Global: UN report must signal the end of the obviously failed “war on drugs”

Responding to the release of a new report by the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health calling on governments to move away from punitive drug policies and instead adopt a harm reduction and human rights-based approach in the run-up to World Drug Day on 26 June, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Senior Director of Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns at Amnesty International, said:

“This is a bold and urgent call for governments around the world to finally abandon the manifestly failed policy of the so-called ‘war on drugs.’ For over sixty years, this ill-conceived public health approach has not only failed to reduce drug use and supply, but it has led to widespread human rights violations, violence, mass incarceration, suffering and abuse around the world, disproportionately affecting people from historically marginalized communities.

This is a courageous and urgent appeal to governments around the world to finally abandon the obviously failed policy of the so-called “war on drugs”.

Erika Guevara-Rosas, Senior Director of Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns at Amnesty International

“This report is a powerful reminder that there is another way. Focusing on harm reduction, treatment and social support has demonstrated the benefits of putting human rights at the heart of drug policy. Years of evidence and growing data from civil society organizations and human rights mechanisms around the world demonstrate the effectiveness of these methods in reducing the negative health, social and economic consequences of drugs.

“Many lives have been sacrificed and it is time to stop wasting resources. Governments must put the ‘war on drugs’ in the past and begin implementing all the recommendations set out in this report. This includes decriminalising personal use, possession, cultivation and acquisition of drugs and moving towards effective drug regulation to ensure legal and safe access for authorised persons.”

The focus on harm reduction, treatment and social support has shown the benefits of putting human rights at the heart of drug policy

Erika Guevara-Rosas

On the occasion of World Drug Day on 26 June, when activists around the world join forces in the #SupportDontPunish campaign, Amnesty International is publishing its new position paper. “Time for change: promoting a new drug policy that respects human rights”The paper provides clear recommendations to governments and intergovernmental organizations for developing drug policies that better protect human rights.

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The UN Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health is an independent expert of the Human Rights Council.

In her latest report, submitted today to the Human Rights Council, the Special Rapporteur examines how punitive drug policies have affected the right to health, particularly for marginalised communities and persons facing intersectional forms of discrimination. The report clearly underlines once again that harm reduction is an essential component of the right to health and calls on countries to move away from punitive responses to medicines that are harmful and counterproductive.