced Strategy to Counter the World Drug Problem all call for a balanced approach, respect for the principle of proportionality and respect for human rights, including the rights of people who are suspected of committing drug-related offences.

In particular, INCB reminds Member States of their treaty obligations to take all practicable measures for prevention, and for education, treatment, rehabilitation and social reintegration for people who use drugs. Such services should be evidence-based, accessible, free from discrimination and stigma, and respect human rights and dignity.

The drug control conventions must be implemented in a manner consistent with international human rights standards. Indeed, compliance with the drug control conventions can lead to the direct and positive fulfilment of human rights, and such compliance is vital for the realization of the right to health, which includes the right to treatment and access to controlled substances for medical purposes.

Drug control policies that meet all human rights principles and standards are effective and sustainable. INCB highlights the important links between human rights and drug control policies and how these policies can lead to the protection of human rights and the promotion of the Sustainable Development Goals.

INCB continues to work with Member States to support the implementation of the drug control conventions and reaffirms its commitment to progress the Sustainable Development Goals.

Statement by the INCB President on the occasion of Human Rights Day, 10 December 2021

The Reconvened Session of the 64th Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) was held from 9th and 10th December 2021. IDPC, HRI and INPUD drafted the following statement at the occasion of the UN meeting.

Statement by the International Drug Policy Consortium, Harm Reduction International and the International Network of People Who Use Drugs on Agenda Item 11 of the 64th Reconvened session of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs

Madame Chair, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you very much for giving me the floor.

This statement is delivered on behalf of the International Drug Policy Consortium, Harm Reduction International and the International Network of People who Use Drugs.

Today, 10th of December, is International Human Rights Day. Unfortunately, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs has nothing celebrate.

In recent years, support for human rights has become a welcome mainstay of international drug policy documents. In the 2016 UNGASS Outcome Document, the 2019 Ministerial Declaration and many CND Resolutions, all Member States regularly commit to respect, protect, and promote human rights. The INCB has repeatedly stated that drug control must comply with human rights obligations. And through the UN system Common Position on drugs, under UNODC’s stewardship, all UN entities have pledged to support policies that put human rights at the centre.

Despite these commitments, repressive drug policies continue to fuel widespread and systematic rights violations, including the death penalty for drug offences, extrajudicial killings, mass incarceration, the systemic denial of harm reduction, and countless acts of police brutality and violence.

This year’s International Human Rights Day focuses on equality and non-discrimination. Drug bodies should be deeply compelled by this theme. As the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights wrote in her recent report on racial justice, ‘The discriminatory application of criminal law must be tackled at every stage, including by reforming drug policies with discriminatory outcomes’. Yet, even in yesterday’s session, we were shocked to hear objections to the inclusion LGBTQI+ populations in UNODC reporting.

Last June, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention published a watershed study on arbitrary detention and drug policies.

International law establishes an absolute prohibition on the arbitrary deprivation of liberty that applies to all Member States. This study documents the appalling extent to which this prohibition is breached because of drug laws. But the study also provides a series of positive country examples, as well as constructive recommendations, and the Working Group has always stood ready to dialogue and cooperate with Member States.

In light of this, we are deeply regret that the Chair of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, who had been invited to present their findings today, has been disinvited at the last moment.

This study requested by the Human Rights Council in a resolution adopted by consensus, which also mandated the Working Group to bring it to the attention of CND. The decision to disinvite the Working Group places Vienna in discordance with the rest of the UN system.

The move to silence a UN human rights mandate precisely on International Human Rights Day sends a disturbing message that human rights expertise is not welcome in Vienna, and that the Commission on Narcotic Drugs prefers to turn a blind eye to human rights violations.

This decision is unprecedented and deeply concerning. The CND has made repeated commitments on welcomingcontributions by other UN entities to the work of CND, most recently in the 2019 Ministerial Declaration. And for several years now, UN human rights bodies have rightly addressed CND meetings without issue.

We urge Member States to ensure that the Chair of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is invited again to the upcoming regular session of the CND. The involvement of human rights bodies and experts needs to be welcomed and proactively encouraged in all CND meetings. Otherwise, the Commission will risk sliding into an increasingly isolated and irrelevant position within the United Nations system.

Civil society condemns silencing of human rights discussion at CND Reconvened session

We don’t have a drug problem. The problem lies in the way we think about drugs. Unless we stop demonising drugs, criminalising or pathologising the people that use them and abandon the goal of a drug-free society, we will continue to be distracted from the real problems that cause many of our youth to find solutions in the dependent use of drugs.

