UN drug policy

The UN Drug Policy

The UN Drug Policy

CND and UNODC

The UN agency in charge of putting UN policies and initiatives into action in the area of illicit drugs is the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Their secretariat lies in Vienna.

The UN policy making body that oversees the work of the UNODC, its called the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) and consist of a number of Member States. The CND meets every year. All Member States of the UN meet for a special session of the General Assembly as it did in 1998 and in 2009 for a broad review of UN efforts to tackle the drugs problem.

INCB

The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) is the "independent and quasi-judicial control organ monitoring the implementation of the United Nations drug control conventions". It is therefore not a formal part of the UN structure. INCB issues annual report on how the Conventions are implemented by Member States.

UNICEF

The Convention on the Rights of the Child from 1989 specifically address the need to protect children from illicit drugs. Children needed a special convention just for them because people under 18 years old often need special care and protection that adults do not. The UN agency in charge of child protection based on the Convention is UNICEF.

UNICEF has developed drug specific material to be used in drug prevention, such as a life skills training manual and a school based education guide.

Documents 

The most fundamental documents on UN drug policy are the three conventions that codify internationally applicable control measures in order to ensure the availability of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances for medical and scientific purposes, and to prevent their diversion into illicit channels. They also include general provisions on trafficking and drug abuse.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child is important too as it is a legally binding international instrument with broad and ambitious objectives.

The second most important policy documents are the political declarations and resolutions by the Commission on Narcotic Drugs. These may be decided by governments annually and are documents on priorities and direction for the work of the UNODC, Member States and others. The agenda setting role of these documents is important. Others address urgent and current problems.

  • UN Conventions

Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 1961.

This Convention aims to combat drug abuse by coordinated international action. There are two forms of intervention and control that work together. First, it seeks to limit the possession, use, trade in, distribution, import, export, manufacture and production of drugs exclusively to medical and scientific purposes. Second, it combats drug trafficking through international cooperation to deter and discourage drug traffickers.

Convention on Psychotropic Substances, 1971

The Convention establishes an international control system for psychotropic substances. It responded to the diversification and expansion of the spectrum of drugs of abuse and introduced controls over a number of synthetic drugs according to their abuse potential on the one hand and their therapeutic value on the other.

United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, 1988

This Convention provides comprehensive measures against drug trafficking, including provisions against money laundering and the diversion of precursor chemicals. It provides for international cooperation through, for example, extradition of drug traffickers, controlled deliveries and transfer of proceedings.

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989.

The Convention spells out the basic human rights that children everywhere have. Article 33 states that governments shall protect children from the illicit use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

Political Declarations

The 2009 "Political Declaration and Plan of Action on International Cooperation towards an Integrated and Balanced Strategy to
Counter the World Drug Problem" is here (page 37, onwards).
The 1998 Political Declaration is here.
The 1998 Declaration on the Guiding Principles of Drug Demand Reduction is here. '

UN Drugs Policy - Excerpts

Article 33 from Convention on the Rights of the Child:

States Parties shall take all appropriate measures, including legislative, administrative, social and educational measures, to protect children from the illicit use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances as defined in the relevant international treaties, and to prevent the use of children in the illicit production and trafficking of such substances. 

Excerpts from the 2009 Political Declaration and Plan of Action:

(Comprehensive approach to drug demand reduction) "Some countries have implemented effective drug demand re(duction policies. However, drug demand reduction measures are often limited in the range of interventions they offer. Measures are frequently planned and carried out in isolation and address only part of the health and socio-economic problems associated with drug use and dependence.

Member States should:

(a) Develop, review and strengthen, as appropriate, comprehensive and integrated drug demand reduction policies and programmes, providing a continuum of prevention and care in the health-care and social services, from primary prevention to early intervention to treatment and to rehabilitation and social reintegration, and in related support services, aimed at promoting health and social well-being among individuals, families and communities and reducing the adverse consequences of drug abuse for individuals and society as a whole, taking into account the particular challenges posed by high-risk drug users [...]

(b) Deliver comprehensive policies and programmes using a multi-agency approach, including health-care, social-care, criminal justice, employment and education agencies, non-governmental organizations and civil society, which should take full advantage of the activities of non-governmental and civil society organizations;

(f) Deliver prevention programmes based on scientific evidence, both universal and targeted, in a range of settings (such as schools, families, the media, workplaces, communities, health and social services and prisons);

(h) Consider developing a comprehensive treatment system offering a wide range of integrated pharmacological (such as detoxification and opioid agonist and antagonist maintenance) and psychosocial (such as counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy and social support) interventions based on scientific evidence and focused on the process of rehabilitation, recovery and social reintegration;

(i) Strengthen their efforts aimed at reducing the adverse consequences of drug abuse for individuals and society as a whole, taking into consideration not only the prevention of related infectious diseases, such as HIV, hepatitis B and C and tuberculosis, but also all other health consequences, such as overdose, workplace and traffic accidents and somatic and psychiatric disorders, and social consequences, such as family problems, the effects of drug markets in communities and crime.

