What will Canada contribute to a new global drug policy?

Canadians take pride in being viewed favourably on the global stage. And not just for of our scenic landscapes or plucky Olympians, but also because our contributions in the realm of international diplomacy.

The annual UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) coming up in Vienna March 13-14, 2014 provides an opportunity to add to that proud legacy. There, the international community will gather to discuss how to improve the global response to problems related to drug use and the drug trade.

Canada has traditionally played a strong role in these discussions advocating for a broad range of public health approaches and evidence-based enforcement measures against organized criminal groups in the business of producing and selling illegal drugs. Our influence is boosted by the fact that we are a significant financial contributor to UN drug control programs.

But some international observers are worried about what we’ll say at this year’s CND.

In a recent Ottawa Citizen op-ed, Michel Kazatchkine, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on HIV/AIDS in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, noted: “Canada has long been a world leader in implementing harm reduction policy when it comes to drug use at home. So it was almost shocking to see it aligning itself to countries such as Russia and China in vocally opposing the inclusion of ‘harm reduction’ in a new a new set of UN principles that will guide talks at the special session in 2016.”

Kazatchkine went on to describe an alarming upswing in HIV infections in Russia linked to the lack of harm reduction services for people who inject drugs. In fact the Russian government is generally hostile to services like needle exchange and methadone treatment – all of which have been proven to save lives.

As the former Executive Director of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and a member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, Kazatchkine knows what he’s talking about. In fact, in 2012, the Global Commission raised the alarm about the on-going relationship between repressive drug policies and the spread of HIV. The take home message is simple: refusing to provide basic harm reduction supplies for drug use and criminalizing drug possession, forces people into the shadows where the transmission of HIV is more likely because of the use of shared drug equipment.

Kazatchkine isn’t the only international voice expressing misgivings about Canada’s position. As reported in a Canadian Medical Association Journal article, at a recent negotiation session leading up to the CND, “Canada once again led the charge” against a UN endorsement for “risk and harm mitigation and reduction measures” according to the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), a UK-based group at the negotiations. In a blog report posted after the session, one IDPC observer stated that Canada was “very vocal throughout” the session and opposed any references to the term, “harm reduction.”

We don’t know precisely how Canada’s delegation is approaching this year’s CND, but we do have some recommendations we developed in collaboration with the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network.

Click here to read the entirety of our submission.

In it, we urge the delegation to emphasize the following points in their discussions with other Member States:

  1. Encourage all countries to adopt a comprehensive public health approach to substance use including decriminalization.
  2. Support countries’ flexibility to experiment with alternative, health-oriented approaches to drug policy.
  3. Respect, protect and promote human rights (in particular voicing objection to torture at drug detention centres, and opposing the death penalty for drug crimes)
  4. Ensure full access to essential medicines
  5. Promote the full engagement of civil society in drug policy discussions
  6. Question the usefulness of the language of striving for a “drug-free world”
  7. Recognize the unique mandate given to the WHO under the 1961 and 1971 Conventions to provide recommendations for scheduling substances.

Even if our recommendations aren’t adopted at this CND, we have 2 years to continue this conversation leading up to UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on drugs in 2016. This meeting is a big deal in the world of international drug policy politics and will be a major opportunity to advocate for the failings of the current drug control system. It presents a significant opportunity to shift global strategies towards comprehensive public health responses to address drug problems.

Canada is well placed to take a leadership role in pushing for this shift. The international community would expect nothing less.

About Donald MacPherson

Donald MacPherson is the Executive Director of the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition and one of Canada’s leading figures in drug policy. In 2000 he published Vancouver’s groundbreaking Four Pillars Drug Strategy that precipitated a broad public discussion on issues related to addiction.