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DRACONIAN 21 Jul 2012 1:52 PM (12 years ago)

International Centre for Science in Drug Policy | www.icsdp.org

DRACONIAN: Love and Death with the War on Drugs is a 10-minute documentary about HIV positive activist Ott Suwannawong and the murderous crackdown on drug users in Thailand in 2003. Ott is a heroin addict who was imprisoned in the late ’90’s and, without access to clean needles, contracted HIV. His story is a clear example of how, even in prison, prohibition-based drug policies propel the spread of HIV and fail to limit drug supply and demand.

Film: Pete McCormack

Click on the image to the left or click here to watch on YouTube.

Drug Policy Experts Attending AIDS 2012 Challenge Obama and Romney to End the War on Drugs 18 Jul 2012 11:38 AM (12 years ago)

Politico Ad: It’s Dead Simple – You Can’t End AIDS Unless You End the War on Drugs Vienna Declaration to close with more than 23,400 signatures, including Sir Richard Branson’s

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23 July 2012 [Washington, DC] – The Vienna Declaration, a scientific statement seeking to improve community health and safety by incorporating scientific evidence into illicit drug policies, will close July 24 with more than 23,400 signatures and a demand that U.S. presidential candidates and other world leaders end the destructive and costly war on drugs.

To reinforce this demand, a controversial advertisement will run in the influential Politico newspaper tomorrow. It will call on President Obama and Governor Romney to listen to the scientific evidence and public health community and acknowledge the link between AIDS and the war on drugs, and end the war on drugs.

The Vienna Declaration, launched in July 2010 as the official declaration of the XVIII International AIDS conference (AIDS 2010) in Vienna, Austria, has influenced public discourse and helped generate significant momentum for a paradigm shift in global illicit drug policy. But as the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) gets underway in Washington, DC, far more work remains to be done. Powerful countries around the world, such as the U.S., Russia and China, continue to implement illicit drug policies that lead to serious social, economic and health issues, including the spread of HIV.

“We, as members of the Vienna Declaration’s writing committee, are disappointed that governments continue to pursue illicit drug policies that waste taxpayer resources by imprisoning millions of non-violent people, contribute to organized crime and drive the HIV pandemic among illicit drug users,” said Dr. Evan Wood, chair of the Vienna Declaration writing committee and founder of the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy. “Through the Vienna Declaration, the public health and scientific community are imploring President Barack Obama, Governor Mitt Romney and world leaders to improve community health and safety by ending the war on drugs.”

Research has consistently shown that repressive drug law enforcement practices force drug users away from public health services and into hidden environments where HIV risk becomes markedly elevated. Mass incarceration of nonviolent drug offenders, prohibitions on clean needles and limited support for addiction treatment also play roles in spreading the pandemic. Today, there are an estimated 34 million people worldwide living with HIV, and injection drug use accounts for one-third of new HIV infections outside of sub-Saharan Africa.

The Vienna Declaration’s endorsements include thousands of scientists, researchers, academics, and health professionals, in addition to seven Nobel Laureates and several former heads of state. Sir Richard Branson, member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy and founder of the Virgin Group, recently signed the Declaration. Coinciding with AIDS 2012, all signatures are being delivered to influential world leaders and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. (Click here for the letter.)

Since the launch of the Vienna Declaration, demands to implement evidence-based drug policy have grown louder, as exemplified by the Global Commission on Drug Policy’s bold new report, The War on Drugs and HIV/AIDS: How the Criminalization of Drug Use Fuels the Global Pandemic.

“The war on drugs has clearly been an extremely expensive failure, yet political inaction allows it to continue to breed economic hardship, disease, death and human misery,” said Sir Richard. “Governments and international organizations have a moral and ethical obligation to implement drug policies that are based on scientific evidence and can effectively prevent disease and save lives.”

Other members of the Global Commission on Drug Policy who have signed the Vienna Declaration include Fernando Henrique Cardoso, former president of Brazil; Dr. Michel Kazatchkine, former director, Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; and César Gaviria, former president of Colombia.

