Tag: UNODC
UN Update: Launch of the World Drug Report
Written by Orsi Fehér, founder and chapter leader of SSDP Österreich (Austria). For the 20th Anniversary of the Commission on Narcotic Drug’s “flagship publication”, a five-volume report on the “world drug problem” was launched at the Vienna headquarters of the United Nations on 22 June. We were there to witness an awkward assembly of participants. The back row seats were
CND 2015 is Underway in Vienna
The 58th sessions of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs is underway this week as member states and NGOs from around the world gather in Vienna, Austria for arguably the largest and most important international drug policy conference in the world. As a UN-recognized NGO since 2011, SSDP is invited every year to attend and observe the sessions and
Reform Resounds at the UN: Cracks in the Drug Policy Regime
At the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) last week, three Latin American presidents spoke out, in varying degrees, against the current prohibitionist drug policy model. The presidents of Mexico, Colombia and Guatemala each spoke about the impacts of the U.S.-led “war on drugs” and urged the need to explore alternatives, although none went so far as to mention legalization. All
What I learned at Summer School-Part 1
The summer has been flying by with the International AID’s conference, the Caravan for Peace and my participation last month in a two-week course presented by the Open Society Foundation supported Central European University on Human Rights and Drug Policy in Budapest, Hungary. The goal of the course is to “situate drug policies globally within a framework of fundamental human rights,
Further reflections on the United Nations from SSDP
The two speakers whose words resonated with me the most were H.E. Harold Caballeros of Guatemala and David K. Mineta of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). As Mahogany outlined in her earlier post, Caballeros stated that Guatemala is in the worst possible position for stability; the country is located between the biggest drug producer in the world
Attending the United Nations Thematic Debate on Drugs and Crime
On June 26th, 2012, I had the honor of attending the United Nations Thematic Debate on Drugs and Crime as a Threat to Development. As the newly elected Columbia University Chapter Vice President of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), I knew the insight gained from a meeting such as this would be invaluable for serving my term. The day
