New York Times / Thumbnail: Prachatai - CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 - https://flic.kr/p/2fUjSRY

Weed is now legal in Thailand. How long will the high times last?

Thailand’s military government is carrying out an experiment: What happens when a country in Asia, a region where drug laws tend to be harsh, essentially legalizes marijuana overnight?

In the first few months, lots of people have opened weed dispensaries, and their customers have smoked a lot of weed.

Thailand’s marijuana industry has a joyful, freewheeling vibe on a street level. Some dispensaries offer workshops on rolling joints and brewing “weed tea.” Next week, one is holding “

” class; the ticket price includes a joint, a beverage, a snack and a yoga mat rental.

“It’s good because you can just go out and buy it whenever you want,” said Ak Sudasna, 50, who owns a real estate company in Bangkok and typically purchases about 40 grams of marijuana per month, for about $15 a gram, from shops near his home.

“It’s nice for the tourists,” he added. “It’s nice for the country.”

But the high times may not last. Sprawling draft legislation, which is expected to move through Parliament in the coming weeks, will seek to regulate legal gray areas around the cultivation, sale and consumption of the drug. It could become law as early as next year.

Killing in the name of the war on drugs: a special section from the 1st Asian regional meeting of the International Society for the Study of Drug Policy

Excerpt from the Editorial, by Karen Laidler

The aim of this special section is to build on the growing body of work on drug policy in the Global South, and the violence associated with the global war on drugs (

). These observers have noted that the war on drugs is real, with states, armed with punitive drug laws and employing varying levels of military and law enforcement tactics to strike hard against those involved in the drug market. As 

:210) argues, the target is not the drug itself, but “the categories deemed worthy of punishment… the transversally poor, marginal, unorthodox, subaltern groups of humans around the globe. The rich and bourgeois classes are practically left untouched by the ‘War on Drugs…” The justification for killings, whether state sanctioned or extrajudicial, has been couched in the specificities of culture and its preservation. Yet it is apparent from this collection of essays, that the ability to exercise structural violence is less about the preservation of cultural values of collectivism, and more to do with the preservation of political power. The result is not a united community, but in fact, a sharply divided society. Such policies further entrench the culture of shame and stigma against persons who use drugs and affords those in power with political and economic capital.

Why Vietnam continues to impose the death penalty for drug offences: A narrative commentary

The war on drugs in Southeast Asia as ‘state vigilantism’

‘Alternative facts’: Public opinion surveys on the death penalty for drug offences in selected Asian countries

Deadly serious: The United Nations, drugs, and capital punishment in the 1980s

“Shabu is different”: Extrajudicial killings, death penalty, and ‘methamphetamine exceptionalism’ in the Philippines

An uphill battle: A case example of government policy and activist dissent on the death penalty for drug-related offences in Indonesia

State sanctioned killing in the name of drugs: Laws, practice and conflicting trends in Asia

“I held on to the police’s leg for mercy”: Experiences of adversity, risk and harm among people who inject drugs during an anti-drug drive in Dhaka, Bangladesh


Sharful Islam Khan, Samira Dishti Irfan, Mohammad Niaz Morshed Khan

Killing in the name of the war on drugs: a special section from the 1st Asian regional meeting of the ISSDP

Chemsex is on the rise in Asia despite the risks of harsh punishment and getting HIV, according to a new report.

 published on Tuesday by Harm Reduction International, a global drug health organisation, said that chemsex – where gay men take a mix of potent drugs to enhance group sex – and wider sex-related drug use among gay men is increasing in countries including Thailand, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, China, and Japan.

It said a rising number of gay men, especially young men living in cities in the region, known for its 

, have been involved in either chemsex or other types of sexualised drug use among men who have sex with each other. Experts believe the rise is due to an increase in the use of dating apps and social media communities, as well as wider drug supply in Asia.

Although the double stigma of being gay and taking illegal drugs in Asia makes it hard for researchers to get accurate figures, estimates from nine countries in the region suggest chemsex is more common than previously thought. For example, in Hong Kong and Malaysia more than one in 10 gay men interviewed had experienced chemsex in the last six months, while in Indonesia, China and Japan more than one in five had been involved in more general sexualised drug use.

