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Welcome to the IDPC October 2010 Alert. The International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) is a global network of NGOs and professional networks that work together to promote objective and open debate on drug policy. This Alert contains news, updates on the latest publications and upcoming events relevant to international drug policy.
Top stories
News
Join IDPC on Facebook!
IDPC is very pleased to announce that you can now follow our activities and access interesting news, publications, pictures and videos on drug policy on the new IDPC Facebook page. Join us on Facebook today!
IDPC welcomes two new members
IDPC is pleased to welcome Espolea, a youth-led organisation based in Mexico, as a new network member; and the National Rehabilitation Centre of Abu Dhabi (NRC) from the United Arab Emirates as the first IDPC partner member in the Middle East/North Africa region. The NRC will also act as the IDPC lead in this region.
IDPC recruits fundraising intern
IDPC is looking for an enthusiastic and committed intern to conduct desk-based research around possible fund raising opportunities for our work. The deadline for applications is Friday 12th November. If interested, contact us! Read more.
Special Rapporteur on the right to health calls for fundamental shift in drug policy
Anand Grover's annual thematic report is the clearest statement to date from within the UN system about the harms that drug policies have caused and the need for a fundamental shift in drug policy. Read the report.
First meeting of the Global Commission on HIV and the law
The first meeting of the Global Commission on HIV and the Law took place in October 2010, in Brazil, to discuss priority HIV-related legal and human rights issues on which the Commission's work will focus over the next 18 months. Read more.
Afghan opium production halves in 2010, according to UNODC annual survey
According to UNODC's 2010 Afghan Opium Survey, Afghanistan's opium production has halved in 2010 although cultivation remained stable. However, soaring prices may encourage farmers to go back to opium cultivation warns UNODC in its 2010 Afghan Opium Survey. Read more.
Unresolved equilibrium: Yungas coca growers test Bolivian Government
On 11th October 2010, coca growers in three provinces of La Paz, Bolivia, demonstrated in the North and South Yungas in protest to the Bolivian government's latest attempt to restrict and control coca leaf production and sales. Read more.
The Drug Control and Access to Medicines Consortium launches a new website
This new website aims to assist all organisations and individuals interested in accelerating access-to-medicines policy change by providing the guidance materials and data they need. Visit the website.
Alternative sentencing in Albania – Building partnerships with law enforcement authorities in Fier
As part of the EC-funded project 'Network of Community Sentences for Alternative Sentence', this seminar focused on opportunities for collaboration between the project's partnership organisations and the Probation Service Office in Fier. Read more.
CIDDH now on Facebook
We warmly invite you to visit and become a fan of the new Facebook page of the Centro de Investigacion "Drogas y Derechos Humanos" (CIDDH). Visit CIDDH's Facebook page.
Publications
Drug policy and development: how action against illicit drugs impacts on the Millennium Development Goals – IDPC briefing paper
This IDPC briefing paper highlights some of the impacts of current repressive and/or narrow drug control policies on the Millennium Development Goals. This paper calls for a comprehensive partnership between the drug policy and the development field. Read the paper.
The need for increased transparency: the country correspondence of the INCB – IDPC briefing paper
This IDPC briefing paper highlights the concerns raised by the lack of transparency in the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB)'s work, in particular regarding the current practice of the Board's country correspondence with member states. Read the paper.
The 2010 World Drug Report: A response from IDPC – IDPC Report now available in English and Spanish!
The aim of this review is to provide an overview and analysis of the contents of the 2010 UNODC World Drug Report and highlight a number of key issues of interest and concern. Read the report in English and Spanish.
The death penalty for drug offences and international support for drug enforcement – IHRA briefing paper
This briefing paper from the International Harm Reduction Association, Human Rights Watch and Penal Reform International highlights the dangers associated with funding drug control activities in countries with drug laws that are still promoting capital punishment. Read the paper.
Drug crime and criminalisation threaten progress on Millennium Development Goals
This article released in The Lancet highlights that the international drug crime and the policies intended to tackle it both threaten progress on health, human rights and the Millennium Development Goals. Read the article.
Tools for debate: U.S. government data demonstrates failure of cannabis prohibition – ICSDP report
This new research from the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy (ICSDP) demonstrates the failure of the US cannabis prohibition and supports calls for evidence-based models to legalise and regulate the use of cannabis. Read the report.
Collateral costs: incarceration's effect on economic morbidity
Drawn disproportionately from the poorly educated and the marginally employed, the millions of people in American prisons face poor mobility prospects before, and especially after they enter the prison walls. This report discusses issues of mobility in America in relation to crime policy and the criminal justice system. Read the report.
