A- A A+

Singapur. Singapore hangs man for trafficking 1.5kg of cannabis

The execution is the second in three weeks and comes amid growing concern at the city state’s use of the death penalty for drug offences. (Al Jazeera, Katar, 17.05.2023)

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/17/singapore-hangs-man-for-trafficking-1-5kg-of-cannabis

Iran. Iran hangs three on drug charges amid criticism

The latest executions were carried out after offenders were reportedly caught with large quantities of heroin. (Al Jazeera, Katar, 21.05.2023)

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/21/iran-hangs-three-on-drug-charges-amid-criticism

The death penalty: a breach of human rights and ethics of care

The Lancet, 

The Lancet, Volume 401, Issue 10389, 1629 

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)01004-8/fulltext

Iran. Todesstrafen in Iran: Wo bleibt der Aufschrei? 

In Iran steigt die Zahl der Hinrichtungen, berichtet Amnesty. Das Regime schickt gleichzeitig versöhnliche Zeichen an den Westen – und der schweigt. (Die Tageszeitung, 16.05.2023)

https://taz.de/Todesstrafen-in-Iran/!5931888/

Iran: “Frightening” number of executions as Türk calls for end to death penalty 

UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk today expressed dismay at the frighteningly high number of executions this year in Iran, and called on authorities to follow the lead of most other States and to abolish the death penalty or halt all executions.

“On average so far this year, over 10 people are put to death each week in Iran, making it one the world’s highest executors,” said Türk. Since 1 January, sources say at least 209 people have been executed -- mostly for drug-related offences and a disproportionately high number representing minorities. The exact number of executions is unknown due to lack of Government transparency, and the figure is likely to be higher. (UN Human Rights – Office oft the High Commissioner, Genf, 09.05.2023)

https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/05/iran-frightening-number-executions-turk-calls-end-death-penalty

Iran. Iran hangs ‘sultan of cocaine’ as UN warns of rising executions

UN human rights chief says Iran has executed more than 10 people each week so far this year. (Al Jazeera, Katar, 10.05.2023)

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/10/iran-hangs-sultan-of-cocaine-as-un-warns-of-rising-executions

UN. Contribution of the Human Rights Council with regard to the human rights implications of drug policy.

Human Rights Council, Fifty-second session, 27 February–4 April 2023

A/HRC/52/L.22/Rev.1

https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/LTD/G23/066/18/PDF/G2306618.pdf?OpenElement

Singapur. Singapore executes man for trafficking two pounds of cannabis 

A Singaporean man convicted of trying to traffic around 2.2 pounds of cannabis was executed on Wednesday, a sentence lambasted by rights groups and campaigners for its severity at a time when many other nations, including neighboring countries, have adopted a more lenient approach towards drugs and capital punishment. (CNN, USA, 26.04.2023)

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/04/25/asia/singapore-cannabis-execution-tangaraju-suppiah-intl-hnk/index.html

Malaysia. Malaysia set to scrap mandatory death penalty for range of serious crimes

Reform could mean reprieves for some of the 1,300 prisoners on death row, including 500 foreigners. (The Guardian, UK, 04.04.2023)

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/04/malaysia-set-to-scrap-mandatory-death-penalty-for-range-of-serious-crimes

Afghanistan: Rounded up from the streets into Taliban drug rehab

"I was under the bridge trying to get some drugs when I felt a hand grab me from behind. It was the Taliban. They had come to take us away."

Mohamed Omar recalls the moment Taliban soldiers showed up unexpectedly at the Pul-e-Sukhta bridge in western Kabul.

Long before the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, the area was a notorious hangout for drug addicts.