The 1961 United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs committed countries “to prevent and combat the evil of drug addiction”. In 2019 the heads of 31 UN agencies expressed unanimous support for the decriminalisation of possession and the use of drugs.

The shift in UN thinking enables us to move forward. We have relied on the criminal justice system to address drug use for far too long. In a 2020 article, Justice Edwin Cameron described the catastrophic effect of the “war on drugs”. We need a fresh, bold response to the use of drugs. People who are dependent on drugs need support, not punishment.

South Africa is beginning to see changes. The new National Drug Master Plan (2019-2024) promises a shift in policy. It “recognises that the punitive approach has not been successful in tackling drug-related problems”. Instead, it emphasises “evidence-based public health and social justice principles that focus on individuals, families, communities, society as a whole”. These must “underscore social protection and health care instead of conviction and punishment”.

South Africa: People who are dependent on drugs need support, not punishment

By FAAAT (For Alternative Approaches to Addiction, Think & do tank)

Geneva, Vienna, and New-York, 2 December 2021 –

 Today, on the 1st anniversary of the historic UN cannabis vote serious concerns have been raised about how cannabis policy resulting from this landmark down-grading of international cannabis prohibition is unfolding.

International Narcotics Control Board (INCB)

 is creating documentation inside the drug control system to facilitate worldwide medicinal cannabis trade & research. However, 

INCB’s proposed global “Cannabis Guidelines”

 & the drafting process itself seem to contradict last year’s key scheduling vote by favouring an increase of restrictions.

INCB’s Guidelines will orient and shape governments’ regulations, impact the lives of many patients and farmers across the globe and undermine the work of doctors, health authorities, and many others. 

INCB’s rogue initiative threatens trust in a functioning legal order affirmed on 2 December 2020.

181 non-profit organizations from all over the globe have endorsed two letters, one addressed to the INCB President, Jagjit Pavadia and the other sent to inform UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, about the situation.

These letters spell out how we as civil society stakeholders want to help the INCB meet the challenges of our world. This is why we have compiled proposals inspired by successful working methods of the broader UN family. Our suggestions are summed up in six recommendations:

Disclose INCB documentation like other similar UN bodies;

Opt-in to the UN online documentation access and archival system;

Extend the civil society consultations to all areas of work of the Board;

Call for and collect written contributions from non-State actors;

Allow NGOs & non-State actors to participate as observers in INCB meetings;

Scale-up “country visits,” inspired in the human rights treaty bodies Annual Review Mechanism.

Last year on this day, UN took the bold step of removing cannabis from the strictest Schedule of the 1961 narcotic drug Convention treaty, 6 decades after its placement, 

recognizing the therapeutic value of this ancient medicinal plant and no longer considering it as “particularly liable to abuse and to produce ill effects.” 

The vote followed an independent scientific WHO assessment which reviewed evidence and multi-stakeholder testimonials from all corners of the world.

Conversely, since 2020, INCB has been developing its Guidelines in complete opacity raising concerns about the legitimacy and scope of the process, a fuzzy mandate, and risks of conflicts of interest. While not binding, these Guidelines will impact and shape regulations of cultivation, trade, production, and use of a traditional, herbal medicine and a plant indigenous to many regions of the world. 

It risks becoming a standard, particularly among smaller nations with less capacity to establish their own regulations.

global health, human rights, and sustainability

. We recognize INCB’s importance in helping governments 

ensure access to and availability of controlled medicines for all patients in need

 but INCB alone can not shape the economic, social, environmental, and cultural future of our communities.

INCB Cannabis Initiative: 181 NGOs from 56 countries call for transparency & accountability

To: Ms Ghada Waly, Executive Director, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Subject: Open letter on UNODC statement on International Human Rights Day 2021

We urge you to mark International Human Rights Day 2021 by calling on Member States to change drug policies and practices that violate human rights and perpetuate inequality and discrimination.

We are writing to you ahead of International Human Rights Day 2021, which will take place on the 10th December amidst escalating global demands for the reform of laws and practices that entrench racial discrimination and social inequality, including drug policies. Last year, IDPC – together with dozens of other civil society and community organisations – called on you to issue a statement on International Human Rights Day urging Member States to change drug laws and practices that undermine health and human rights. A year later, we ask you to seize this day as an opportunity to show UNODC´s alignment with other UN entities in calling for an end to drug policies and practices that perpetuate inequality and discrimination, and violate human rights.