The Declaration calls on governments and international organizations, including agencies of the United Nations, to fully reorient illicit drug policy using scientific evidence, beginning with the following five steps:

1. Undertake a transparent review of the effectiveness of current national and international drug policies.
2. Implement and evaluate a public health approach, based on the best available scientific evidence, to address the individual and community harms stemming from illicit drug use.
3. Decriminalize drug users, scale up clinically proven drug dependence treatment options and abolish ineffective compulsory drug treatment centres that violate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
4. Unequivocally endorse and scale up funding for the implementation of the comprehensive package of HIV interventions spelled out in the WHO, UNODC and UNAIDS Target Setting Guide.
5. Meaningfully involve members of the affected community in developing, monitoring and implementing services and policies that affect their lives.

“We are gratified that strong and influential organizations – such as the Global Commission on Drug Policy and the International AIDS Society – continue to call for drug policies that are evidence-based and respect and protect human rights,” said Dr. Julio Montaner, immediate past president of the International AIDS Society, director of the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS and member of the Vienna Declaration writing committee. “With respect to the war on drugs, we ask, who benefits from policies that waste precious taxpayer resources, fuel organized crime and contribute to the spread of HIV disease?”

Ad in Politico Targets Presidential Race

Tomorrow, during the world’s largest gathering of HIV/AIDS experts at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington, DC, the Drug Policy Alliance and the Vienna Declaration will run a controversial ad in the influential Politico newspaper calling on U.S. President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney to acknowledge the link between AIDS and the war on drugs, and end the war on drugs. The ad uses a graphic, powerful image of a needle and gun to reinforce the destructive and deadly nature of the war on drugs, and its devastating role in spreading HIV/AIDS. It is signed by leaders in the fight against HIV/AIDs and the war on drugs, including Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Dr. Michel Kazatchkine, César Gaviria, Sir Richard Branson, Dr. Julio Montaner, Dr. Evan Wood, and Dr. Ethan Nadelmann, executive director, Drug Policy Alliance. To view a copy of the ad, click here.

A Personal Story: DRACONIAN: Love and Death with the War on Drugs

To highlight the link between HIV and drug policy, the Drug Policy Alliance, the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy and the Vienna Declaration have released a powerful video that clearly articulates the personal pain and disease caused by the criminalization of drug use. DRACONIAN: Love and Death with the War on Drugs, produced by award-winning film-maker Pete McCormack, is a powerful 10-minute documentary about HIV positive activist Ott Suwannawong and the murderous crackdown on drug users in Thailand in 2003. Ott is a heroin addict who was imprisoned in the late ‘90’s and, without access to clean needles, contracted HIV. His story is a clear example of how, even in prison, prohibition-based drug policies propel the spread of HIV and fail to limit drug supply and demand.

To view the video, click here.

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MEDIA CONTACTS: Sunny McKechnie Edelman Email: sunny.mckechnie@edelman.com Tel: 250-816-7610 Ian Noble Edelman, at AIDS 2012 Email: ian.noble@edelman.com Tel: 604-809-9650

Health Unit Signs The Vienna Declaration – Calls for Evidence-based Drug Policies 31 May 2012 8:27 AM (12 years ago)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 31, 2012

Perth County ― The Perth District Health Unit is encouraging policy makers to use evidence when making decisions about drug policies.

On May 16, 2012, the Perth Board of Health agreed to endorse The Vienna Declaration by becoming a signatory on the Vienna Declaration website. The Vienna Declaration is an international movement that is seeking to: “Improve community health and safety by calling for the incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies.”

The Vienna Declaration notes that international efforts to date, heavily focused on drug prohibition, have failed to stop substance misuse and have resulted in negative health and social consequences, such as a higher spread of HIV.

“Addictions are a medical issue,” says Dr. Miriam Klassen, Medical Officer of Health. “It’s important to recognize that drug use is a reality for some people and they need harm reduction measures, support and access to treatment.”

While drug use and drinking in Perth County are generally similar to the rest of Ontario, rates of alcohol, cannabis and crystal meth use continue to be of concern in southwestern Ontario.

