Release is the UK centre of expertise on drugs and drugs law - providing free and confidential specialist advice to the public and professionals. Release also campaigns for changes to UK drug policy to bring about a fairer and more compassionate legal framework to manage drug use in our society.

Release es un centro británico de expertos en drogas y políticas de drogas. La organización ofrece consejos expertos, gratuitos y confidenciales al público y a profesionales. Release lanza también campanas para que la política actual del Reino Unido en materia de drogas sea sustituida por un marco jurídico más justo y más humano para gestionar el problema de las drogas en nuestra sociedad.

Release est un centre britannique d’expertise en matière de drogues et des politiques qui y sont liées. L’organisation fournit des conseils experts, gratuits et confidentiels au public et aux professionnels. Release développe des campagnes afin que la politique des drogues britannique actuelle soit remplacée par un cadre juridique plus juste et plus humain.

Release

The submitting organisations are grateful to provide this shadow report to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination as part of their examination of the state racial disparity within the context of drug policy and its enforcement within England and Wales.

This submission focuses on and provides evidence of the role of drug laws and policies as drivers of discriminatory policing and incarceration, exploring how this leads to violations of human rights, including the rights to liberty and to be free from racial discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to health. As recently noted by the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health, contact with the criminal legal system is a social determinant of health, and therefore states have the obligation to reform criminal laws, policies, and practices with racially discriminatory outcomes - including drug-related laws, policies, and practices. Drug law enforcement disproportionately targets racialised communities, including people of African and Asian descent. This report focuses on the discriminatory application of drug law enforcement in England and Wales for children and adults alike, highlighting not only the experiences of those who are brought into contact with the criminal legal system but also how discriminatory practices are playing out within educational and health settings. Research indicates that decriminalisation of use, possession, cultivation and acquisition of drugs for personal use can reduce contact between police and Black communities.

We urge the Committee to reiterate the call for the decriminalisation of the use, possession, cultivation and acquisition of drugs for personal use, as has been done by multiple human rights mechanisms, including the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR), the Special Rapporteur on Health alongside 20 additional Special Procedure Mandates, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and in line with the broader position of the Chief Executives Board of the United Nations.

This report will address issues pertaining to the disproportionate impact of punitive drug policy on Black communities, including over-policing, inequitable criminal justice outcomes, the conflation between drug trafficking and exploitation of children, health inequalities experienced by Black and minority communities accessing drug treatment and housing, and recommendations. Our recommendations include proposals addressing the inherently racist nature of punitive drug policies through full decriminalisation, decarceration, divestment and redirection of resources away from policing and towards health and social support.

Reforming drug laws to address racial injustice - Submission to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD)

In this review article, we develop the case for the decriminalisation of drug possession in the UK by describing our ‘modest proposal’ to repeal the relevant sections of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and its advantages. We defend this proposal against possible critiques from both conservative and radical positions. On the conservative side, these criticisms include that it would increase drug use and harm and that it would be illegal under international law. From the more radical position, we anticipate the criticisms that decriminalisation of possession would leave the harm associated with illegal drug supply to continue, that it would leave in place restrictions on the rights to use drugs, that it would forego the possible tax income from a legally regulated market, and that the drug laws would continue to act as tools of social control. In response, we argue that decriminalisation offers a feasible first step towards reducing the harm of drug control which would not increase drug-related harm.

In defence of the decriminalisation of drug possession in the UK

We, the undersigned organisations, are deeply concerned about the drastic intensification of anti- drug operations in Sri Lanka leading to significant human rights violations.

On 17 December 2023 the Acting Inspector General of Police Deshabandu Tennekoon, with the endorsement of Minister of Public Security Tiran Alles, spearheaded an operation titled “Yukthiya”, with the stated aim of controlling “the drug menace”. The operation is ongoing as of 10 January 2024, with at least one thousand persons arrested daily.

This operation is unfolding in a context of already severe repression against persons who use or are suspected of using drugs, who suffer discrimination and stigma within the Sri Lankan criminal justice system and society.