For decades, punitive drug policies have driven widespread human rights abuses, as has been amply documented by the UN. These include the death penalty for drug offences; extrajudicial killings; arbitrary detention, often masquerading as ‘rehabilitation’; the denial of access to life-saving harm reduction services; widespread barriers to accessing controlled medicines for pain relief; the criminalisation of people who use drugs, subsistence farmers and others groups in situations of vulnerability; corporal punishment; and mass incarceration. In all of these cases, draconian drug policies have disproportionately affected people marginalised on the basis of their gender, race, ethnicity, and economic status, thus entrenching inequality and discrimination.

Along 2021, a broad range of UN entities called on Member States to reform drug policies with discriminatory outcomes. In June 2021, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention released a landmark study on arbitrary detention and drug polices, which found that ´

the war on drugs may be understood to a significant extent as a war on people. Its impact is often greatest on those who are poor, but also frequently overlaps with discrimination in law enforcement directed at vulnerable groups

´. At the same time, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights published a new ‘Agenda towards transformative change for racial justice and equality´, highlighting that ´

The discriminatory application of criminal law must be tackled at every stage, including by reforming drug-related policies

´. The High Commissioner´s proposal led to Human Rights Council Resolution 47/21, which contains key commitments to uproot systemic racism in the law enforcement and criminal justice systems. The Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS, adopted in June 2021, also showcased the international community´s commitment to ending inequalities as a step towards ending AIDS. Lastly, the new UN system Common Position on Incarceration, led by UNODC in partnership with other UN entities, notes ‘

the overrepresentation of minority and marginalized groups among prisoners, many of whom are charged with petty and nonviolent offences

support reform efforts aimed at ensuring proportionate and individualized sentencing and alternatives to conviction or punishment in appropriate cases, including for minor drug-related offences

These various commitments emerging across the United Nations are aligned with the 2018 Chief Executives Board’s UN System Common Position on drug-related matters, which makes clear that ‘

should be designed and implemented by States in accordance with their human rights obligations

’, and commits all UN agencies, including UNODC, to support drug policies ‘

that put people, health, and human rights at the centre

Similar human rights concerns have been highlighted in the just-released Global Drug Policy Index, which measures and ranks the national drug policies of 30 countries according to how well they align with the UN system Common Position on Drugs and its Task Team report of March 2019.

The theme of the 2021 International Human Rights Day is ‘Equality: Reducing inequalities, advancing human rights’, and is aimed at ´

addressing and finding solutions for deep-rooted forms of discrimination that have affected the most vulnerable people in societies

´. As such, it presents a crucial opportunity for UNODC to align itself with other UN entities in calling for the end of policies that perpetuate inequality and discrimination, while highlighting its commitment to the promotion of human rights, in line with the UN system Common Positions.

It is in this context that we urge you to issue a strong statement on International Human Rights Day, calling on states to change the drug laws, policies and practices that violate health and human rights, and entrench inequality. To be credible, such a statement should explicitly acknowledge the disproportionate impact of drug laws and drug control on people marginalised on the basis of their gender, race, ethnicity, and economic status, and urge Member States to:

Abolish the death penalty in all circumstances. Imposing capital punishment for drug offences has been found to be contrary to international human rights law by the Human Rights Committee, and the Human Rights Council.

Put an immediate end to extrajudicial killings committed in the name of drug control, as has been repeatedly called for by the Human Rights Council and UN human rights experts.

Permanently close compulsory drug detention centres, including those that masquerade as ‘rehabilitation’, and implement voluntary, evidence-informed, and rights-based health and social services, as recently called for by sixteen UN agencies, including UNODC.

Stress the urgent need to provide accessible, affordable, and adequately funded harm reduction services in community and closed settings, to fulfil the right to health and the right to life of people who use drugs, as demanded by several UN human rights bodies and experts. This is also central to UNODC’s core role as lead UNAIDS co-sponsor regarding prisons and HIV amongst people who use drugs.

Take immediate measures to address prison overcrowding, as already recommended by UNODC and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, by promoting alternatives to incarceration, and ensuring proportionate sentencing for all drug offences, including by taking into account mitigating factors – in line with the basic principle that prisons should only be used as a last resort in all circumstances.