Member States should:

(a) Ensure that access to drug treatment that is affordable, culturally appropriate and based on scientific evidence is available and that drug dependence care services are included in health-care systems, whether public or private, with the involvement of primary and, where appropriate, specialized health-care services, in accordance with national legislation;

(b) Ensure, where appropriate, the sufficient availability of substances for medication-assisted therapy, including those within the scope of control under the international drug control conventions, as part of a comprehensive package of services for the treatment of drug dependence; [...]

(Alternative development:) Member states should:

Reinforce international assistance in addressing the eradication of illicit drug crop cultivation and illicit drug production through integrated and sustainable alternative development;

Establish, where possible, sustainable alternative development programmes, in particular in drug-producing regions, including those with high levels of poverty, as they are more vulnerable to exploitation by traffickers and more likely to be affected by the illicit cultivation of drug crops and the illicit production of and trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances;

Consider, where appropriate, including in their national development strategies, integrated and sustainable alternative development programmes, recognizing that poverty and vulnerability are some of the factors behind illicit drug crop cultivation and that poverty eradication is a principal objective of the Millennium Development Goals; and request development organizations and international financial institutions to ensure that alternative development strategies, including, when appropriate, preventive alternative development programmes, are incorporated into poverty reduction strategy papers and country assistance strategies for States affected by the illicit cultivation of crops used for the production of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances;

Excerpts from the 1998 Political Declaration:

"Drugs destroy lives and communities, undermine sustainable human development and generate crime. Drugs affect all sectors of society in all countries; in particular, drug abuse affects the freedom and development of young people, the world’s most valuable asset. Drugs are a grave threat to the health and well-being of all mankind, the independence of States, democracy, the stability of nations, the structure of all societies, and the dignity and hope of millions of people and their families"  

Excerpts from the 1998 Declaration on the Guiding Principles of Drug Demand Reduction:

Programmes to reduce the demand for drugs should be part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce the demand for all substances of abuse. Such programmes should be integrated to promote cooperation among all concerned, should include a wide variety of appropriate interventions, should promote health and social well-being among individuals, families and communities and should reduce the adverse consequences of drug abuse for the individual and for society as a whole.

(Guiding Principles:) There shall be a balanced approach between demand reduction and supply reduction, each reinforcing the other, in an integrated approach to solving the drug problem;

Demand reduction policies shall:

(i) Aim at preventing the use of drugs and at reducing the adverse consequences of drug abuse;

(ii) Provide for and encourage active and coordinated participation of individuals at the community level, both generally and in situations of particular risk, by virtue, for example, of their geographical location, economic conditions or relatively large addict populations

(iii) Be sensitive to both culture and gender;

(iv) Contribute towards developing and sustaining supportive environments.

(Tackling the problem:) Demand reduction programmes should cover all areas of prevention, from discouraging initial use to reducing the negative health and social consequences of drug abuse. They should embrace information, education, public awareness, early intervention, counselling, treatment, rehabilitation, relapse prevention, aftercare and social reintegration. Early help and access to services should be offered to those in need

(Forging partnerships:) A community-wide participatory and partnership approach is crucial to the accurate assessment of the problem, the identification of viable solutions and the formulation and implementation of appropriate policies and programmes. Collaboration among Governments, non-governmental organizations, parents, teachers, health professionals, youth and community organizations, employers’ and workers’ organizations and the private sector is therefore essential. Such collaboration improves public awareness and enhances the capacity of communities to deal with the negative consequences of drug abuse. Public responsibility and awareness and community mobilization are of paramount importance to ensuring the sustainability of demand reduction strategies.

(Focusing on special needs:) In order to promote the social reintegration of drug-abusing offenders, where appropriate and consistent with the national laws and policies of Member States, Governments should consider providing, either as an alternative to conviction or punishment, or in addition to punishment, that abusers of drugs should undergo treatment, education, aftercare, rehabilitation and social reintegration. Member States should develop within the criminal justice system, where appropriate, capacities for assisting drug abusers with education, treatment and rehabilitation services. In this overall context, close cooperation between criminal justice, health and social systems is a necessity and should be encouraged.

(Sendinng the right message:) Information utilized in educational and prevention programmes should be clear, scientifically accurate and reliable, culturally valid, timely and, where possible, tested with a target population. Every attempt should be made to ensure credibility, avoid sensationalism, promote trust and enhance effectiveness. States should, in cooperation with the media, seek to raise public consciousness about the hazards of drug use and to promote prevention messages, countering the promotion of drug use in popular culture.