The US House of Representatives has passed legislation blocking the Department of Justice from interfering with state laws permitting medical marijuana use.

Republicans and Democrats banded together in the 219-189 vote in a surprising show of bipartisan support. The provision does not address the use of marijuana for recreational purposes. Nearly half the 50 US states have legalised medical marijuana, including for use by cancer patients.

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US House approves new medical marijuana legislation

Police Scotland's controversial stop and search policy is to come under scrutiny by the force watchdog.

The Scottish Police Authority is holding a meeting to review the tactic, where officers search for drugs, alcohol, stolen goods and weapons.

There has been a huge rise in searches since Scotland's new single force was created. More than half a million cases were reported between April and December last year. That is proportionately four times the rate in England and Wales. Almost three-quarters were said to be consensual, where the person searched agreed to it.

Police, who say the number of searches has recently dropped, have linked the tactic to reductions in violent crime and antisocial disorder. The tactic was most prevalent in the old Strathclyde Police area, but has been extended nationwide following the creation of the new Police Scotland force.

The SPA will discuss the effectiveness of the policy at a public meeting in the Trades Hall, Glassford Street, Glasgow, at 14:00 on Friday.

Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.

Police watchdog to review stop and search policy in Scotland

The government in Peru has fired its anti-narcotics chief in a surprise move that could signal a return to the President's initial -- but rapidly abandoned --policy of seeking alternatives to forced coca eradication.

Late on May 27, the president of Peru's National Commission for Development and Life Without Drugs (DEVIDA) Carmen Masias was summoned to the office of Prime Minster Rene Cornejo, where she was asked to resign immediately, sources told IDL Reporteros.

According to the news site, the key event that led to Marias' dismissal was the debate on whether or not to implement DEVIDA's forced coca eradication plans in Peru's VRAEM region -- the Apurimac, Ene and Mantaro River Valleys -- where the last faction of the Shining Path guerrilla insurgency remains active.

The government's about turn brings Peruvian coca policy back into line with the promises made by President Humala on the campaign trail, when he explicitly stated there would be no more forced eradication. That policy changed when just months into his administration he replaced a progressive anti-narcotics chief, who proposed moving away from coca eradication, with the conservative, US-friendly, pro-eradication Masias. Eradication efforts since then have proved highly controversial, ramping up tensions with coca growers, which have spilled over into violence.

The surprise removal of Masias confirms a move away from this policy. Whether this represents yet another change of heart on the part of Humala, a response to the controversy surrounding eradication, security concerns or just plain political maneuverings remains to be seen. Perhaps more importantly, though, it creates the opportunity for alternative coca policies that drug policy reform campaigners were hoping for with the election of Humala in the first place.

Peru anti-drug chief fired in coca eradication policy u-turn

On May 16th the Colombian government announced an agreement had been reached with the FARC guerrilla on the latest issue under discussion at the peace talks in Havana, Cuba: “A Solution to the Problem of Illicit Drugs.” The points agreed upon, which were provided in an accompanying text, suggest some positive steps away from the repressive, militarised approach which has been so disastrous for the people of Colombia and the region.

In a break with the official discourse of the past, illicit drugs are separated from the internal conflict between the FARC and the government. There is a recognition that “the continuation of [illicit] cultivation is linked partly to the existence of conditions of poverty, marginalisation and weak state presence, as well as the existence of criminal organisations dedicated to narco-trafficking.” Eradication operations have been a mainstay of government policy, but if the agreement holds this looks set to change. The FARC have long been calling for crop substitution and alternative development in rural areas, and while the government has adopted some piecemeal efforts, the text implies such initiatives will now take precedence and will be guided by the freshly created “community assemblies”, thereby granting some local democratic governance to drug policy. Crop destruction should be voluntary the text says, but in cases where growers refuse the government will go ahead with forced eradication. Fumigation is not mentioned, but the head of the government delegation to the talks has said spraying would remain an option in “extreme cases.” The text notes that the FARC remain opposed to spraying and want all eradication to be manual.

Please click here to read the full article.

A partial solution: the Colombian government, the FARC and the drugs issue at the peace talks

About 20,000 New York police officers will soon carry an emergency antidote to reverse the effects of heroin overdoses, NYPD officials announced Tuesday. Police officers across Staten Island, N.Y., use the nasal spray.

"We can't arrest our way out of a drug problem. Naloxone gives individuals a second chance to get help," Police Commissioner William Bratton said.

The state's Office of the Attorney General will provide $1.2 million for the initiative to supply nearly 20,000 kits. Each kit costs about $60 and lasts about two years, according to 

"This past weekend, #naloxone saved 2 lives in $StatenIsland. Now all @NYPDnews cops- often 1st on the scene of OD- will have that ability," New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman tweeted.