The Vienna Declaration calls for a reorientation of drug policies that respect and protect human rights. It calls for redirecting resources: “Towards where they are needed most: implementing and evaluating evidence-based prevention, regulatory, treatment and harm reduction interventions.”

Following approval by the Perth Board of Health, the Health Unit has signed The Vienna Declaration and circulated a letter to the Drug Strategy Task Force and to all public health units in Ontario encouraging other organizations to likewise endorse the declaration.

To view the Vienna Declaration and the list of endorsements, visit: www.viennadeclaration.com.

More Information
For more information, call Health Line at 519-271-7600 ext 267 or toll-free at 1-877-271-7348 ext 267. Visit www.pdhu.on.ca and follow on Twitter: www.twitter.com/PDHealthUnit

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Media Contact: Rebecca Hill, Communications Manager
519-271-7600 ext 279 or email at rhill@pdhu.on.ca

Canada’s Urban Public Health Network Endorses Global Call for Evidence-Based Drug Policy 28 Mar 2012 2:01 PM (13 years ago)

Medical health officers of Canada’s 18 largest cities support alternatives to the failed war on drugs to meaningfully combat the individual and social harms of illicit drug use

Vancouver, British Columbia (March 28, 2012): The Urban Public Health Network (UPHN), which comprises the chief medical health officers of the 18 largest municipalities in Canada, joins a growing list of Nobel Laureates, former heads of state, academic, political, law enforcement, health and religious leaders who have endorsed the Vienna Declaration since it was first unveiled as the official declaration of the XVIII International AIDS Conference in Vienna, Austria, in 2010.

Since its launch, the declaration has been signed by more than 23,000 people, including five chief provincial medical health officers, the Canadian Public Health Association, the City of Vancouver, Toronto City Council and Victoria City Council, all calling for an evidence-based drug policy approach in Canada.

“Canada needs to urgently explore policies that treat illicit drug use as a health issue, not a criminal justice issue, to help curb the harms to individuals and communities from drug addiction,” said Dr. Patricia Daly, a UPHN member and medical health officer from Vancouver. “The Urban Public Health Network’s endorsement of the Vienna Declaration is a clear call from Canada’s urban public health community for evidence-based drug policymaking with the aim to improve community health and safety.”

The announcement of the UPHN’s endorsement of the Vienna Declaration comes at a critical time in Canadian drug policy. Although the declaration calls for a “full policy reorientation” stating that “the criminalization of drug users has resulted in overwhelmingly negative health and social consequences,” the federal government has recently escalated Canada’s war on drugs through the use of mandatory minimum sentences for minor drug law offences.

“Clearly, the Canadian public health community is stressing the need for evidence-based drug policies that will actually improve community health and safety, unlike the failed drug law enforcement tactics that are being enacted by the federal government,” said Dr. Evan Wood, co-director of the Urban Health Research Initiative at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS and chair of the Vienna Declaration writing committee. “Tougher sentencing and increased spending on the enforcement of drug prohibition has proven to be a waste of taxpayer dollars, while actually contributing to organized crime and gang violence. It’s time for a new approach.”

Dr. Wood is the co-author of a review paper, Improving community health and safety in Canada through evidence-based policies on illegal drugs published March 28 in Open Medicine, an international, peer-reviewed medical journal. The paper notes that the “criminalization of people who use drugs continues to prove ineffective in reducing rates of drug use and has instead contributed to substantial health-related harms.” It also points out that Canadian drug policy has, since 2007, moved toward a new anti-drug strategy and away from the evidence-based harm reduction programs recommended by the World Health Organization. This despite the fact that several U.S. states⎯including New York, Michigan, Massachusetts and Connecticut⎯are now repealing mandatory minimum legislation for non-violent drug offences like those called for in Bill C-10.

It’s a well-documented fact that the war on drugs has been a dismal failure. There is overwhelming scientific evidence to show that it has failed to achieve its stated objectives of reducing drug supply, reducing rates of drug use and driving up drug prices. In recent decades, the prices of drugs such as cannabis have gone down, they are easy to obtain, and their potency has risen dramatically. The tough-on-crime approach has also led to several unintended harmful consequences, including the enrichment of organized crime, as well as a range of health-related harms. The Vienna Declaration notes that drug law enforcement has fuelled HIV epidemics among incarcerated drug users by driving them away from prevention and care services, and into environments where there is a higher risk of infectious disease transmission.