Ensure that people who use drugs are not subject to arbitrary detention, torture, or ill-treatment – whether in state custody or public or private drug services. While under detention, people with a drug dependence or health problems associated with their drug use must be offered evidence-based treatment, harm reduction and other drug services on a strictly voluntary basis.

Promote the end of all punishment for drug use, and drug possession and cultivation for personal use, as permitted within the three drug control conventions. Such policy shifts will help to end the stigma, criminalisation, and exclusion faced by people who use drugs, and to facilitate access to health and social services, as called for by the UN system Common Position, UNAIDS, and UN human rights bodies.

Make sure that drug policies incorporate a gender-sensitive perspective. This should be done by tailoring drug services to the specific needs of women, and by ensuring that criminal laws take into account the circumstances of women involved in drug offences, as most of them come from backgrounds of poverty, marginalisation, and oppression.

Clearly outline the ways in which UNODC will work to achieve these changes, and the measures being taken to ensure that human rights are effectively embedded as a core strand for all of the Office’s work.

As the lead UN agency in drug-related matters, UNODC has the responsibility to promote drug policies that respect, protect, and fulfil human rights, in a way that is consistent with the standards developed by the UN system, and in line with the commitments set in the UN system Common Positions on drugs and on incarceration. A strong statement in the forthcoming International Human Rights Day would be an important and welcome step to signal UNODC’s unequivocal commitment.

We look forward to discussing these concerns and recommendations with you.

NGOs urge UNODC's Executive Director to mark Human Rights Day with a call to reform drug policies that entrench inequality

A recent United Nations human rights report shines a light on governments’ widespread use of arbitrary detention in the context of drug enforcement.

The study, presented by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) at the June-July 2021 session of UN Human Rights Council (HRC), documents high rates of arbitrary detention worldwide for those suspected of drug-related activity. This reliance on arbitrary detention is driving up incarceration rates across the globe, swelling populations in jails and prisons at a time when the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is calling attention to the need to reduce prison overcrowding, as those held in confinement are uniquely vulnerable to the virus.

The Working Group’s report documents how, while states are required to uphold human rights obligations under international law—such as guaranteeing adequate legal protections, and due process for those who enter the criminal justice system—the reliance on harsh drug policies results in sustained violations of these standards.

The Working Group, a five-person body of independent experts established in 1991, is tasked with investigating cases in which individuals are arbitrarily arrested or detained: that is, deprived of liberty in a way that fails to meet international standards (for example, being arrested without a proper warrant, or placed in detention in a way that doesn’t respect procedural rights). The group’s mandate was extended in 2019 for an additional three-year period.

The Working Group’s new report was prompted by a recommendation that the group itself has issued; it was also requested by the UN Human Rights Council. The group produced the report in consultation with UN member states, civil society stakeholders, international organizations, and UN agencies.

WOLA and a group of partners—including the International Drug Policy Consortium, Dejusticia, EQUIS: Justicia para las mujeres, and the Autonomous University of Chiapas, Mexico—submitted expert guidance as the Working Group prepared its report. This submission emphasized the need for a gender-based approach, given the disproportionate impact of punitive drug policies on women. The Working Group’s final report incorporates these concerns, while also examining the impact of arbitrary detentions on other vulnerable groups, including LGBTI+ and Indigenous persons.

“people who use drugs are particularly at risk of arbitrary detention.”

 In Latin America, many countries automatically place those accused of drug-related charges in pretrial detention—including Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, and Peru. Even in countries like Costa Rica and Guatemala where the law doesn’t mandate pretrial detention for those accused of drug charges, there are similar practices that drive up incarceration rates. Additionally, the report emphasizes the increase in torture of those detained arbitrarily, particularly in the context of militarized drug enforcement in countries such as Mexico.

The Working Group report culminates with 17 recommendations, beginning with a call to UN member states to 

“decriminalize the use, possession, acquisition or cultivation of drugs for personal use, including the possession of associated paraphernalia.”

Further recommendations include ending the use of drug courts, curbing the participation of the military in enforcement operations, and protecting the rights of Indigenous peoples to cultivate plants that they have traditionally grown for their religious, medicinal, and customary purposes.

International human rights standards prohibit arbitrary detention—but as highlighted by the Working Group’s report, states resort frequently to this illegal practice as part of their ongoing enforcement of harsh anti-drug policies. 

States should heed the recommendations put forth by the Working Group as a toolbox for much needed reform.

