 
March 11, 2009
Activists Denounce Renewed U.N. Anti-Drug Strategy
As the United Nations plans to officially extend its “war on drugs” policy for another 10 years this week, critics of the organization’s anti-narcotics initiative say it feeds organized crime, boosts HIV infection rates and undermines governments, Reuters reports.
According to the article, the U.N. drug strategy declaration is the result of a yearlong effort to agree on a unified counter-narcotics policy during the next decade. The previous campaign launched in 1998 under the slogan “A drug free world—we can do it,” calling on governments to take aim at all narcotics around the globe, from cannabis to heroin.
In the United States—where illegal drug use is highest—the government spends about $70 billion a year on anti-drug measures. However, illegal drug use has risen over the past decade, with a fifth of the prison population incarcerated because of drug offenses.
Critics of the U.N. drug policy also note that the organization fails to focus on harm-reduction strategies, such as needle-exchange programs for intravenous drug users, and that this failure promotes the spread of HIV and other disease.
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comments 1 - 3 (of 3 total)
techcafe, , 2009-03-13 20:19:08
as is the case with ALL WARS - the 'War on Drugs' is bloody insanity.
END THE STUPID WAR ON DRUGS NOW!
techcafe, , 2009-03-13 20:18:44
In the United States - where illegal drug use is highest - the US government spends around *$70 BILLION* a year to combat drugs. But illegal drug use has RISEN steadily over the past decade and a large percentage of the prison population is there for drug offences.
It is a tragic irony that the U.N., supposedly renowned for peacekeeping, is being used to fight a war that brings untold misery to some of the most marginalized people on earth.
cont...
techcafe, , 2009-03-13 20:16:37
The United Nations is expected to sign a declaration this week *extending for another 10 YEARS* an asinine "war on drugs" policy that is innately flawed, and only feeds organized crime, helps spread HIV and undermines governments.
"The war on drugs has failed, but they're going to commit themselves to it again," said Genevieve Horwood, a British barrister and member of the International Drug Policy Consortium, which pushes for new drug policies.
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