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IHRA at the 51st Session of the CND
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The 51st Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) took place in Vienna from 10th to 14th March 2008. The Commission was established in 1946 as the central policy-making body of the United Nations (UN) in drug related matters. Each year, the CND Member States meet to analyse, discuss and debate the global situation of drugs and drug use, and make policy recommendations to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
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Highlights at the 2008 meeting included:
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- An opening address by Antonio Maria Costa (the UNODC Executive Director) calling for an end to the death penalty for drugs and the need for a greater focus on harm reduction and human rights – Click here to view the relevant news item
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- A side-meeting hosted by the UK Government on behalf of IHRA, the Beckley Foundation, Human Rights Watch and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network to launch a new report - co-authored by IHRA - entitled Recalibrating the Regime: The Need for a Human Right-Based Approach to International Drug Policy.
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- The passing of the first human rights-specific resolution at CND – Click here to view the relevant news item.
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- A lunch briefing hosted by the Open Society Institute on women and drug policy.
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- NGO statements during the CND plenary sessions from IHRA, the International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD), the Eurasian Harm Reduction Network (EHRN) and several others.
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- Continued support from many states for harm reduction and the human rights of people who use drugs/
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IHRA and our international partners were well represented at this year’s meeting. IHRA’s Executive Director, Professor Gerry Stimson, and Damon Barrett were part of the official UK Government delegation, and Dr. Marcus Day (a member of the IHRA Executive Committee) represented St. Lucia. Stijn Goossens (Director of INPUD), Dr Fayzal Sulliman (Chairperson of the Sub-Saharan Africa Harm Reduction Network) and Graciella Touze (President of Intercambios in Argentina) joined Rick Lines as members of IHRA’s NGO delegation.
In addition, numerous other harm reduction civil society partners were present in Vienna, representing the largest NGO input to date into a CND meeting. These included the Eurasian Harm Reduction Network, International Harm Reduction Development, Human Rights Watch, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, the International Drug Policy Consortium, The Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, the Asian Harm Reduction Network and Break the Chains. The activities of IHRA and other NGOs at the Commission were recorded on the newly launched blog for HR2 – IHRA’s programme of advocacy for harm reduction and human rights.
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UNODC Chief Calls for Greater Focus on Human Rights
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In a welcome statement delivered at the opening session of the 51st Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Antonio Maria Costa, called for a greater focus on human rights in drug enforcement activities, and for death penalty states to reconsider the use of capital punishment for drug offences.
Speaking to an audience of high-level country delegations, UN agencies and intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, Mr. Costa said “Our work is guided first and foremost by the UN Charter that commits signatories to fundamental freedoms, and by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 60 years old this year. In Article 25 of the Universal Declaration, health is listed as a basic human right. As we emphasise the health aspects of drug control, it stands to reason that implementation of the drug Conventions must proceed with due regard to human rights. Thus far, there has been little attention paid to this aspect of our work. This definitely needs to be amended.”
Mr Costa went on to focus on the death penalty for drug offences, stating that “Although drugs kill, I don't believe we need to kill because of drugs.” He called on governments to reconsider their position on the death penalty for drugs and highlighted the recent UN General Assembly resolution calling for a global moratorium on the death penalty.
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Click here to view the opening speech from Mr. Costa
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IHRA's HR2 programme has been doing extensive work on the issue of the death penalty for drugs over the past year. This included publishing a major report in December – entitled The Death Penalty for Drug Offences: A Violation of International Human Rights Law (which was widely distributed during the CND meeting), direct engagement with both UNODC and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the issue, and meeting with Mr. Costa and senior UNODC staff in Vienna in February.
The death penalty took centre stage in many debates and statements throughout the week-long CND meeting in Vienna. Uruguay introduced a groundbreaking human rights resolution calling for an end to the death penalty for drug offences. Similar calls were made by a number of other country delegations (such as the Netherlands, Italy and Norway) in their official statements. IHRA’s Senior Policy Advisor, Rick Lines, also gave a presentation during an NGO side event condemning capital punishment for drugs as a violation of international law, as well as delivering a statement on behalf of IHRA during a CND plenary debate on demand reduction.
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Harm Reduction 2008: An Update
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There are only around six weeks remaining until the start of Harm Reduction 2008: IHRA’s 19th International Conference in Barcelona, Spain. IHRA is pleased to announce a line-up of high-profile keynote speakers at the event, as well as additional details of the satellite events, and details of the conference party.
In addition to the draft programme, IHRA have organised a number of keynote speakers from key international organisations related to harm reduction:
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- Paul Hunt – the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health – will address delegates at the opening session on the need to unify harm reduction, international drug control and human rights advocacy
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- Michel Sidibe – UNAIDS Director of Country and Regional Support – will address delegates on the work of UNAIDS, the forthcoming UNGASS on HIV/AIDS, and HIV prevention treatment and care for drug users.
