DrugWatch International, Inc.(tm)
"International
NGO
in Special
Consultative
Status
with
the
Economic
and
Social
Council
of the
United
Nations"
P.O.
Box
45218
- Omaha,
NE 68145-0218.
Phone: (402) 384-9212
Fax: (402) 397-3309 -
E-mail: DrugWatch@aol.com
Web: www.DrugWatch.org
October 17, 2002
To: The European Parliament and Questor Mary Banotti (mbanotti@europarl.eu.int)
Drug Watch International, Inc.(tm) is aware of and opposes efforts being made to persuade the European Parliament, to modify the UN Conventions on Narcotic Drugs and allow the legalization of cannabis. We urge members of the European Parliament to support these Conventions as they now exist and prevail upon them to refrain from modifying in any way their original positions as individual signatories, specifically any considerations that might weaken Conventions pertaining to cannabis. Modifying the UN Conventions on Narcotic Drugs would impact the UN Conventions on the Rights of the Child, in which these same Signatories have commited themselves to work toward an environment free from drugs.
In each country where use and possession of cannabis has been decriminalized, use has increased dramatically, particularly among the young, and cultivation of extremely potent cannabis hybrids has become rampant. Currently, in the U.S., toxic reaction to this potent cannabis equals cocaine and heroin as a cause for hospital emergency room treatment. Additionally, it is a leading cause of emergency psychiatric admissions.
More than 15,000 scientific research papers attest to the fact that cannabis impairs short term memory, undermines the immune system, impairs motor function, contributes to head and neck cancer, causes premature apoptosis (death) of germ cells, causes changes in the structure of DNA, and a host of other serious physiological side effects. If decriminalized, cannabis use by students would become as common as cigarette smoking, except it would impair their ability to learn. Further, long term use would no doubt lead to even greater numbers of unnecessary deaths than tobacco, as cannabis has more carcinogens and other toxins.
Harm reduction measures, more often than not, favor drug use, in that these measures typically make drugs more accessible, affordable, and "safer" to use, while disregarding the harm the drug user imposes on society. Poverty, illness, lack of education, pollution, violence, child abuse, child prostitution, terrorism -- there is not one ailment of society that is not created or worsened by the use of psychoactive and addictive substances. Surely we are not willing to burden our children and our grandchildren with this blight simply because a few individuals believe it is their right to use drugs?
Regardless of how the message to legalize drugs is packaged, there can be no doubt that legalization will increase availability and availability will increase use. Cannabis addiction is currently the major cause of substance abuse treatment for adolescents in the U.S. and demand for treatment is far greater than the availability. If cannabis is legalized this problem will only worsen. The emphasis should be on prevention, and prevention education messages inculcated into the education curricula at every level, as well as supported by the media. Only through a concerted effort in this area will the world be able to defend itself against the charlatans who claim that free access to debilitating psychoactive and addictive substances is better for society than enforcing restriction of access.
We urge the European Union to consider the future of the world and its children and refuse to modify the United Nations conventions on Narcotic drugs toward a more liberal stance.
Drug Watch International, Inc., a charitable nonprofit composed of drug prevention specialists from around the world, was formed in 1991. It's purpose is to provide the public, policy makers, and the media with current information, factual research and expert resources on issues related to illicit drug and drug policy, and to counter drug-advocacy propaganda. Drug Watch is an International NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.
Sincerely,
Charles
Perkins,
President
Drug
Watch
International
Cc:
The
Hon.
John
Walters,
ONDCP
Fax: 202-395-6708
Hon.
John
Negroponte,
Ambassador
of the
United
States
to the
United
Nations
New York, New York
Fax: 212 415 4303
Sr.
Gabriel
Montalvo,
The
Papal
Nuncio
to the
EEU,
Washington,
D.C.,
Fax: 202 337 4036
Acting
Vatican
Ambassador
to the
United
Nations,
Fax: 212 370 9622
URGENT URGENT URGENT URGENT
Let us stop the legalisers !
Dear Friends:
Today we have started the campaign, The 2003 Vienna Declaration, to support the UN Conventions on Drugs and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and by that to also counteract the pro drug advocates and their efforts to seek political support to undermine the UN conventions. If they succeed it will open the door for worldwide legalization of illicit drugs. The campaign is coordinated by HNN international Centre in Sweden,
The aim is to reach 1 million signatures before April 2003 - a real challenge! But if we ALL - as committed citizens, parents, members of different organizations - do our utmost to spread the declaration and encourage people to sign and spread it further - we will succeed! The collection of signatures will be presented to the UN at the UN conference in Vienna! To achieve our aim we need all committed people we can reach around the world. YOU are one of them! YOU are important!
This is an appeal to all drug preventionists everywhere to join the campaign and to do all you can (spread the declaration and encourage people and organizations to sign it) to make The 2003 Vienna Declaration a huge success! Time is short but - Together we can do it!
Some suggestions of what you can do:
- Send the Declaration via e-mail to as many people as possible and encourage them to sign and send it further. Do not forget your friends abroad! We need signatures from around the world.
- Send the Declaration to organizations and NGOs and encourage them, as individuals and organizations, to do the same.
- Try to collect as many signatures as possible, maybe your children, neighbors, church... would like to help. Maybe you can place the Declaration and name-lists at the local police station, in shops, in nursery schools, in doctors waiting rooms ....
- If you have good connection with media (radio, national and local newspapers, TV) - try to get them interested in the campaign and what the legalizers are up to.
- If you are member of an organization with a homepage - try to place information about the campaign on the web site and a link to The Vienna Declaration on it.
- I am sure you can think of more possibilities. Only our own fantasy and creativity limit what we can do!
LET US START THE WORK NOW!
The
full
text
and
information
of The
Vienna
Declaration
can
be found
on:
Web: http://www.hnnsweden.com/declaration/
Everything
that
is needed
to gather
signatures
can
be downloaded
as PDF-files
from:
Web: http://www.hnnsweden.com/collect_signatures
If you have any questions or suggestions please contact secretariat@hnnsweden.com
Regards,
MaLou
Lindholm
Deputy Director HNN International Centre
Delagate to Drug Watch International