The new Working Group report follows the release of a paper earlier this year laying out the UN “common position” on incarceration. The paper advocated for reducing overreliance on incarceration and for reducing prison populations—neither of which can be achieved without addressing the use of arbitrary detention in the context of drug control. A previous “common position” paper, released in July 2019, called for a “truly balanced, comprehensive, integrated, evidence-based, human rights-based” approach to the global drug policy framework.

This recent set of UN reports all mark a clear direction for governments to reform their drug laws and practices. 

But there remains a serious gap between states’ practices, and the recommendations of the UN common positions and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.

As the Working Group report highlights, the use of arbitrary detention to uphold punitive drug policies is another manifestation of the wide-ranging damage of the “war on drugs.” As long as there continues to be a strong disregard for the reality that arbitrary detention is a failed and unnecessary measure, the criminalization of those involved with the drug trade (whether out of an economic, cultural, or personal need) will continue to be a pipeline that fills prisons and destroys communities across the region.

Isabella Oliver is a Program Assistant at WOLA.

Recent UN report on arbitrary detention and drug policies underscores urgent need for reform

New York City is now the first city in the nation to open two overdose prevention centers that will allow drug users to receive medical care and services to prevent drug overdose deaths, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio's Office.
The overdose prevention centers (OPCs), also known as supervised consumption sites or safe injection sites, provide a safer place for drug users to administer drugs and get medical care if they overdose, the city said. The centers can also provide connections to treatment and social services to help in their recovery.

"After exhaustive study, we know the right path forward to protect the most vulnerable people in our city," de Blasio said in a release. "And we will not hesitate to take it. Overdose Prevention Centers are a safe and effective way to address the opioid crisis. I'm proud to show cities in this country that after decades of failure, a smarter approach is possible."

With two locations in upper Manhattan, the centers will exist as part of two previously established syringe service providers, the mayor's office said.

The two organizations, Washington Heights Corner Project and New York Harm Reduction Educators, will be forming a new organization called, OnPoint NYC, to run the sites, the New York City Health Department confirmed.

First US overdose prevention centers open in New York City in an effort to combat overdose deaths

Professor Judith Aldridge, University of Manchester And Dr Rebecca Askew, Manchester Metropolitan University

Drug policy is firmly on the global political agenda. Over the past decade we have seen changes to cannabis policy worldwide, an increase in drug related deaths connected to the opioid crisis, the introduction of safe consumption sites in several European countries, as well as Canada and Australia, and drug checking at festivals in the UK and Australia. Public opinion on drug policy reform is often sought to help understand support for change, as well as key concerns that people have about liberalising drug policy.

This year, Global Drug Survey wants to know about your experiences and opinions connected to drug policy and the law. How have drug laws impacted you? What do you think about policy approaches and their potential impact for individuals and communities?

This year GDS has teamed up with Professor Judith Aldridge and Dr Rebecca Askew, who are Manchester based criminologists working in the field of drug use and drug policy. While there are many public opinion polls that have attempted to gauge people’s views on drug policy and reform, there has been something of a stumbling block to doing this well. Many different things are understood by the words decriminalisation, legalisation and prohibition, so just asking survey respondents to say if they agree or disagree with these approaches doesn’t really help us to fully understand their views.

GDS2022 uses an entirely new approach, building on some of the insights of Dr Rebecca Askew’s UK-based Drug Policy Voices project. While opinions on drug policy are complex and sometimes contradictory, we’ve learned that getting to the bottom of the underlying beliefs and value orientations that drive people’s preferred policy approaches is key. This is important to communicate to policy makers, activists and drug policy reform organisations across the globe as their work informs policy.

This year, we’ll ask GDS respondents to tell us their opinions on the likely impact of three very different hypothetical approaches that governments could take to dealing with people who use and sell drugs: the impact on crime and public disorder, on drug usage rates, on health, on personal freedoms, on vulnerable people, on the economy and on trust in government. We also ask respondents to tell us their opinions on age restrictions, advertising, and personal freedoms to ‘grow your own.’ We know that some people avidly support changes to drug policy and others are more cautious; it is therefore important to understand the range of views in order to help policy makers, activists and others ensure that drug laws are both appropriate and just.

We also want to know not just what people’s drug policy preferences are, but how existing drug policies have impacted them. We know that many people who take drugs will have had negative experiences that arise from the drug policies in their countries, in connection to the police, staff in clubs and festivals, or in job or educational settings, and even when buying drugs from dealers. GDS2022 will help us to understand the consequences that drug laws and policies have for people who use drugs. By integrating public opinion and drug-related experiences, GDS will produce critically important knowledge to inform evolving global policy.

