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Your mix of September drug-related developments from around the world
Good Friday morning. I hope that your week is ending on a positive note, with your substance of choice to begin the weekend.
We're going to be trying a different format this newsletter, separating UK news from the rest of the world, and including a summary of the TalkingDrugs stories at the bottom, alongside some events we've picked up in our monitoring. Do let us know if you prefer this format or a more mixed version.
ALTEREDBRITANNIA
Step back in HAT: Disheartening news from the north of England as Middlesbrough's Heroin Assisted Treatment clinic has been defunded, meaning there are only a few months left of its operation. A PhD researcher into its impact contacted TD to publish lessons learnt from the project, and alludes to the reasons why it was defunded.
Neo-liberaLiz: Previous Release member Kojo Koram wrote for the New York Times on the legacy of the British Empire living through Liz Truss' adherence to neoliberalism. A great and incisive critique that got many Daily Mail writers irate. Koram will also be running a short after-work course with Release's Imani Mason Jordan on UK drug policy and racial justice, beginning on 6 October. Check it out here.
Truss (not) on drugs: The Face has a deep look into Truss' previous views on drugs, exploring her "radical" past as a monarchy-bashing, weed-supporting, probably-called-woke-nowadays Lib Dem past. It's an alright piece of coverage, with some cannabis tropes out in the text, but useful nonetheless to understand her past in our policy area. If anything, it's clear that although she may personally agree with the arguments behind cannabis' legalisation, her party may not be very interested in advocating for this stance.
Labour disappointments: Shadow Justice Sec Steve Reed has just found more ways of disappointing progressives that thought Labour could be a voice of reason in the drug policy fight by framing Sadiq Khan as wanting to turn areas of London into drug supermarkets. He refuted any chance of legalising drugs, and showed a poor understanding of what the evidence on drug control shows.
Drugs & children: Positive research unveiled in The Conversation by Ian Hamilton and Harry Sumanll, who raised that NHS Digital surveys revealed that drug use has fallen by 12% in 2021, with an overall reduction of 24% in young people reporting using drugs from 2018 to 2021. Although such data doesn't show why this happened, they posit that pressure in education and social media perceptions may have influenced use rates.
Scottish hostages: Release's Andre Gomes wrote for Novara Media exploring the state of drug response in Scotland, and how policy change there is being hampered by inaction within Westminster. A deeper analysis of the Scottish situation, thanks to Peter Krykant's strong words, shows that much can be done now to save people's lives, but deep policy change will have to come from the UK's capital.
GLOBALDRUGS
Not your PayPal: Early in the month, the org INPUD saw their payment system closed off with little explanation why. Online businesses will frequently use a narrow interpretation of their rules to shutter drug-related organisations and businesses, so it was good to see that the org managed to raise their complaints and overturn the decision quickly.
Psychedelics in SF?: A lot of news came out from San Francisco about a mayoral policy to decriminalise psychedelics. A deeper look by the Release staff indicated that this however was just a suggestion rather than a legal change, and that police could continue to enforce their criminalisation. Details on this are yet to emerge, but it could be a positive step forward if true.
Drug-czeching: The Czech presidency of the EU has brought together heads of drug control authorities from Europe to discuss the harmonisation of drug control across the continent. This is an interesting development to follow as regulation changes could go to the European parliament in early 2023. Definitely a development to follow.
Canadian activism: DULF has had some positive coverage on the Guardian, exploring how they are advocating for drug safe supply across the country to combat the tainted ilegal drug market. Over the last six years, the vast majority of overdose deaths in British Columbia have been driven by impurities in street drugs.
Meth in Fiji: As a strategic port for global drug trafficking, Fiji has begun to develop serious drug-related societal issues as a result of the rich drug trade happening through it. VICE investigates some of its causes, as well as its local impact. Great coverage from an under-reported region.
Papi Petro: The latest darling in drug policy reform, president-elect Gustavo Petro made waves in his first UN speech, strongly condemning Western imperialism and the global War on Drugs. In a quote-laden speech, he condemns the irrational WoD and the need to save the Amazon rainforest. Some key quotes found here.
New approach: The president of Timor Leste, a small nation in the Asian Pacific has come out in support of a new approach to drugs in the nation, one similar to Portugal, its former colonial power. As a member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, his support for drug changes is monumental for the region.
KEY EVENTS
Kojo Koram will be running a short after-work course with Release's Imani Mason Jordan on UK drug policy and racial justice at the Birkbeck University, beginning on 6 October. Check it out here.
Drugs and (dis)order seminar series running online, featuring Release's Director Niamh Eastwood. You can see all the details here.
This month Imani Mason Jordan has left the TalkingDrugs team after working as its editor since 2019. We thank them for their work in intersecting abolition and drug policy, and expanding the type of audiences traditionally viewing TalkingDrugs. The entire Release and TalkingDrugs team thanks Imani for their invaluable contributions.
Guidelines for Colombia’s New Drug Policy under Petro
In an effort to guide future Colombian drug policy, several researchers from the Centro de Estudios y Seguridad y Drogas (CESED) in the University of the Andes have come together to identify the key goals that the national government should pursue in the future. Read it here.
Maltese Non-profit Cannabis May be The Way Forward
In December 2021, Malta made history as the first European country to legalise cannabis for recreational purposes. While the system is still being implemented, its focus on social justice and public health concerns has been refreshing for cannabis control, and sets out a model that could be copied anywhere in the world. We interviewed the top regulators and activists of the country to understand their reasoning behind the model. Read it here.
Drug Executions in Iran Are Back on the Rise
A recent press release from Amnesty in July 2022 highlighted a spike in Iranian executions, where at least 251 people had been executed in the first half of 2022. This report was confirmed by local Iranian watchdog organisations, noting that more than a third of these executions (36%, or 91 people) had been for drug-related offences. This rise represents a rapid escalation in state-sponsored violence, occurring within a context of raising political unrest in the nation. Read it here.
Building A Parliamentary Front For Cannabis In Brazil
A cross-party parliamentary front has been established in Brazil, creating support for the mulitple reasons for the legal regulation of cannabis. Read the story here.
That's it for this month. If you have any interesting stories to share or have come across a noteworthy organisation, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. You can reply to this email or contact André on the communications side of Release at: andre@release.org.uk
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