Chemsex is on the rise in Asia despite harsh drug laws and massive stigma

 Malaysia announced on June 10 that it will abolish the mandatory death sentence for drug offences and murder among others, and leave the sentencing to the judge. 

The response has been immediate. Although a moratorium has been in place for executions since 2018, for the most part, the news has been hailed locally and internationally as a much-needed progressive move to address the disparity in sentencing, especially for drug offences.

It also signifies a major step back from the policies brought about by the United States-inspired War on Drugs. This comes on top of months of chatter on legalising marijuana for medical purposes, another move that shows Malaysia is adopting a more nuanced take on drugs. More importantly, human rights activists hope that the abolishment of the mandatory death sentence will address some of the damage ensuing from the country's harsh zero-tolerance drug trafficking policies from the 1980s.

Samantha Chong, a lawyer who deals with drug cases, told Bernama via Zoom that the death penalty was a "band-aid" in dealing with the drug problem in the country.

"If you just have the death penalty — the punish, punish, punish (mentality) for people who use drugs — it actually doesn't solve the problem. It might look like the government has done something, but that is not (true): she said.

Address damage from Malaysia's harsh zero-tolerance drug policies: Advocates

 executed one person, bringing the total number of people executed in the city-state between March–October 2022 to 11. While the details of the reported 11th execution have not been made public, the 10 people who were executed earlier in the year were all sentenced to death after being convicted of drug trafficking. They were mostly of an 

ethnic minority background or Malaysian citizens

All but one of the death sentences was related to heroin trafficking, with one person executed for trafficking cannabis. At a time when an increasing number of jurisdictions around the world are revising their drug laws, such as Thailand 

 the sale and use of cannabis, executing a person for carrying cannabis highlights the extreme nature of death penalty sentences.

Singapore’s concurrent Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law Kasiviswanathan Shanmugam justifies his insistence on retaining the death penalty by arguing that if he ‘removed the death penalty, the flow of drugs into Singapore would be 

The available data on the supply of illicit drugs in Singapore only shows the quantities of drugs seized by law enforcement agencies. Data on the quantities of seized drugs cannot accurately portray the size of drug markets given the clandestine nature of production and distribution.

The best available data on drugs in the region is published by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. In its most recent 

 on synthetic drugs in East and Southeast Asia, the Office recorded a 10 per cent increase in the amount of methamphetamine seized in Singapore from 2020–2021. Every single Southeast Asian country identified methamphetamine as their primary drug of concern.

Singapore executes its war on drugs

Yong-an Zhang - International Center for Drug Policy Studies ICDPS, Shanghai University (Chair)

Khalid Tinasti CCDP, Geneva Graduate Institute (Switzerland) ICDPS, Shanghai University (Moderator)

Gloria Lai, International Drug Policy Consortium Asia (Thailand)

Luciana Pol, Centro de Estudos Legales y Sociales (Argentina)

Deborah Alimi, Paris University Panthéon-Sorbonne (France)

Adeolu Adebiyi, West Africa Commission on Drugs (Nigeria)

Nazlee Maghsoudi, University of Toronto (Canada)

2009-2019: Capturing a decade of international drug policy advocacy

Statement delivered at the 38th Meeting of the 51st Regular Session of the Human Rights Council, on 5 October 2022

Thank you very much. Good afternoon, everyone.

We are here now to discuss the human rights situation in the Philippines in the context of the UN Joint Program, where it is, potentially, a very good opportunity for us to make positive changes. Under this Joint Program, there also is a clear risk, actually, of institutionalizing human rights violations under a UN Joint Program for Human Rights.

I struggled with this. Because how can we move forward and fix things if we are not honest about what has been happening and continue to be happening? And we quibble over numbers instead of acknowledging the wrongs that have been committed against Filipinos, and where we should be facilitating accountability?

I struggle. For how can claims be made to address human rights violations when, many times, there is no clear understanding of where the violations are coming from? And this is especially true when we speak of treatment and health where actions and programs remain punitive and repressive.

