Further reflections on the UNGASS outcome document: Comments on the third draft

The negotiations of the UNGASS outcome document is now well underway. This document is being finalised by the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna, for adoption at the Special Session from19th to 21st April. It should, according to the UN General Assembly, be a ‘short, substantive, concise and action-oriented document comprising a set of operational recommendations… including an assessment of the achievements as well as ways to address long-standing and emerging challenges in countering the world drug problem’. A series of drafts of the outcome document have so far been distributed, along with a list of agreed paragraphs, and a list of additional, more controversial paragraphs (including proposals on harm reduction and the death penalty) that have not yet made it into the document.

This IDPC advocacy note raises some persisting concerns and proposes some additional comments and recommendations intended to support the ongoing negotiations process, as member states are about to gather at the 59th Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna on 14thMarch. These comments have been divided into two parts: general comments on the overall document, and a selection of more specific suggestions to support member state deliberations.

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