Alongside the Sri Lankan police, members of the armed forces have been supporting this operation, during which several human rights violations have been reported. These violations include alleged arbitrary arrests, primarily against individuals from marginalised socio-economic communities; searches conducted without warrants or reasonable suspicion; and degrading treatment including strip searches in public as well as cavity searches. The searches and arrests have been televised, in violation not only of the right to privacy (and of basic human dignity) but also of a person’s right to be presumed innocent. According to lawyers, persons are being arrested even when no drugs are found in their possession, simply for having been arrested for drug offences or having been sent to compulsory rehabilitation in the past. The arrests of main livelihood earners and mothers have adversely impacted the ability of families to meet their basic needs during a time of economic crisis in Sri Lanka, and the wellbeing of children.

Persons are being arrested primarily under Section 54A of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, an offence which is non-bailable. As a result, those arrested are bound to spend time (sometimes months) in pretrial detention, thereby exacerbating already poor conditions of imprisonment in an overburdened prison system. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka has previously stated that the existing prison conditions and treatment of incarcerated persons are “inhumane and degrading.”At present, as per statistics issued by the Department of Prisons, the level of overcrowding of the prison system is at nearly 200% - with punitive drug policies playing a significant role: as of 2022, 63% of convicted persons were sentenced for drug-related offences.

The total reported number of arrests pursuant to operation Yukthiya has exceeded 29,000 as of 9 January 2024, while nearly 1,500 people are in administrative detention in police custody for further investigation.  At least 1,600 more persons have been sent for compulsory drug rehabilitation, in violation of several fundamental rights; including the right to the highest attainable standard of health, which includes the right to consent to and withdraw from medical treatment. “Drug treatment” in these centres is abstinence-based, essential harm reduction services are not available, and persons undergo severe withdrawal symptoms without any medical assistance while in detention. The use of violence to discipline and punish has been reported in at least two compulsory drug rehabilitation centres which are within the purview of the Bureau of the Commissioner General for Rehabilitation and are operated by the military, which is in itself a violation of international standards.

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in its statement at the conclusion of its visit to Sri Lanka in 2017 expressed concern regarding the involvement of military personnel in drug treatment and rehabilitation, the fact that strenuous physical exercise was the core component of compulsory drug treatment, and at the lack of trained professionals to monitor the health of people in detention. Furthermore, the statement highlighted the irregularities in the judicial process by which persons were sent to drug rehabilitation centres without a medical assessment.

More broadly, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture has highlighted that by denying persons access to substitution therapies, states are subjecting “a large group of people to severe physical pain, suffering and humiliation, effectively punishing them for using drugs and trying to coerce them into abstinence.” The Special Rapporteur has further stated “forcible testing of people who use drugs without respecting their autonomy and their right to informed consent may constitute degrading treatment, especially in detention settings. States are obliged to respect the enjoyment of the right to health, including by refraining from using coercive medical treatment. The requirement of informed consent, including the right to refuse treatment, should be observed in administering any treatment for drug dependence.”

Since the 2016 UN General Assembly Special Session on drugs, there is international consensus on pursuing a holistic and health and human rights-based approach to drugs, which encompasses supply and demand reduction as well as harm reduction. The 2019 Ministerial Declaration on drugs – the current global drug policy document - as well as multiple resolutions of the UN General Assembly, the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs, and the UN Human Rights Council reiterate and recommend a similar approach.

A punitive and militarised approach to drug control contravenes recognised international human rights standards and guidelines, is ineffective to protect individual and public health, and ultimately fails to make communities safer.