There also continues to be a culture of surveillance and control. We have a very bad habit of tagging and labeling people. In the drug response, people continue to be placed on lists, and where it becomes so easy to scapegoat and arrest and kill in the name of the drug response. Where we lay blame where there should be none. We have arrested people on the lists, and heard reports where evidence is planted. It has also become easy to fabricate drug charges against individuals that have been considered as enemies, and letting them languish in jail.

The message seems to be: if it's drugs, we'll fix you or else. And this is the same kind of thinking that has fueled tens of thousands of people getting killed. Quibbling over numbers will not make this reality less real.

The Joint Program is a space, a unique space where government and civil society are able to work together. But we have to be seriously committed to create the changes that the Joint Program was intended for, and where it should not simply be a laundry list (of activities), a ticking-off exercise. We need to make sure that the programs really do translate to positive changes on the ground.

So, when we say we do training, for example, or capacity building, what are we capacitating people for? How would we assess being capacitated? How do we assess that these programs, these training programs, actually translate to engagements on the ground that protect and safeguard human rights? These are the questions that we need to be asking instead of asking whether somebody attended a program or not. Or, just quibbling over or ticking off the number of attendees in programs, ticking off the number of graduates in community-based programs. Instead of really trying to see, to ask the questions that we need to be asking:

Are these programs improving quality of life of individuals?

And, in doing programs under the Joint Program, are we sure we are not placing people in greater harm? How many have, in good faith, attended so-called community-based programs only to miss the last half because then, it was found out, they had been killed?

If we talk about health response, why are we not urgently setting in place harm reduction services that can protect and save lives? We have the evidence. Why are we ignoring that?

How come until now we have no ethical standards set in place? Where, as one government official said, harm reduction is good but sorry, we have a drug-free mandate.

The Joint Program does not exist in a vacuum. We have to recognize that there are laws, such as our drug law, that cause overcrowding in our prisons. We have sections of the drug law that are disproportionate where someone arrested for selling less than one gram of methamphetamine is dealt a life sentence. A penalty much, much harsher than for homicide.

Why are there laws and regulations, policy issuances, and (legislative) bills where information-gathering and surveillance are the norm? We have to stop the lists.

We must continue monitoring the Joint Program. The work is not done. We have opened an opportunity where the potential is great. If we drop the ball now and cease to continue to be critical and thorough in monitoring, we will have missed an opportunity from which other nations can learn. And we would miss the opportunity to put in place safeguards and protections for the next generation. Now is the time to put things in place.

I will take seriously what has been said (by the government) about working with civil society organizations. Civil society organizations are the ones working on the ground. We are here to help, to create the kind of environment that truly protects human rights.

And, one last thing -- to make real changes happen there are prerequisites. None of any of our recommendations will bring about meaningful change if it still lives within the narrative of living in a drug-free Philippines. This narrative is getting us stuck. If we continue with this narrative, we will continue to violate human rights.

So, I ask you again, as we continue discussions -- the Joint Program is an opportunity. There are words in the Joint Program; let them not be empty words. We can work together, but there has to be serious commitment among all those who are involved.

Philippines: If we continue with "drug free", we continue to violate human rights

The present report examines the implementation of Human Rights Council resolution 45/33 and the progress and results of technical cooperation and capacity-building for the promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines, including through a United Nations Joint Programme on human rights (UNJP) being implemented with the Government of the Philippines and national partners. The High Commissioner also provides recommendations aiming to promote a transformative approach to human rights-based reforms, strengthen an institutional culture of respect for human rights, ensure justice and redress for victims, and contribute towards the prevention of violations recurring.

Implementation of HRC Resolution 45/33 on the protection of human rights in the Philippines

By Win Lei Yee, Bridget Draper, Kyi Thar Myint, Win Min, Hla Htay, Daniel O’Keefe & Margaret Hellard

Access to sterile needles, syringes and methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) is critical to reduce the prevalence of bloodborne virus infections among people who inject drugs (PWID). We aimed to explore the experiences of PWID with respect to accessing needles/syringes services and MMT in Yangon, Myanmar.

Burnet Institute implemented a community-based hepatitis C testing and treatment (CT2) program for PWID with on-site needles and syringes distribution. Separate from CT2, MMT was available at two government-run sites in Yangon. We conducted in-depth interviews with 15 PWID who received hepatitis C care in this program. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and translated into English. Thematic data analysis was performed using NVivo12 software.

