Boiling point: Understanding new developments in global drug policy, and why they matter

When? Thursday, 12 October 2023 / 15:00 - 16:30 (CET - Vienna)

Where? Online - Register here!

The event will be available in English and Spanish.

As Vienna prepares for a high-level ‘mid-term review’ in March 2024 to take stock of progress made and challenges remaining for the international drug control regime, the past 10 months have already seen a number of important developments from across the United Nations system. From New York and the adoption by vote of a bold new General Assembly resolution on drugs in December 2022, to Geneva and the adoption of the third Human Rights Council resolution on drug policy paving the way for the new OHCHR report on drug policy, to the ongoing preparations in Vienna and the Commission on Narcotic Drugs – there is a great deal to take stock of and a busy period of activity approaching.

This online event will shine a light on some of the key UN developments, and their implications for the ongoing push for drug policies that advance social justice and human rights. The International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) will present their comprehensive 2023 CND Proceedings Report, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) will present their new report on the human rights implications of drug policy, and participants will have the opportunity to learn about and discuss these and other key developments.

Speakers:

• Keynote by Diego García Sayán, Global Commission on Drug Policy, former Minister of Justice and Human Rights of Peru and former UN Special Rapporteur on the on the independence of judges and lawyers
• Roberto Calzadilla Sarmiento, Ambassador of Bolivia in the Kingdom of the Netherlands
• Zaved Mahmood, Advisor on Human Rights and Drug Policy, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
• Marie Nougier, Head of Research and Communications, International Drug Policy Consortium
• Closing remarks by H.E. Philbert Isaac Kobina Abaka Johnson, Ambassador, Permanent Representation of Ghana to the United Nations in Vienna
• Moderated by Isabel Pereira, Senior Coordinator - Drug Policy, Dejusticia