As heroin overdoses rise across the USA, more police departments are looking closely at equipping their officers with naloxone instead of waiting for paramedics to arrive at the scene.

Naloxone binds to the opioid receptors in the brain, displacing other drugs and reversing the effects of an overdose. It can be administered by injection into a muscle or as a nasal spray and lasts 30 to 90 minutes, Alexander Walley, an addiction medicine specialist at the Boston University School of Medicine, told USA TODAY this year.

New York police officers to carry heroin antidote

In recent years active users of illegal drugs have banded together in several American cities to form unions and engage in organized activism. “We ARE the People” (WATP) introduces the five original user unions in the United States and demonstrates how the War on Drugs is in actuality a War on People. The film explores the harms associated with, and stigma behind, many of the terms often used to describe people who use illegal drugs, including “drug abuser,” “addict,” “drug misuser,” etc. WATP also illustrates some of the ways that drug user unions not only provide support for their members but also actively fight against the stigma associated with drug use, and the war on drugs that sustains it.

The International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD) and Sawbuck Productions are happy to present "We ARE The People," a documentary advocacy film on the state of drug user activism and union organizing in the United States. The film also offers insight into the process behind the formation of the United States Alliance of Drug User Unions (USADUU), a national federation of drug user unions across the U.S.

"We ARE The People" is a documentary advocacy film on the state of drug user activism and union organizing in the United States.


We ARE the people: a video on drug user activism

By Giselle Amador Muñoz. Executive Director of the Costa Rican Association for Drug Study and Intervention (ACEID)

In recent decades, the War on Drugs developed mainly in Colombia and then spread to Mexico. The results of this repressive strategy have not been good, despite the economic costs and losses of human life that have occurred. As a result, we can consider it a failed war.

In recent years, the conflict has moved to Central America, which now sees itself thrown to the front line of drug trade and as a victim of large criminal organizations and the violence associated with this illegal business.

U.S. sources reported in 2012 that about 80 percent of the cocaine destined for the United States passed through the isthmus. The "International Narcotics Control Strategy 2014” (INCSR) of the State Department report estimates that about 86 percent of the cocaine smuggled into the United States in the first half of 2013 , moved first through the corridor between Mexico and Central America, surpassing the previous year's figures .

Guatemalan authorities reported the total number of drug seizures during the first nine months of 2013, which corresponded to a 330 percent increase compared to 2012. El Salvador seized 664 kilos of cocaine during the first 10 months of 2013, twice the size of the same period of time in 2012. Costa Rica seized 19.67 tons of cocaine in 2013, an increase from the 14.73 tons seized in 2012. Panama also experienced a 20.6 percent increase in cocaine seizures, from 34 tons in 2012 to 41 tons in 2013.

The impact of this route change causes an exponential increase in violence. The homicide rate in Guatemala doubled in the last decade. The government estimates that about two-fifths of the murders are linked to the drug trade. Even in Panama, a wealthy country in comparison to others in Central American, the homicide rate has nearly doubled in the last three years.

Outside of the loss of citizens’ lives, insecurity also carries a high economic cost. According to a report released by the World Bank in 2012, crime and violence cost Central America around 8% of its GDP. It also stressed that if it were possible to reduce the murder rate by 10 % in the most violent countries of the region, the growth per capita could raise up to 1% per year. It noted as well that the costs associated with security are equivalent to 4 % of private business sales.

Of the strategies aimed at solving the problems, one was the Merida Plan (which was part of a financial package offered by the Government of the United States) within the framework of the Central American Integration System (SICA from its Spanish acronym – Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana) and was meant to fight drugs and crime. The strategies purposes were to provide funds for equipment, training and technical assistance to support operations of law enforcement and interdiction to the seven Central American countries, but they have not provided positive results neither in reducing the supply of drugs nor in reducing the demand.

U.S. aid to Central American security forces for drug control has increased steadily through the Central America Regional Security Initiative (CARSI). Since its inception, there have been numerous U.S. agencies in Central American territory. Canada’s operating forces are also involved in anti-drug operations that take place in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific.

The problems with the warrior strategy arise from militarization and military engagement in mere police tasks. The fight against crime, allegedly linked to drug trafficking, regresses back to the previous scheme, and is typical of the civil wars in Central America which took place during the seventies and eighties. The armies commit human rights violations, in part due to a lack of skills in these tasks. This is particularly disturbing in a region in which the armies’ historical backgrounds are not exactly a flawless display of respect for human dignity. This situation is even more difficult when you consider that the Human Development indicators in the countries, with the exception of Costa Rica and Panama, are below the Latin American average.