The Vienna Declaration is a scientific statement seeking to improve community health and safety by calling for the incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies. The Vienna Declaration was drafted by an international team of scientists and other experts. It was initiated by the International AIDS Society, the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy, and the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Those wishing to sign on may visit www.viennadeclaration.com, where the full text of the declaration, along with a list of authors, is available. The two-page declaration references 28 reports, describing the scientific evidence documenting the effectiveness of public health approaches to drug policy and the negative consequences of approaches that criminalize drug users.

About the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS

The BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) (www.cfenet.ubc.ca) is Canada’s largest HIV/AIDS research, treatment and education facility and is internationally recognized as an innovative world leader in combating HIV/AIDS and related diseases. It is based at St. Paul’s Hospital, Providence Health Care, a teaching hospital of the University of British Columbia. The BC-CfE works in close collaboration with key provincial stakeholders, including health authorities, health care providers, academics from other institutions, and the community to improve the health of British Columbians living with HIV through developing, monitoring and disseminating comprehensive research and treatment programs for HIV and related illnesses.

Urban Public Health Network

The Urban Public Health Network (UPHN) (www.uphn.ca) was established in September 2004 by the Chief Medical Officers of Health of the 18 largest Canadian cities. The purpose of the network is to address public health issues that are common to urban populations and to develop strategies to address these issues. The network is designed to share best practices, advocate for policy changes and to foster and facilitate research in public health. Examples of topics which are being addressed include emergency preparedness, common standardized indicators for public health activity, the provision of tertiary public health services, immunization capacity, poverty and health. Members are working collaboratively with a number of partners to effect changes that will result in healthier communities.

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Council approves creation of drug strategy 14 Jul 2011 10:15 AM (13 years ago)

June 21, 2011 [Red Deer, Canada] – On Monday, June 13, 2011, Red Deer City Council voted in favour of signing the Vienna Declaration, a statement seeking to improve community health and safety by calling for the incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies. This makes Red Deer the fourth city in Canada to sign the declaration behind Toronto, Vancouver, and Victoria.

More than 16,500 people have signed the declaration since its launch on June 27, 2010, including six Nobel Laureates, thousands of scientific experts, law enforcement leaders, members of the judiciary and a diverse range of academic, faith-based, and civil society organizations around the world.

City Council also unanimously voted in favour of developing a Red Deer specific drug strategy. In order to develop a Red Deer specific drug strategy, key stakeholders, such as Red Deer’s Crime Prevention Advisory Committee, will be brought together.

The Crime Prevention and Policing Study consultants have also been requested to review a four pillars approach for potential relevance and inclusion in the study and to make recommendations. The four pillars include prevention, treatment, harm reduction and enforcement.

THE DRUG WAR: A WAR ON PUBLIC HEALTH? 5 Apr 2011 8:24 AM (14 years ago)

THE PUSH FOR ENDORSEMENTS 5 Apr 2011 8:20 AM (14 years ago)

POLICY MAKERS: “WE KNOW WHAT WORKS” 5 Apr 2011 8:16 AM (14 years ago)

A TURNING POINT IN THE DRUG DEBATE 5 Apr 2011 8:11 AM (14 years ago)

SCIENTISTS OPPOSING THE DRUG WAR 5 Apr 2011 8:08 AM (14 years ago)

International Centre for Science in Drug Policy | www.icsdp.org

Why doctors, scientists, and others are speaking out against the so-called “war on drugs” by signing the Vienna Declaration.

Featuring: Dr. Michel Kazatchkine (Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria), Dr. Julio Montaner (International AIDS Society), Stephen Lewis (Former UN Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa), Dr. Francoise Barre Sinoussi (Nobel Larueate), Dr. Thomas Kerr (BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS)

Film: Pete McCormack
Music: Schaun Tozer

SIGN THE DECLARATION