Africa Network of People Who Use Drugs (AfricaNPUD) (Africa)

Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN) (Asia)

Association for Humane Drug Policy (Norway)

Centre on Drug Policy Evaluation (CDPE) (Canada)

Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS) (Argentina)

Corporación Acción Técnica Social (Colombia)

Correlation - European Harm Reduction Network (Europe)

Drug Harm Reduction Advocacy Network Nigeria (Nigeria)

Foreningen Tryggere Ruspolitikk /Safer Drug Policies (Norway)

GREA - Groupement Romand d'Etudes des Addictions (Switzerland)

Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (Poland)

International Commission of Jurists (ICJ)

International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) (Global)

International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD) (Global)

Skoun, Lebanese Addictions Centre (Lebanon)

Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Network (Zimbabwe)

Sri Lanka: Stop abusive anti-drug operation and release those arbitrarily detained

At Release, we have received an unprecedented number of requests for support from people who use drugs and professionals alike who are scared about the recent changes in the drug supply. We also fear what this may mean for people who use drugs across the United Kingdom, and we are looking to the international community for help.

The UK’s drug supply is getting increasingly dangerous: this comes from the rapid appearance of a group of synthetic opioids called nitazenes across drug supplies. Rapid drug checking analysis 

 across heroin, benzodiazepine, and even cannabis supplies, and are already linked to several deaths across the country.

This is likely to increase the number of fatal overdoses, particularly because people that are consuming presumed non-opioids are unlikely to carry naloxone with them, and would not have the means to reverse any overdoses should they occur.

Drug services are failing to reach many people who use drugs in the UK, particularly racialised communities, as well as people impacted by patriarchy.

Drug services are failing to reach many people who use drugs in the UK, particularly 

, as well as people impacted by patriarchy. This is particularly true for people already marginalised by criminalisation. In the UK, many small-scale harm reduction efforts have been swallowed up by large drug treatment companies, losing funding in competitive tenders against these companies This, in turn, has left marginalised communities without peer-to-peer drugs’ support or resources. In many parts of the country, even accessing needle and syringe programmes anonymously has become impossible. In the midst of a toxic drug supply crisis, this means that communities of oppressed people will continue to experience mass death.

All this happens within the already-lethal environment for British people who use drugs: the country already tops the leagues as the European nation with the 

 a day from opioid overdoses. Poor people in this country are 

, this figure increases to people in the poorest areas being 18 times more likely to die a drug-related death.

Despite consistent warnings on changing drug concerns and the need for emergency action, policymakers remain steadfast in their refusal to explore alternatives to a prohibitionist approach to drugs. Both the Labour and Conservative parties believe that the best approach to control drug harms is to seize record amounts of substances at the border and continue to incarcerate those who use drugs. Labour has committed to 

 if they come into power. We already know that policing is a barrier to people engaging with services, and there is evidence to show that 

increased policing increases the likelihood of experiencing an overdose.

 Doubling-down on more of the same punitive and carceral policies that created this lethal environment in the first place will only lead to more death.

We know that policing is a barrier to people engaging with services, and there is evidence to show that increased policing increases the likelihood of experiencing an overdose.

With most of drug-related public funding going into treatment services which fail to deliver true harm reduction, those of us in real community with people who use drugs need to resort to grassroots forms of community care in order to keep ourselves and each other alive.

Release currently and historically advocates for changing drug laws towards more compassionate solutions based on social and racial justice, rather than punishment. As a response to the nitazenes crisis, we have also decided to fundraise to open 

We have become tired of constantly trying to raise attention around drug-related harms and decided that we needed to take more direct action.

We have reached a point where we need to change our advocacy tactics and build a grassroots movement and our own systems of care. Along the way, we hope to build a better model of harm reduction practices which can be implemented across the country.

A community living room space for anyone, with access to tea, coffee, and phone chargers 

Signposting to relevant health and social services where it is desired

Merchandise for sale to contribute to ongoing operating costs

A welcoming space to simply have a friendly conversation 

Eventually, the space aims to be a meeting place for harm reductionists across the capital to gather, share best practice, and strategize on expanding the movement.

 this week to raise the funds needed to open and run the space.

We hope that friends within our harm reduction community and those embedded in other social justice struggles will support us in delivering this space. While the conditions which have brought about this plan are dire, this is also a great opportunity to breathe life into the British harm reduction movement that has been co-opted and defanged by public health authorities and abstinence ideology.

Release will begin construction immediately, expanding the room’s functions and breadth of services as they can.

We’re tired of waiting for change – we’re going to start making it happen.