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- Antonio Maria Costa – Executive Director of the UNODC – will address delegates on Thursday morning on the work of the UNODC
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- Michel Kazatchkine - Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis & Malaria – will address during the closing session
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Before booking your travel and accommodation in Barcelona, please visit the conference website, which now includes details on a number of the additional meetings surrounding the main programme – including satellite events and lunchtime meetings organised by a range of different organisations. These include the 4th International Conference on Alcohol Harm Reduction on Sunday 11th May – organised by IHRA and Quest 4 Quality – and a scientific session on Buprenorphine-Naloxone (Suboxone) provision, which will highlight new developments in this substitution treatment.
There is also a one-day conference on Sunday 11th May 2008 on the topic of HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C in Prison Settings – organised by the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, the Open Society Institute and ICAAT, and supported by IHRA. This event will build upon the success of a similar satellite event at the 2007 IHRA conference in Warsaw and will provide in-depth information on a wide range of issues in prisons. Participants will hear from prison officials, representatives of UN agencies and civil society, and former prisoners - and have the opportunity to exchange views with their colleagues during question and answer periods.
Participation is free and lunch will be served for all satellite participants. Spaces are limited, so please register as soon as possible (and no later than 18 April 2008), by visiting www.aidslaw.ca/barcelona.
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Click here for information on all the satellite events
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Finally, details have just been released about the conference party – to be held on Wednesday 14th May in Razzmatazz (one of Barcelona’s premier night clubs). The party will cater for all delegates and tastes – with live music, areas to unwind and meet people, and great opportunities to network and renew old acquaintances. Year on year, the conference party is always one of the highlights of the conference. This year, there will be a light finger buffet and a complimentary drink for all delegates attending and entertainment will be provided by our very own band – the Harm Reduction All Stars! Admission to the party is free for conference delegates, and there will also be a small number of additional tickets available (for €25 each) for delegates’ guests and partners.
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CND Passes Groundbreaking Human Rights Resolution
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On 7th March 2008 - at the 51st Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in Vienna - Uruguay introduced a landmark resolution recognising that international drug control must be compliant with international human rights law, and calling for a closer working relationship between the human rights and drug control systems of the UN. It was the first resolution of its kind at the CND.
The original draft resolution recognised the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It affirmed "that international drug control activities must be conducted in conformity with international human rights law", called for an end to the death penalty for drug offences, and requested that the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) work closely with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
It was later co-sponsored by Bolivia, Argentina and Switzerland – with further support during the debates from the UK, Italy, Romania, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Spain, Peru, Slovenia, and Ireland.
However, a small coalition of states (including China, Pakistan, Thailand, Egypt, Nigeria, Iran, Cuba and Japan) sought to block, undermine and dilute the resolution when it came up for debate. Remarkably, delegates officially representing the Chinese Government stated that “Discussion of political issues such as human rights are inappropriate at CND” and that “It is ridiculous to require [the CND] to work in accordance with human rights law". In addition, the Nigerian Government delegation told the CND that “We should not be carried away by sentiment” and even asked "What do we mean by the United Nations human rights system?”. The Thai Government delegation also attempted to move the resolution to the bottom of the CND agenda - a technical ploy to defer discussions in the hope that the CND would run out of time, effectively killing the resolution.
To counter these efforts, the UK delegation played a leading role in defending the resolution, pointing out that the primacy of human rights over drug control within international law is "clear and unambiguous", and that human rights are very much within the CND mandate as a functional commission of the Economic and Social Council of the UN. The Swiss delegation reminded the CND that “Human rights are… a profound belief at the heart of the UN system”, and the Bolivian delegation argued that the resolution was crucial to ensure that "fundamental human rights are not lost sight of in the fight against drugs". Italy was a driving force behind the negotiations in favour of the resolution, both in the official debates and in the informal discussions throughout the week.
After several hours of debate carried out over two days the resolution was eventually adopted by consensus on Friday 14th March 2008, albeit with some significant changes to the title and the text. For example, references to the death penalty for drug offences were removed from the original draft of the resolution. The United States and Canada made statements in opposition to the recognition of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and this was also deleted.
The final resolution – now entitled "Strengthening cooperation between the UNODC and other UN bodies, including the human rights agencies in accordance with Article 2 of the 1998 UNGASS Political Declaration" – comes only days after Antonio Maria Costa (the Executive Director of UNODC) used his opening speech to highlight the fact that human rights had not been sufficiently focused upon in international drug control. While this resolution stands as a landmark at the CND, the lengthy debates surrounding it - and the extent to which the original resolution was watered down – highlights the strong opposition from many Member States to drug policies based on human rights, and the difficulty in agreeing basic human rights language relating to drugs, even within UN bodies.
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IHRA Launch New HR2 Blog – Including CND Updates
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In March 2008, IHRA announced the launch of a new web-log (‘blog’) for the HR2 Programme- IHRA’s new programme of research and advocacy on harm reduction and human rights. The blog - www.ihrablog.net- will be used to highlight the on-going work, campaigns and reports from the HR2 programme, as well as new developments in the areas of human rights and harm reduction.
