The Dublin Drug Policy Summit

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The Dublin Drug Policy Summit

30 January 2017
Volteface

The summit focused on two key issues in modern Irish drug policy: upcoming legislation to create a legal framework for supervised injecting facilities, and decriminalising possession of illicit drugs for personal use.

Guest of honour, Madame Ruth Dreifuss, the former President of Switzerland who was attending in her capacity as Chair of the Global Commission on Drug Policy explained the necessity of the summit:

At their inception, approaches based on prohibition were aimed at protecting public health, yet criminalisation has had the adverse effect, fuelling global epidemics such as HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C. Harm reduction measures, including the boldest of them such as safe injection facilities, combined with decriminalisation, have proven the most effective in addressing the issue while preserving people’s dignity and reducing public expenditures.

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Thumbnail: Flickr CC Dyn Photo