Themes

Human rights

Human rights

Human Rights Day demonstration against extrajudicial killings in the Philippines.

Reuters

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From extrajudicial killings to the denial of access to controlled pain medication, repressive drug policies continue to be a major driver of violence, suffering, and human rights violations across the world. We work to ensure that national and international institutions recognise, prevent, and redress these abuses.

Human rights violations committed in the name of drug control are frequent and pervasive. These include the death penalty for drug offences, mass incarceration, countless instances of police brutality, a global dearth of life-saving harm reduction, and the systematic denial of indigenous rights.

In all cases, violence, neglect and exclusion disproportionately affect marginalised individuals and communities, pushing them further into vulnerability.

We work to ensure that the abuses associated with drug policies are consistently taken into consideration by human rights bodies both at the UN level and regionally, such as the Human Rights Committee, or the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. Together with our membership and partners, we advocate for the effective inclusion of these standards in drug policies designed at international, regional, and national level.

Resources

International Guidelines on Human Rights and Drug Policy

International Guidelines on Human Rights and Drug Policy

The International Guidelines on Human Rights and Drug Policy are the foundational international standard on human rights on drug-related matters. They were developed by a coalition of UN Member States, WHO, UNAIDS, UNDP, and leading human rights and drug policy experts.

OHCHR report on the implementation of drug policies​

OHCHR report on the implementation of drug policies​

In 2018, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) published a critical study on the different ways in which drug policies impact the enjoyment of human rights.

Accountability publications

Accountability publications

Based on UN data, peer-reviewed academic research and grey literature, in recent years IDPC has published two major reports assessing the state of implementation of global international commitments on drug policy, especially in relation to human rights.

Human rights are inherent and inalienable. The world drug problem cannot be lawfully addressed without ensuring the protection of human rights.
Cornelis P. de Joncheere, INCB President (2019-2021)