In recent months, they have been rounding up hundreds of men across the capital - from the bridge, from parks and from the hilltops. Most have been taken to a former US military base, which has been turned into a makeshift rehabilitation centre. (BBC, Uk, 03.04.2023)

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-65138423

Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at the 66th CND (Video)

(Drug Reporter, Ungarn, 19.03.2023, Video, 05:06)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=ph6gMbGmIrA

The Death Penalty for Drug Offences: Global Overview 2022

Harm Reduction International has monitored the use of the death penalty for drug offences worldwide since our first ground-breaking publication on this issue in 2007. This report, our twelfth on the subject, continues our work of providing regular updates on legislative, policy and practical developments related to the use of capital punishment for drug offences, a practice which is a clear violation of international standards. (HRI – Harm Reduction International, UK, März 2023)

https://hri.global/flagship-research/death-penalty/the-death-penalty-for-drug-offences-global-overview-2022/

How harsh drug laws undermine health and human rights in Asia Pacific

A 38-country legal and policy analysis by UNAIDS and UNDP found that 14 countries in the region have corporal or capital punishment penalties for the use or possession of drugs. Some states have condoned extrajudicial killings for drug offences.  In 2021 an estimated 12% of new HIV infections in Asia and the Pacific were among people who inject drugs. (UNAIDS and UNDP, New York, 01-03-2023)

https://unaids-ap.org/2023/03/01/how-harsh-drug-laws-undermine-health-and-human-rights-in-asia-pacific/

The international regime of drug control may violate the human right to life and security. 

Johnstad PG. 

Int J Drug Policy. 2023 Feb 7;113:103960. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.103960. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36758337.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0955395923000099

Kambodscha. Submission to the UN CESCR on Cambodia - Amnesty International

This submission has been prepared in advance of the consideration by the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (the Committee) at its 73rd session of the second periodic report on Cambodia’s implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (the Covenant). (Amnesty International, UK, 08.02.2023)

https://idpc.net/publications/2023/2/submission-to-the-un-cescr-on-cambodia-amnesty-international

Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka: Reject the Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill: Open letter to Members of Parliament in Sri Lanka

Harm Reduction International, the International Drug Policy Consortium, and Amnesty International urge Members of Parliament in Sri Lanka to take a strong stance against the Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill, which the government is scheduled to present again with amendments in Parliament this Wednesday 18th January. (amnesty international, UK 17.01.2923)

https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa37/6359/2023/en/

Pakistan. Bill abolishing death sentence on narcotics dealing passed

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday passed the Control of Narcotics Substance Amendment Bill 2022, abolishing the death penalty for those involved in the dealing of drugs and converted it into life imprisonment. (The Express tribune, Pakistan, 20.12.2022)

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2391995/bill-passed-to-abolish-death-sentence-on-narcotics-dealing

Council of the European Union. Council conclusions on human rights-based approach in drug policies

General Secretariat of the Council, Brüssel, 08.12.2022

https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-15818-2022-INIT/en/pdf

For the third year in a row, 100+ NGOs urge UNODC Director to mark International Human Rights Day by calling for rights-affirming drug policies

We urge you to mark International Human Rights Day 2022 by calling on Member States to change drug policies and practices to fulfil the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to place human rights at the centre of all dimensions of UNODC’s work. (International Drug Policy Consortium, UK, 01.12.2022)

https://idpc.net/news/2022/12/for-the-third-year-in-a-row-100-ngos-urge-unodc-director-to-mark-international-human-rights-day

Open letter: Halt executions for drug offences in Saudi Arabia - Harm Reduction International

Harm Reduction International and the European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights, together with 34 co-signing organisations, urge the United Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) to take all possible steps to halt the spate of drug-related executions witnessed in Saudi Arabia since 10 November 2022; against official commitments and international standards.

Since January 2020, Saudi Arabia had halted executions for drug-related offences, and in January 2021 the head of the official Human Rights Commission, Awwad Al-Awwad, had announced their suspension, deeming it intended to “give a second chance” to individuals not facing charges for violent crimes.

On November 10, 2022, Saudi Arabia suddenly and without warning resumed executions for drug-related crimes, and as of November 24, 2022, it announced 20 executions for drug crimes. According to data published by the Saudi Ministry of Interior, the victims are all men, and of the following nationalities: 8 of Saudi, 5 of Syrian, 3 of Pakistani, 2 of Nigerian, and 2 of Jordanian nationality.

https://hri.global/publications/open-letter-to-drug-control-bodies-against-drug-related-executions-in-saudi-arabia/

Effects of media representations of drug related deaths on public stigma and support for harm reduction. 

Sumnall HR, Atkinson AM, Montgomery C, Maynard OM, Nicholls J. 