Costa Rica, although in much smaller proportions, is no exception. In recent years, the number of small and rural farmers, people engaged in micro-sales (mainly women living in poverty stricken conditions and street inhabitants with drug dependence), "mules", and internal and external drug runners has increased alarmingly. The vast majority of these people are in a position of social vulnerability, can’t meet their basic needs, have little education, and live in marginalized communities.

Another problem detected in Central America is the equalization made by the government and community of phenomenon like narcotics trafficking with other problems like common crime, and the conformation of maras and gangs. This equalization prevents the implementation of differentiated public policies to address each type of phenomenon. When a social conflict is defined as a war, it follows that the predominant response be that of the military and the police.

A final strategy to mitigate the impact of drug trafficking and other forms of crime focuses on institutional strengthening in the regional countries. This is particularly important in the judicial system and police forces, which remain the weakest in the hemisphere. However, the institutional strengthening reforms are strategies for the medium and long run. In the short term, viable dispositions are needed, such as studying the causes of this violence and proposing solutions according to these determinant factors.

As stated by the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), high levels of violence are confronted in Central America. The agencies responsible for law enforcement should consider the adoption of focused deterrence strategies and selective action designed to reduce it. Further, they should promote development rather than attempting to stop the flow of drugs into the United States and Europe.

However, unlike other countries on the continent and in the world, the Central American Region has not fully integrated into the Drug Policy reform. Although the president of Guatemala, since the beginning of his administration, has repeated in various international forums that he is open to change in drug control strategies, it was not until the 31st of January this year that the National Drug Policy Reform Commission was implemented in Guatemala. It consists of government and civil society authorities whose aim is to establish a plan of action to fulfill international commitments made by the Central American country, and to generate alternatives to the plans made so far. The composition of this Commission is a response to the declaration of Antigua Guatemala from the 43rd General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS), held in June 2013.

In Costa Rica, this discussion has not yet started however; President Laura Chinchilla Miranda expressed the need for policy change to address the drug phenomenon in various international forums in the OAS and the United Nations. In spite of this, the country has a strong tradition of its institutions guaranteeing public health and respect for human rights. Furthermore, drug use has been decriminalized since the late eighties, and treatment opportunities are offered to whoever requests it.

Civil society’s participation in the definition of drug policy is poor in most countries. Associations and NGOs mainly deal with the treatment and rehabilitation of people with drug abuse problems, and in some cases are associated with prevention programs, leaving to the side the reflections on the unfortunate effects of national and international policies. Reports and resolutions issued by the OAS are virtually unknown because they have not been passed on to officials who attend these meetings.

In addition, states have failed to ensure an active debate on drug policy issues in regional forums as well meetings of the president, the Ministers of Safety and Health, and other multilateral bodies operating in the isthmus.

The 5th Latin American and 1st Central American Conference on Drug Policy will serve as a forum for analysis and reflection with the participation of public, religious, and educational institutions as well as professional bodies in conjunction with other sectors of civil society. It will promote the start of urgent dialogue to achieve change in the drug policies that, in most cases, have produced few benefits in the region.

The drug phenomenon in Central America 

William Brownfield, the State Department’s senior anti-drugs official, says that 16% of cocaine imports into the United States came through the Caribbean islands last year. That is up from 4% in 2011. For European cocaine imports, the proportions are even higher.

The rising volume of drugs coming through the Caribbean is an example of what drugs wonks call the “balloon effect”, the idea that increased pressure on one drug route produces a bulge elsewhere. Until recently, the favoured northbound route for cocaine from South America—principally via Venezuela, after Colombia’s interdiction efforts in the 1990s—was by small aircraft to Honduras. Planes fly a dogleg path—first north, then west—to avoid Colombian airspace; the drugs then move by land or other means via Central America and Mexico.

Last year Honduras stepped up its counter-narcotics pressure. Drug flights to Central America dropped by a third and traffickers were pushed east to the Caribbean islands. That brings a chunk of the drug trade full circle, back to the 1980s when the likes of Pablo Escobar, a Colombian kingpin, used the islands as their route to market. It is “likely to get worse before it gets better”, Mr Brownfield told a group of Caribbean police commissioners in April.

The uptick in volumes is nothing but bad news for the Caribbean. International gangs, from Mexico’s Sinaloa group to the Italian ’Ndrangheta, are becoming more entrenched. They work with local counterparts who may be paid in kind with a percentage of the shipment and perhaps a few guns. Local demand for cocaine is low; the main intra-island trade is in marijuana. But multiplying shipments mean more gang members and more officials to bribe. The Caribbean already has some of the world’s highest murder rates. The trafficking revival will do nothing to bring them down.