Go on… hit the link, take the survey.

It’s anonymous, confidential and encrypted. Your experiences will help inform others and influence change.

Stay safe, Professor Adam Winstock, Dr Monica Barratt, Dr Emma Davies & Associate Professor Jason Ferris, on behalf of all at GDS

Global Drugs Survey 2022 launched - Drug policy and the law: understanding your views and experiences

The CSFD mandate is renewed in 2021 and the CSFD now consists of 43 different CSOs, active in the field of drug demand reduction. The 2021 CSFD Plenary Meeting was organised on 6 and 7 October as a virtual session. It was attended by members of the CSFD, and representatives of the EC - DG Home and DG Sante.

An important element during this session was the adoption of the new Working Group Structure and the election of the new CSFD Core Group, consisting of the Chair, the Vice Chair and the four Working Group Coordinators.

"I am happy to renew my commitment in chairing this amazingly diverse and productive forum, and ready to face with our new representatives of the Core group the upcoming challenges in strengthening Civil Society’s meaningfull involvement. The previous forums built a strong and quite exemplary structure to make sure CSOs are heard, and the value of the forum is recognized and its contributions are very real ; making our gathered NGOs real stakeholders in Drug Policy’s framing and implementation throughout Europe. This mandate will have to keep that perspective, and endure."

"Thanks to the CSFD Project funding, the past year has been full of activities. However, once the project funding ends in only a few months, we must rely on our resources and commitment. As vice-chair, I will support the chair and other core group members. I will also ensure secretariat support to the CSFD, meaning the maintenance and update of the CSFD website and the internal and external communication flow. I, therefore, hope that you will continue sharing your valuable ideas and thoughts so that we can fulfil our essential role as the Civil Society Forum on Drugs."

"During the upcoming CSFD term, I hope we can continue to contribute to the improvement of the implementation of the EU Drug Strategy and Action Plan in the Member States, and further improve our relationships with the European Commission and other relevant stakeholders."

"I hope that WG2 will continue to be a useful partner of the EU external action in drug policies – bringing a clear focus on public health, human rights, and civil society and community participation."

 - Chair, WG3: Linkage to National Drug Policy

"I have been working in drug policy since 2003 and have broad experience in coordinating international projects. As the chair of WG3, I aim to effectively coordinate future work following the Forum's extensive knowledge gained from developing the Quality Standards of Civil Society Involvement report and survey."

 - Chair, WG4: Emerging Issues in Drug Policy

"The issue of drugs is complex and ever changing. I hope that we shall be attentive to emerging and cross-cutting issues that are of importance for people who use drugs and their societies around Europe and try to offer solutions to address them."



The four working groups had the opportunity to meet and discuss issues to be addressed in the forthcoming period; more information on this in the coming months.

Throughout the years, the CSFD has tried to receive structural funding from the EC. Internal EC regulations allow only the coverage of travel and hotel costs during CSFD plenary meetings. In light of this, a dedicated and mandated group of CSFD members applied for funding in the EC Justice - Drug Policy Initiative Programme in 2016 and 2018. Both grants were awarded and enabled the CSFD to expand its work. These two rounds of funding have been instrumental for the CSFD to become a prominent player in the drug policy debate at EU-level and build strong ties with EU institutions.

Unfortunately, the latest proposal sent to the EC for a grant covering the period 2022-2023 was rejected. This means that beyond February 2022, the CSFD will have to continue operating without any funding. This is deeply problematic. Without secretariat support and funding for the core group and the activities in the Working Groups, activities and impact of the CSFD will be limited.

The CSFD is now discussing alternative ways for funding and has reached out as well to different EU Member States for support. 

A renewed Civil Society Forum on Drugs (CSFD) 2021-2023

GENEVA (8 November 2021) ̶ UN human rights experts* today urgently appealed to Singapore to definitively halt the execution of Malaysian national Nagaenthran a/l K Dharmalingam, known as Naga, who has psychosocial disabilities.

He was originally scheduled to be executed on 10 November for drug offences.

“We note that a temporary stay has been granted today until a final appeal can be heard tomorrow. However, we are seriously concerned that, if the appeal is dismissed, he could still be executed imminently,” the experts said.