Self-reported changes to needles/syringes sharing behaviour after hepatitis C education in the CT2 program and commencement of treatment were observed. One third of participants reported they became aware of the risks of sharing and reusing needles/syringes, and consequently refrained from sharing after the CT2 program. Inadequate availability of NSPs, cost of needles/syringes, and issues maintaining privacy when accessing needles/syringes emerged as key barriers to accessibility of needles/syringes. Participants described difficulties in accessing free needles/syringes. They were not aware of other free needles/syringes services at the time of the interview. Purchasing needles/syringes from pharmacies had privacy and confidentiality concerns. Structural barriers to accessibility of MMT were identified for both MMT sites in Yangon. Of the two MMT sites in Yangon, participants reported that the Ywarthargyi center had strict eligibility criteria for take-home methadone and transportation issues as it was located in the outskirt of the town. The Thingyangyun center was in a more convenient location, but only offered daily observed doses and had a long waiting time which was burdensome for some employed participants.

Expansion of free needles/syringes services and adaptations of MMT to consider the needs and individual preferences of PWID will improve their access to these services and would likely reduce injecting related harms.

Access to needles and syringes and methadone maintenance therapy among people who inject drugs in Yangon, Myanmar

By DRCNet Foundation & Associazone Luca Coscioni

Side event at the 51st Session of the UN Human Rights Council, Geneva

 Tuesday 4 October 2022 / 3-4pm CET / 9-10pm PHT / 9-10am ET

: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMocOyupj4qE9INDq4OqGL71jsyyRFjvVIQ

Last 24 February, Senator Leila de Lima marked five years of incarceration in the Philippines. Under the administration of recently-elected President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., de Lima remains jailed, despite not being convicted of a crime, and despite the recantations of three key accusers, who say they provided testimony because of pressure.

In the meanwhile, the extrajudicial killing campaign begun by former President Rodrigo Duterte continues. The Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court, after pausing its investigation because of a Duterte administration treaty motion for reconsideration, has sought the court's authorization to resume it. But the Marcos administration has rejected the ICC investigation and said it will not cooperate.

In "The Continuing Detention of Senator Leila de Lima," speakers will review her case, and the larger human rights situation in the Philippines.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, Republic of the Philippines (prerecorded video)

Marco Perduca, Associazone Luca Coscioni and former Senator, Italy

David Borden, Executive Director, DRCNet Foundation AKA StoptheDrugWar.org

Human rights in the Philippines: The continuing detention of Senator Leila de Lima

Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a statement on Thursday (September 8) said that there’s “no compelling evidence” that could show that the Philippines is serious about investigating, let alone prosecuting, those that were responsible for the killings of the past administration’s war on drugs.

The statement comes after the Philippine government, represented by the Solicitor General, submitted its comment before the pre-trial chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC), arguing that the ICC and its prosecutor, Karim Khan, no longer have jurisdiction over the Philippines.

“Since the Philippines first sought a halt to the prosecutor’s investigation last November, Human Rights Watch has monitored the situation and found no compelling evidence that the government was seriously investigating these cases, let alone prosecuting those responsible,” HRW’s Senior Philippines Researcher, Carlos Conde, said.

East and South East Asia

Weed is now legal in Thailand. How long will the high times last?

Weed is now legal in Thailand. How long will the high times last?

Killing in the name of the war on drugs: a special section from the 1st Asian regional meeting of the ISSDP

Chemsex is on the rise in Asia despite harsh drug laws and massive stigma

Address damage from Malaysia's harsh zero-tolerance drug policies: Advocates

Singapore executes its war on drugs

2009-2019: Capturing a decade of international drug policy advocacy

Philippines: If we continue with "drug free", we continue to violate human rights

Implementation of HRC Resolution 45/33 on the protection of human rights in the Philippines

Access to needles and syringes and methadone maintenance therapy among people who inject drugs in Yangon, Myanmar

Human rights in the Philippines: The continuing detention of Senator Leila de Lima

Philippines not serious about probing war on drugs