Drugs trafficking in the Caribbean

Documentary filmmaker Eugene Jarecki told the performers in his new video to imagine they were "dancing on the ashes of the drug war," he says.

The short was launched to coincide with the legislative push for the Smarter Sentencing Act, a bill sponsored by Sens. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) that would reduce the length of mandatory minimum sentences for some drug offenses, and would free thousands of people currently serving sentences handed down during a period of harsh crackdowns and dramatic racial disparities in sentencing and enforcement.

This short film highlights many troubling statistics as regards the U.S. war on drugs, drug-related arrests and the higher imprisonment rate for drug crimes.

Just say no: 'Dancing on the ashes of the drug war'

This month negotiators met at the UN in New York to discuss the Sustainable Development Goals (or SDGs); government targets that will heavily influence policies through to 2030 and that will affect the lives of billions in the coming years. The SDGs are intended to address global challenges relating to our ability to survive and thrive on this planet, from climate change, poverty reduction, sustainable cities and disease prevention to functioning institutions of government. Done well, this could be transformative. But somehow (nobody seems to know how) a goal to rid the world of drug use has been included in the draft SDG document. This is harmful both for the aims of the SDGs and, given the lack of any transparency around its inclusion, for the credibility of the entire process.

The current draft includes a target to 'eliminate narcotic drug and substance abuse'. This is the essence of drug war rhetoric. But issue by issue, discipline by discipline, every canard, every straw man, every lie of the war on drugs has by now been exposed, including any pretense that a 'drug free world' is either possible or, given what it requires, a desirable goal to pursue. In fact, just as the UN negotiators were considering this target five Nobel Prize winning economists joined the growing chorus of community activists, experts and senior political figures calling for systemic change.

Aside from being a failure on its own terms (pick your indicator) the war on drugs has been a systematic human rights onslaught. It has eroded and crowded out constitutional values democratic societies should defend. It has fuelled urban violence and hindered peaceful resolution of conflicts. It has been a consistent barrier to development in producer nations. It has been a vector of disease and an economic catastrophe; billions poured down the sinkhole of tail-chasing drug enforcement at the expense of proven, life-saving harm reduction and treatment interventions.

the idea of a drug free world has produced and is producing effects that are anathema to everything the Sustainable Development Goals are supposed to stand for.

Now, there are some aspects of the draft SDGs that can be criticised as, for example, unachievable or immeasurable. But none are so directly harmful to the whole enterprise as this. So how did something so counterproductive make it in?

Drug use is not a sustainable development issue - the war on drugs certainly is

Lisbon city council has selected a space to house what would be the country's first assisted consumption room for drug users, popularly known as 'shooting gallery', as part of plans that are well advanced.

The premises in question is in Rua da Palma, in the Mouraria neighbourhood, near a health centre and a future police station that is due to open this summer, said the coordinator of the council's priority intervention unit for Mouraria, João Meneses.

The main reason for the choice was the fact that it is not in a "zone of major population density, because that in itself provokes resistance from people who don't want consumption rooms in their back yard, in their building, in their street." In addition, it is "a place open to the city and with easy access" by public transport, he noted.

The project is still in a study phase, but is not expected to bring large concentrations of users, Meneses said. Some 50 people are expected to use it, including locals and outsiders.

Legislation allowing for such shooting galleries was passed years ago but it was left up to local councils to implement it on the ground and until now none has chosen to do so.

According to João Goulão, the head of the department of the Ministry of Health who oversees drug policy in Portugal, "this could be an experimental project that could be extended to other areas" of Lisbon.

The aim of such facilities is to try to reduce the harms associated with drug use, such as when needles are shared and become vehicles for the transmission of blood-borne diseases, as well as to enure that users are in more regular contact with health professionals.

Lisbon room could be Portugal's first assisted consumption room for drug users

Sub-Saharan Africa has emerged as a new front in the global struggle for control of illicit drugs. Significant trafficking routes of drugs from Asia and Latin America criss-cross the continent, benefiting in some cases from weakly supervised borders and ports.

Africa also has some of the most repressive national drug laws in the world, many of them dating from the 1960s, and hundreds of thousands of people are in pre-trial detention or other state custody for minor drug offenses. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the government of the United States -- two heavyweight players on the global drug control scene -- both see opportunities for replicating in Africa the human rights-unfriendly drug-control approaches used in Latin America. Both also invoke links between drugs and terrorism as a justification for a militarised response to drugs. This talk will consider the lessons, including human rights-related factors, that should inform drug control strategies in Africa.

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