In March 2008, the blog will also feature daily updates from the ‘Commission on Narcotic Drugs’ (CND) meeting in Vienna (March 10th to 14th), where a number of IHRA staff, board members and partners will be in attendance as part of the UK Government delegation (Professor Gerry Stimson and Damon Barrett), the St. Lucia Government delegation (Marcus Day), and IHRA’s own NGO delegation (Rick Lines from IHRA, Stijn Goossens from INPUD, Dr Olanrewaju Onigbogi and Dr Fayzal Sulliman from the new sub-Saharan Africa Harm Reduction Network, and Graciella Touze from Intercambios in Argentina). The UK Government will also be hosting a side-meeting at CND on behalf of IHRA, the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), Human Rights Watch and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. The session – entitled ‘Recalibrating the Regime’ - will be used to launch a new Beckley Foundation Report co-authored by IHRA.
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Click here to visit www.ihrablog.net
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The HR2 programme’s mandate is to monitor the policies and practices of multi-lateral organisations and assess their compliance with international harm reduction best practice and international human rights law. HR2 will produce a series of reports to highlight key themes and issues, and to facilitate or inform advocacy campaigns around the world. HR2 (with support from IHRA’s partners around the world) will also produce a major ‘Global State of Harm Reduction’ report in May 2008, assessing the development of harm reduction programmes and human rights protections for people who use drugs in all regions of the world.
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Click here for more information about HR2
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Click here to view the existing HR2 publications
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IHRA Co-Author New Beckley Report – ‘Recalibrating the Regime’
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As part of the HR2 (Harm Reduction and Human Rights) programme of work, IHRA has co-authored a new report looking at the tensions between some aspects of the global drug control system and international human rights law. This report – entitled ‘Recalibrating the Regime: The Need for UN System-wide Coherence in Drug Control and Human Rights’ - is the 13th report from the Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme, and was released in March 2008. It highlights that, despite numerous instances of human rights abuses perpetrated in the name of drug control, there has been little engagement with this issue by the responsible bodies, the UNODC, INCB and the human rights treaty bodies.
The report represents a collaborative effort between several drugs, health, and human rights NGOs. It was published by the Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme, and is co-authored by IHRA, Human Rights Watch and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network.
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 Click here to view the Beckley Foundation Report 13 [PDF:965KB]
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Click here to view the flyer for the report launch in Vienna [PDF:135KB]
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Menahra Launch Newsletter
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The new Middle East and North African harm reduction network – Menahra - has recently distributed their new newsletter to all of their members and partners. The network has been established by IHRA and the World Health Organization (WHO) – with funding from the Drosos Foundation in Switzerland.
The Menahra newsletter (below) includes articles and reports on harm reduction activities in the region, written by members from Palestine, Lebanon, Morocco and Iran. Newsletters will be sent to members on a regular basis in order to encourage information sharing and cooperation across the region, and build on the existing local capacity and advances in harm reduction.
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Click here to view the Menahra newsletter [PDF:31KB]
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IHRA President Speaks at ‘CLAT 4’
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CLAT 4 – The Latin Conference on the Reduction of Drug-Related Harms – took place in Milan, Italy between 29th November and 1st December 2007. The conference was organised by a coalition of harm reduction organisations from Latin countries, and was hosted in four languages (French, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish) in order to be inclusive of all ‘Latin’ countries in Europe and America.
At the conference opening, Pat O’Hare – IHRA’s Honorary President - was invited to deliver a keynote speech and answer the question ‘How can harm reduction practice be converted to general policy?’ In his speech, Mr. O’Hare described the success of harm reduction programmes in the last twenty years (“There really is no excuse for any country not to implement them… The scientific debate has been won”) and the challenges that still lie ahead for the field. In particular, the speech explores the overlap between advocacy efforts of harm reduction experts and anti-prohibitionists. The speech concludes that the answer lies in local or national policy changes rather than changes at the level of the United Nations (where there is “no political will to interfere with the conventions”).
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Click here to view the Keynote Speech [PDF:50KB]
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Click here to visit the CLAT 4 website
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IHRA Well Represented at 2008 International AIDS Conference
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The organisers of AIDS 2008 (the 17th International AIDS Conference) – to be held in Mexico City in August 2008 - have announced their line-up of plenary speakers, which includes key names and leading scientific, community and policy experts from around the world. Among the 17 announced speakers is Professor Adeeba bte Kamarulzaman from the IHRA Executive Committee, who will be presenting on the issue of ‘Substance Use and Harm Reduction’.
In addition, Dr Marcus Day – also from the IHRA Executive Committee - has organised a ‘non-abstract driven session’ at the event entitled ‘The New Frontiers for Harm Reduction’. This session will be chaired by Professor Gerry Stimson and will also include a presentation by Rick Lines on ‘HR2 - Harm Reduction and Human Rights’. Dr Marcus Day is also the co-chair of the AIDS 2008 Global village organising committee.
IHRA welcomes the continued focus on harm reduction at this key international meeting. At the previous International AIDS Conference (in Toronto in 2006), Dr Alex Wodak from the IHRA Executive Committee delivered a well received plenary presentation, and IHRA was also engaged with the launch of a declaration in the Global Village.
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Click here to visit the AIDS 2008 website
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Click here to view the AIDS 2008 plenary speaker announcement [PDF:50KB]
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Click here to view the IHRA news item from the 2006 International AIDS Conference
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