Abused and afraid in Ciudad Juarez: an analysis of human rights violations by the military in Mexico – WOLA & Center Prodh report
This report from the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and the Miguel Augustin Pro Juarez Human Rights Center (Center Prodh) presents five cases of human rights violations that occurred in Ciudad Juarez in the context of the Joint Operation Chihuahua. Read the report.
Establishing drug treatment courts: strategies, experiences and preliminary outcomes – OAS Report
This report describes the programme 'City Partnerships on the Improvement of Drug Treatment', through which the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) has supported courts throughout Latin America and the Caribbean to set up treatment alternatives to incarceration for drug-dependent offenders. Read the report.
Reducing drug trafficking revenues and violence in Mexico: would legalising marijuana in California help?
This paper examines how cannabis legalisation in California might influence drug trafficking organisations' revenues and violence in Mexico, focusing on gross revenues from export and distribution to wholesale markets near the south-western U.S. border. Read the paper.
Release's response to the UK government's drug strategy consultation paper 2010
The response from Release (the UK centre of expertise on drugs and drugs law) to the UK Coalition Government's public consultation on the 2010 Drug Strategy highlights areas of concerns and encourages the UK Government to consider alternatives to the current 'drug free' system. Read the report.
Events
53rd International ICAA Conference on Dependencies
3 - 6 Nov 2010, Cancún, Mexico
The 53rd Conference of the International Council on Alcohol and Addiction (ICAA) will be hosted in Cancún, Mexico, by Centros de Integración Juvenil, A.C. (CIJ). Focusing on topical concerns such as 'legal highs', the internet, crime and globalisation, the Conference will examine the challenges for prevention and treatment at the local, national and international level. Read more.
Recovery Conference – Addiction: the case for recovery in a changing world
17 Nov 2010, London, UK
The participants will discuss the evidence base for drug and alcohol recovery models and what the implications are for therapeutic interventions. Using examples of best practice the conference will explore how drug treatment systems can gear up for the increased demand for recovery options from the public, the political support for recovery options, and how to make this possible within the economic climate. For more information, visit the conference website.
8th National Harm Reduction Conference: Harm reduction beyond borders!
18 - 21 Nov 2010, Austin, Texas, USA
The conference will bring together approximately 1,000 drug users, ex-drug users, researchers, sex workers, social workers, doctors, politicians and community organisers from around the United States to share perspectives on harm reduction. For more information, visit the conference website.
European seminar on peer work and outreach
18 - 20 Nov 2010, Prague, Czech Republic
This seminar organised by Correlation will focus on the current state of affairs regarding outreach work and early intervention. Read more.
HIV/AIDS policy recommendations, reduce existing health inequalities in the EU
29 - 30 Nov 2010, Brussels, Belgium
The objective of the seminar organised by Correlation is to stimulate the dialogue, dissemination and advocacy relating to HIV and health inequalities in Europe. Read more.
The impact of parental substance misuse on children's educational attainment
2 Dec 2010, Glasgow, Scotland
This conference, organised by the University of Glasgow, will be of interest to anyone working with children and young people who are affected by drug and alcohol dependence. Read more.
University of Lausanne – Prevention of discriminations within vulnerable and addicted populations
9 - 10 Dec 2010, Lausanne, Switzerland
This course (in French) organised by the University of Lausanne will the conditions for the development of good professional practice to prevent discriminations and promote the right to health of vulnerable and addicted populations. Read more (in French).
Seminar on social intervention tool for online outreach
17 - 19 Mar 2011, Padova, Italy
Correlation's main goal is to train participants in the use and implementation of the Social Intervention Tool within their own organisation. The training will focus on different aspects of the use of online strategies, including practical use of the SIT, online communication methods and conversation techniques, and guidelines for successful implementation. Read more.
22nd International Harm Reduction Conference: Building capacity, redressing neglect
3 - 7 Apr 2011, Beirut, Lebanon
The 2011 conference will have a strong focus on building the skills and capacity of civil society organisations in harm reduction implementation and advocacy, and will highlight the particular needs of women who use drugs and other marginalised populations within the overall harm reduction response. The deadline for abstract submission is 5th November 2010. For more information, visit the conference website.
32nd Annual International Human Rights Training Programme
5 - 24 Jun 2011, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec, Canada
The 32nd International Human Rights Training Programme, organised by Equitas, will aim to strengthen the capacity of human rights organisations to undertake educational efforts aimed at building a global culture of human rights. The deadline for applications is 21 November 2010. Read more. |
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