News and Announcements

Canadian Government's attempts to shut down Vancouver's Safe Injecting Facility ruled unconstitutional

28 May 2008

In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court of British Columbia has granted users and staff at Insite, the Vancouver Safe Injecting Facility (SIF), a constitutional exemption from prosecution under federal drug laws. This decision prevents attempts by the Canadian government to shut down North America's only SIF. The court challenge was taken… Read more

Harm Reduction International launches 'Global State of Harm Reduction 2008'

22 May 2008

Harm Reduction International has launched a major new report entitled ‘Global State of Harm Reduction 2008: Mapping the response to drug-related HIV and hepatitis C epidemics’ . The report, co-authored by Harm Reduction International's Catherine Cook and Natalya Kanaef , consolidates existing data on drug use, HIV and hepatitis C,… Read more

Professor Paul Hunt, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health addresses Harm Reduction International's 19th international harm reduction conference

13 May 2008

The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to the highest attainable standard of health today used his opening speech at the 19th international harm reduction conference to call on UN member states and the UN drug control system to abide by the "Article 1 objectives of the UN Charter" In the strongtest statement to date on drug policy and harm… Read more

The Life of a Human Rights Resolution at the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs

22 April 2008

Below is a brief overview of the progress of the first ever human rights resolution to make it through the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs. It is a ground-breaking event, but also a glimpse into the unwillingness of CND member states to consider human rights and the hypocrisy of many states that only weeks earlier had attended the UN Human… Read more

Letter to Drink and Drugs News -- Death penalty: clear, unambiguous and authoritative

07 April 2008

Below is a letter from Harm Reduction International published in the most recent edition of Drink and Drugs News (DDN), the leading magazine for substance misuse professionals in the UK. This is in response to letters criticising Harm Reduction International's opposition to the death penalty for drug offences following the publication of… Read more

New Thai anti-drug policy to be announced tomorrow

01 April 2008

A new anti-drug policy will be announced in Thailand tomorrow which many fear will mark a reinstatement 2003's brutal war on drugs. In February 2003, the Thai government, under then Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, launched a violent and murderous ‘war on drugs’ aimed at the ‘suppression’ of drug trafficking and the ‘prevention’ of drug use.… Read more

CND passes a ground-breaking - yet watered down - human rights resolution

18 March 2008

The human rights resolution introduced on 13 March came back to the full CND plenary session for debate Friday evening, and was debated for several hours. As with the debate in the Committee of the Whole on Thursday , China, Pakistan, Thailand, Egypt and Japan led the attack against the resolution. Countries including the UK, Argentina,… Read more

“Discussion of political issues such as human rights are inappropriate at CND” – China leads charge against human rights resolution

14 March 2008

Call it revenge of the death penalty states. Only days after UNODC Executive Director, Antonio Maria Costa, used his opening speech at the 51st session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs to raise the issue of human rights and call for an end to the death penalty for drug offences , a coalition of death penalty countries banded together to… Read more

CND day 4 - INPUD statement before plenary session

13 March 2008

This morning, Stijn Goossens of the International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD) gave the following statement on the promotion of health and human rights of people who use drugs during the Commission on Narcotic Drugs plenary debate in Vienna. "Thank you, Mr Chairman, for allowing me a slot to speak, and to the Commission and its… Read more

CND day 2 - Harm Reduction International statement on human rights and harm reduction during plenary debate on demand reduction

11 March 2008

This afternoon, during the second day of the 51st session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, Harm Reduction International's Senior Policy Advisor, Rick Lines (at bottom left of the photo-click on image to get full size) addressed delegates during a plenary debate on demand reduction. A copy of Harm Reduction International's statement is… Read more