Decriminalisation, legal regulation & reform

Decriminalisation

Publications6 October 2025

Safeguarding rights in EU drug policy - Contribution to the European Commission's call for evidence on the EU drugs strategy and action plan against drug trafficking

IDPC calls on the European Commission to ensure the next Strategy is balanced, evidence-based, and rights-centred, prioritising harm reduction, civil society participation, and policy innovation over punitive approaches.

Publications25 September 2025

Development dimensions of drug policy: Assessing new challenges, uncovering opportunities, and addressing emerging issues

UNDP charts a rights- and development-centred turn in drug policy, prioritising decriminalisation, harm reduction, equity-led transitions, and practical pathways to responsibly regulate some drug markets.

Publications15 September 2025

Guaranteeing the rights of young people and substance use in contexts of armed conflict in the Colombian Amazon - Submission to the UN CESCR on Colombia

IDPC and A la Orilla del Río highlight how prohibitionism continues to shape the lives of young people in the Colombian Amazon, where gaps between policy and practice perpetuate stigmatisation and deny rights.

Publications10 September 2025

Rethinking Chile’s drug policy through human rights and harm reduction – Report to the CESCR for the periodic review of Chile

HRI and LANPUD call for reform of punitive laws that fuel mass incarceration and violate rights, and for investment in health, harm reduction, and community leadership.

Publications4 September 2025

Civil society perspectives on the ASEAN Work Plan on Drugs 2016–2025 – Submission to ASEAN review process

Civil society exposes punitive harms and rights violations, while urging a shift towards health, harm reduction, decriminalisation, justice reform, and sustainable livelihoods.

News3 September 2025

A flawed policy: The US war on drugs in Latin America criminalises people

The US-backed 'war on drugs' has costed trillions — criminalising migrants, militarising societies, and fuelling recent threats of intervention in Latin America.

Publications1 September 2025

US substance use harm reduction efforts: a review of the current state of policy, policy barriers, and recommendations

Bailey E. Pridgen et al. review the current state and federal harm reduction intervention policies in the US, calling for reform to remove existing structural and legal barriers.

News21 August 2025

Call for applications: Fundraising strategy consultant – Help shape the next chapter of Support. Don’t Punish!

IDPC is seeking a consultant to help secure the future of the Support. Don't Punish campaign by diversifying its funding base and strengthening donor engagement.

Blog15 August 2025

Reviewing the coca leaf’s international status: A chance to heal what Prohibition broke

The upcoming critical review process offers a chance to de-schedule the coca leaf, mitigating prohibition's environmental and social harms, affirming Indigenous rights, and reforming colonial, punitive drug policies.

Publications14 August 2025

Translating UN commitments into action – An advocacy primer on the UN thematic report: ‘Drug use, harm reduction and the right to health’

The Support. Don’t Punish campaign provides a concise primer on the UN Special Rapporteur’s landmark 2024 report, equipping advocates to advance decriminalisation, harm reduction, and rights-based drug policy.

Publications14 August 2025

Criminalizing public space through a decriminalization framework: The paradox of British Columbia, Canada

Singh Kelsall et al. argue that British Columbia’s rollback of decriminalisation is a form of bio-political violence, a state-sanctioned massacre cloaked in public health policy.

Publications13 August 2025

Legal and policy considerations on decriminalisation of drug use and possession for personal use: International legal framework and the UN system common position on drug-related matters

UNODC presents its perspective on the role of treaty flexibilities in enabling decriminalisation as part of health-based approaches, identifying related reforms and alternatives to punitive measures.

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