Ending the war on drugs by Richard Branson
By Richard Branson As a member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, I have long argued that we need a different approach to drug policy, one that prioritises health over punishment, one that looks at the available evidence and draws the right conclusions. My fellow Commissioners, many of them former
A Global Cold War on Drugs by Alexander Kwasniewski
A Global Cold War on Drugs The global drug regime must evolve its approach to the war on drugs or risk the same fate as communism, collapsing from inertia. Turn rhetoric into action. By Svatopluk Nemecek and Alexander Kwasniewski March 22, 2016, at 7:00 a.m. From April 19–21, global leaders will meet for the
Time for the United Nations to get serious about global drug policy
by Richard Branson The wind of change is in the air. Next month, the United Nations is convening a major summit to discuss the future of global drug policy. The stated goal of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session, or UNGASS, is to review the world’s drug control regime.
Commission wants UN to adopt alternative drug policies
By DAVE BRYAN Mar. 11, 2016 11:11 AM EST UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations has a golden opportunity to promote alternate approaches to global drug policy next month when it meets in New York for a special session, but a high-profile commission said Friday that the work leading up
Op-Ed Three leaders from Latin America call for decriminalizing drug use
by Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Cesar Gaviria and Ernesto Zedillo Outdated drug policies around the world have resulted in soaring drug-related violence, overstretched criminal justice systems, runaway corruption and mangled democratic institutions. After reviewing the evidence, consulting drug policy experts and examining our own failures on this front while in office, we
The Uruguayan Example
by Mario Vargas Llosa, member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy Originally printed in Spanish on Dec. 29, 2013 in El País: Article link Translation by Jorge Herrera Liberty has its risks, and those who believe in it must be willing to run them. This is how the government of José Mujica
Ungass On The World Drug Problem: People, Public Health And Human Rights At The Centre
On 21 October 2015, Switzerland and Colombia co-chaired an event in Geneva entitled UNGASS on the World Drug Problem: People, Public Health, and Human Rights at the Centre—a High-Level Multi-Stakeholder Perspective, which brought together: Michel Sidibé, Executive Director, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Marie-Paule Kieny, Assistant Director-General, World
President Gaviria’s op-ed in El País
The Mexican Supreme Court today will debate whether access to cannabis is a constitutional right. If they determine that it is, 5 people will be able to grow for their personal use. It will be a small, but highly important step that could set a legal precedent for others. To
Nick Clegg joins the Global Commission on Drug Policy
Former Deputy Prime Minister and Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg has joined the Global Commission on Drug Policy, an international group that advocates for drug policy reform on a global level. Nick Clegg joins a host of influential names from business and politics on the Commission, including entrepreneur Richard Branson,
SDGs will not be achieved without drug policy reform
Secretariat member, Khalid Tinasti, along with Commissioners Bem, Grover, Kazatchkine and Dreifuss wrote an opinion article in the Lancet regarding the need to implement drug policy reform in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The article can be read here.
