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4441 items
  1. Human rights and drug policy

    • Ernestien Jensema
    18 June 2018
    Primer

    An accessible but comprehensive primer on why TNI believes that human rights must be at the heart of any debate on drug control.

  2. Alternative development and human rights

    Martin Jelsma
    24 October 2018
    Article

    Around the world, millions of people depend on the cultivation of coca, opium poppy and cannabis for basic subsistence. The 1961 Convention introduced strict controls on the cultivation of these plants and banned centuries-old traditional medicinal, cultural and ceremonial uses. The 1988 Convention reinforced those provisions, obliging states to eradicate illicit cultivation and to impose criminal sanctions.

  3. “The drug market is thriving” while the Commission on Narcotic Drugs limps along

    Ann Fordham
    11 April 2018
    Article

    The admission by UN's lead agency for drugs, the UNODC,  that “the drug market is thriving” in its 2017 World Drug Report is an important one given that it is months away from 2019 – the target date by which governments committed to “significantly reduce or eliminate” the global drug market. At the recent annual gathering of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in Vienna, this abysmal failure to claim any progress towards these  ‘drug-free’ targets was the backdrop to the latest round of tense negotiations on global drug control.

  4. A new ‘war on drugs’ is short sighted and naive

    Tom Blickman
    18 September 2019
    Opinion

    When the Dutch government liberalised cannabis policy in 1976, they understood that the legalisation and regulation of cannabis was actually the best solution, or at least the least bad one.

  5. Transnational Institute’s Drugs & Democracy Programme Team

    World Drug Day 2018

    26 June 2018
    Declaration

    Today, on the United Nations’ International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (26th June), governments around the world are commemorating their decades-long support of the global war on drugs. 

  6. The elegant way to end global cannabis prohibition: Inter se modification

    18 October 2018
    Multi-media

    Countries that embrace legal regulation find themselves in breach of international law. In this video, we explain a strategy to resolve those treaty tensions and to enable progressive and sustainable change at the global level.

  7. The 9th Asian Informal Drug Policy Dialogue

    31 May 2018
    Report

    In December 2017, the Transnational Institute (TNI) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany (BMZ), in collaboration with the Thai Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) and the Mae Fah Luang Foundation under Royal Patronage (MFLF), jointly organised the 9th Asian Informal Drug Policy Dialogue (IDPD) in Chiang Rai, Thailand. 

  8. Drug Law Reform

    12 July 2017
    Topic

    The TNI/CEDD (Colectivo de Estudios Drogas y Derecho / Research Consortium on Drugs and the Law ) Drug Law Reform Project promotes more effective and humane drug policies through analysis of existing drug control policies and by promoting dialogue among key stakeholders and decision-makers. The project is focused on Latin America and hopes to stimulate  reforms by pointing out good practices and lessons learned in areas such as proportionality of sentences, prison reform, and the status of the coca leaf in the international conventions.

  9. Transnational Institute’s Drugs & Democracy Programme Team

    World Drug Day 2019

    26 June 2019
    Declaration

    Today marks the United Nations’ International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Its origin can be traced back to the institutional architecture of the global drug control system which for the last five decades has served as a mechanism that regulates, controls, or prohibits the use and distribution of more than 300 psychoactive substances.

  10. The 10th Asian Informal Drug Policy Dialogue

    02 May 2019
    Report

    From 15 to 18 November 2018, the Transnational Institute (TNI) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) jointly organised the 10th Asian Informal Drug Policy Dialogue (IDPD). It was organised in collaboration with the Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control (CCDAC) of Myanmar and held at Inle Lake, Southern Shan State, Myanmar.

  11. Women and drugs in Myanmar: Beyond harm reduction

    Dania Putri
    08 March 2018
    Article

    In Myanmar’s Kachin State, a women’s drop-in centre has transformed into more than just a harm reduction facility. Leading up to International Women’s Day, we spoke with Thinzar Tun (AHRN Myanmar) about what makes this centre special.

  12. Canada’s next steps on cannabis and the UN Drug Treaties

    David Bewley-Taylor, Tom Blickman, Martin Jelsma, John Walsh
    03 April 2018
    Opinion

    Ever since the introduction of Bill C-45, questions have been swirling concerning Canada’s position relative to the UN drug control conventions: conventions to which Canada is a party and that, crucially, prohibit the creation of regulated markets for the recreational use of cannabis.

  13. Will Myanmar complete its transition towards an evidence-based approach to drug control?

    Renaud Cachia
    20 March 2018
    Article

    The recent publication of two single pieces of legislation - the amended 1993 Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law and the first National Drug Control Policy - is likely to form the basis of Myanmar’s drug policy for several years to come. What does it mean for the country’s transition towards an evidence-based approach to drug control, and how can the gaps between the two documents be addressed?

  14. Donald Trump

    Trump to Host UN Meeting on Drug Policy: Veneer of Consensus Masks Deep Disagreement on Global Drug Policy

    John Walsh, Ann Fordham, Martin Jelsma, Hannah Hetzer
    22 September 2018
    Article

    The "Global Call to Action" document that the U.S. government is circulating—and heavily pressuring reluctant countries to sign—is explicitly “not open for negotiation.” Far from an effort at achieving mutual understanding and genuine consensus, it is an instance of heavy-handed U.S. “with us or against us” diplomacy.

  15. In bid to intimidate Canada on cannabis regulation, INCB is reckless and wrong

    John Walsh, Martin Jelsma
    07 May 2018
    Article

    How constructive is the UN drug treaty monitoring body's response to Canada's proposed new cannabis law legislation?

  16. Growers' voices at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs

    Sai Lone, Pedro Arenas
    24 November 2019
    Declaration

    From 16 to 18 October 2019, representatives of member states, intergovernmental organisations, and civil society attended the 6th Intersessional Meeting of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs. On 17 October 2019, representatives of coca and opium growers from Colombia and Myanmar delivered statements highlighting the situation of communities involved in the illicit cultivation of coca and opium in both countries. Below are their full statements.

  17. We from the police advise: more money and powers for the police

    Tom Blickman
    08 September 2018
    Opinion

    The recent report ‘The Netherlands and Synthetic Drugs: An Inconvenient Truth’ argues for increasing resources to expand anti-drug efforts in the Netherlands. In a topical opinion piece, Tom Blickman addresses the crucial issues at hand.

  18. Connecting the dots... Human rights, illicit cultivation and alternative development

    • Martin Jelsma
    22 October 2018
    Report

    How can we resolve the tensions between current drug control policies and states’ human rights obligations? The international human rights framework clearly establishes that, in the event of conflicts between obligations under the UN Charter and other international agreements, human rights obligations take precedence. As legally regulated cannabis markets start to grow, now is the time to secure a legitimate place for small farmers using alternative development, human rights and fair trade principles.

  19. INCB hearing on the use of cannabis for medical and non-medical purposes

    David Bewley-Taylor
    14 May 2018
    Article

    TNI's Prof. Dave Bewley-Taylor recently delivered a statement on how states can reconcile treaty obligations with democratically mandated policy shifts at the national level to a legally regulated cannabis market, with due regard for international law, and what role the International Narcotics Control Board can play in this process.

  20. Online course “Drugs, drug use, drug policy and health”

    10 July 2018
    Article

    What are drugs and why are they controlled? What are the benefits and harms of taking drugs? How public health policies can address drug use? Learn the answers to these questions and more in the free online course 'Drugs, drug use, drug policy and health'.

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