Mr. Nagaenthran a/l K Dharmalingam was apprehended in 2009 after he crossed the border carrying 42.72 grams of diamorphine a narcotic analgesic used in the treatment of severe pain. He was sentenced to death in 2010 and has been on death row since.

”We are concerned that Mr. Nagaenthran a/l K Dharmalingam did not have access to procedural accommodations for his disability during his interrogation. We further highlight that death sentences must not be carried out on persons with serious psychosocial and intellectual disabilities.”

“We are also concerned that his past 11 years on death row has reportedly caused further deterioration of his mental health.”

Under international law, countries which have retained the death penalty may only impose it for the most serious crimes, that is, those involving intentional killing, the human rights experts also stressed.

“Drug related offences do not meet this threshold,” they said. “Resorting to this type of punishment to prevent drug trafficking is not only illegal under international law, it is also ineffective. There is a lack of any persuasive evidence that the death penalty contributes more than any other punishment to eradicating drug trafficking.”

The experts urged Singapore to ensure Mr. Nagaenthran a/l K Dharmalingam is not executed and to commute his death sentence in accordance with international human rights law.

Singapore amended its drugs legislation in 2012, which allowed drug couriers to be sentenced to life imprisonment if they provide substantive assistance to the Public Prosecutor or if in cases of “abnormality of the mind.” In other cases, the death penalty remains mandatory.

“We urge Singapore to further reform its legislation to ensure the death penalty is never compulsory, as mandatory death sentences are inherently over-inclusive and unavoidably violate human rights law,” said the experts.

“We are further concerned by the decision to carry out an execution during the COVID-19 pandemic and the additional impact of the sentence on Mr. Nagaenthran a/l K Dharmalingam’s family members, who are having to make frantic arrangements to travel to Singapore. This may amount to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

“We have also asked Singapore to honour its commitment to release data on the death penalty,” added the experts. In its 2011 Universal Periodic Review, Singapore accepted a recommendation to make available statistics and other factual information on its use of capital punishment.

The experts have written to the Government of Singapore to express their concerns.

Singapore: UN experts urge halt to execution of drug offender with disabilities 

Metzineres provides a safe haven for womxn who use drugs who are also surviving violence in Barcelona. They are not passive victims to be rescued – we can learn a lot from them about community empowerment. Watch our new video produced together with INPUD!

Repressive drug policies fuel violence in multiple ways. Directly, by punishing people who buy or sell drugs, and indirectly, by creating a violent black market for illegal drugs. Police repression usually targets poor, marginalised communities. Those people who are already vulnerable based on their gender, sexual orientation, or race, become even more vulnerable as a consequence of the fear of criminalisation and discrimination.

Our new video features Metzineres, an organisation in Barcelona that organises communities of womxn (here the ‘x’ means that they include trans and non-binary people) who use drugs to recover from systemic violence and to fight back.

They provide safe environments for the survivors of violence to escape street environments where they are often abused and attacked. They provide shelters to sleep in and wash their clothes, and safer spaces for consuming their drugs, without the risk of infections and overdose deaths. They also offer psychosocial support for those who struggle with homelessness, mental health issues, and family problems, as well as putting on creative community activities, dance, yoga, cosmetics etc to make them feel that they belong.

Metzineres is more than a service provider – they are a community, with more than 300 members. Half of them are homeless, 30% have been imprisoned before.

These womxn are not passive victims to be rescued – they are creative and resilient human beings. We can learn a lot from them about how we should stand up for each other.

This video was produced together with INPUD – The International Network of People who Use Drugs.

: Carmen Molina | @carmencapta | carmencapta.com


Metzineres: From survival to fighting back

A key element of Britain’s self-identity is that we are a nation of innovation. As far back as the early 17th century, the philosopher and poet John Milton declared: “Let not England forget her precedence of teaching nations how to live”. Since then, the image of Britain as a world leader – always at the cutting-edge of history, always providing the legal, economic and cultural templates for others to follow – has become a sacred national truism, repeatedly reiterated by politicians from Tony Blair to Theresa May.

But when one considers Britain’s regressive drug policy, this self-assessment couldn’t be further from the truth – a fact that Germany’s recent announcement about its new drug policy reforms has made even clearer.

Last week, Germany’s incoming government – a coalition of Social Democrats, Greens and the centre-right Free Democrat party – confirmed it plans to legalise the sale of recreational cannabis. With this decision, Germany is following the likes of Uruguay, Canada, Mexico, South Africa and a plethora of states in the US, which have made similar reforms since 2012.

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