Int J Drug Policy. 2022 Nov 15;111:103909. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2022.103909. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36399962.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0955395922003255

'As for dignity and respect…. me bollix': A human rights-based exploration of service user narratives in Irish methadone maintenance treatment. 

Healy R, Goodwin J, Kelly P. 

Int J Drug Policy. 2022 Nov 6;110:103901. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2022.103901. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36351318.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0955395922003176

Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka: Draft ‘Rehabilitation’ Law Would Spur Abuse

Proposes Detention Without Judicial Review at Military-Run Centers. (HRW – Human Rights Watch, USA, 17.10.2022)

https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/10/17/sri-lanka-draft-rehabilitation-law-would-spur-abuse

Death Penalty For Drug Offences: Global Overview 2021

Harm Reduction International has monitored the use of the death penalty for drug offences worldwide since our first ground-breaking publication on this issue in 2007. This report, our eleventh on the subject, continues our work of providing regular updates on legislative, policy and practical developments related to the use of capital punishment for drug offences, a practice which is a clear violation of international law. (HRI – Harm Reduction International, UK, September 2022)

https://www.hri.global/death-penalty-2021

Iran. Iran: At least 251 Executed; Sharp Rise in Executions in First Six Months of 2022

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); July 1, 2022: At least 251 people including six women and 67 Baluch minorities were executed in Iranian prisons in the first six months of 2022. This is double the number of executions in the same period in 2021 when 117 people were executed. (Iran Human Rights Net, 01.07.2022)

https://iranhr.net/en/articles/5322/

Singapur. Singapore: UN experts call for immediate moratorium on executions for drug offences

GENEVA (29 July 2022) – UN experts* today condemned the execution of Nazeri Bin Lajim, a 64-year-old Malay Singaporean national convicted of drug offenses and urged the Government of Singapore to halt plans to execute individuals on death row for drugrelated charges.

There has been a sharp rise in execution notices issued in Singapore this year. (United Nations, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Genf, 29.07.2022)

https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/07/singapore-un-experts-call-immediate-moratorium-executions-drug-offences

Schweiz. Behandlung von Opioidabhängigkeit: Sind Urinproben legitim?

Carole-Anne Baud, Dr. iur., SNF-Forscherin, Universität Lausanne , Barbara Broers, Professorin in Suchtmedizin, Universitätsspital Genf, Valérie Junod, Rechtprofessorin, Universitäten Genf und Lausanne, Caroline Schmitt-Koopmann, Master in Pharmazeutischen Wissenschaften, Doktorandin, Universität Lausanne, Olivier Simon, Lehr- und Forschungsbeauftragter, Suchtmedizin, Universitätsspital Lausanne 

Schweizerische Ärztezeitung, 24.05.2022, Anmerkung der Autorinnen und Autoren: Dieses Positionspapier ist eine für Angehörige der Gesundheitsberufe bestimmte Anpassung des juristischen Artikels: Junod V, Baud C-A, Broers B, Schmitt-Koopmann C, Simon O. Tests urinaires dans le traitement médical de la dépendance aux opioïdes: Fin d’une pratique anachronique? sui generis. 2021;331–40.?) 

https://saez.ch/tour-dhorizon?tx_swablog_postdetail%5Bpost%5D=212

USA. Trump Urges Death Penalty for Drug Dealers: 'China Has No Drug Problem'

Former President Donald Trump says the U.S. should model its response to the illegal narcotics trade on China, where he said accused drug dealers are executed after swift trials. (Newsweek, USA, 09.07.2022)

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-urges-death-penalty-drug-dealers-china-has-no-drug-problem-1723134

Singapur. Singapore carries out fifth execution since March

Nazeri bin Lajim was hanged early on Friday morning for drug offences, the latest in a ‘relentless wave’ of executions. (Al Jazeera, Katar, 22.07.2022)

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/7/22/singapore-carries-out-fifth-execution-since-march

Racial and ethnic differences in alcohol, cannabis, and illicit substance use treatment: a systematic review and narrative synthesis of studies done in the USA

Jordan, Ayana et al.

The Lancet Psychiatry, Volume 9, Issue 8, 660 - 675 

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(22)00160-2/fulltext