The room is the beginning of a year of actions and community mobilisation. We’re tired of waiting for change – we’re going to start making it happen.

The link to the fundraising campaign can be found here: 

https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/harmreduxhub

In the face of more drug deaths in Britain, we must build a community of resistance

Organised by Dejusticia, Drug Policy Alliance, the European Network of People who Use Drugs (EuroNPUD), GAT Portugal, the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), the Manas Grupo de Apoio Mútuo project, Release, the South African Network of People who Use Drugs (SANPUD), the Support. Don't Punish campaign & TalkingDrugs

 Tuesday, 3 October - 10:00 (Bogotá) / 11:00 (New York) / 16:00 (London / Lisbon) / 17:00 (Cape Town) - 

The fight for drug decriminalisation is at a critical juncture. Historically championed by community-led organisations and civil society, the movement to remove criminal penalties for activities related to drug use has gained momentum as an increasing number of jurisdictions around the world embrace this legal framework. Crucially, the 

United Nations system recently threw its weight behind decriminalisation

, signalling a global shift in perspective. However, this progress is not without its challenges. In certain regions, reactionary responses point fingers at decriminalisation for the fallout of failing systems of care and social protection, endangering its broader acceptance. Adding complexity to this landscape, most of the 

 where decriminalisation is currently in practice have adopted models that counterproductively perpetuate surveillance, control and punitive measures within a system intended to foster autonomy and wellbeing. Moreover, these models often fall short in allocating the necessary resources for the crucial infrastructure of support that decriminalisation is meant to facilitate access to.

 map, as well as from the experiences and insights of colleagues from across the globe, this event seeks to dispel myths surrounding decriminalisation and showcase exemplary practices. Importantly, it embraces a critical perspective on decriminalisation not to undermine its progress or capitulate to prohibitionist orthodoxies but rather to refine and further enhance this framework in service of our communities.

Juan Fernández Ochoa, International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC)

André Belchior Gomes, Release & TalkingDrugs - United Kingdom

Theshia Naidoo, Drug Policy Alliance - United States

Joana Canêdo, European Network of People who Use Drugs (EuroNPUD) & Manas Grupo de Apoio Mútuo - Portugal

Angela McBride, South African Network of People Who Use Drugs (SANPUD) - South Africa

In defence of decriminalisation —a baseline upon which to build sustainable drug policy

This submission to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination provides comments on the first draft of General Recommendation N. 37 on racial discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to health.

It provides evidence of the role of drug laws and policies as a driver of discriminatory policing and incarceration, and how this leads to the violation of the right to be free from racial discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to health. We urge the Committee to recognise explicitly in the General Recommendation that contact with the criminal legal system is a social determinant of health, and that States have the obligation to reform criminal laws, policies, and practices with racially discriminatory outcomes - including drug-related laws, policies, and practices.

Comments to draft General Recommendation N. 37 on racial discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to health - IDPC submission to CERD

As organisations that work in drug policy and harm reduction, we welcome the evidence-based proposals in the new report published by the Scottish Government proposing a road map for the future of drug policy and law in Scotland. We share the view of the report that drug policy based on health and human rights achieves better outcomes for individuals, their families, communities and wider society.

In recognition of the damaging global impact of criminalisation, the United Nations 

 a legal and policy position that promotes the reduction of harm and the decriminalisation of people who use drugs. We welcome this report as a step towards the UN’s position, and the development of effective policy and services in Scotland.

Ending criminal sanctions for people in possession of drugs for personal use; the provision of a full range of harm reduction services and support; and improvement in the accessibility and acceptability of treatment services for people who experience drug dependency are all required to address the public health emergency that Scotland has been in for some years.

Scotland has made progress on all these fronts, and yet the prevalence of people experiencing drug dependence, and the number of drug related deaths remain very high by international standards, underpinned by persistent broader health inequalities. Further innovation and investment is clearly required.

We further support the proposed evidence-led review into how the use of drugs, their production and supply could be regulated. This review would inform a debate around wider reforms to drugs legislation.

We welcome the recognition of the harmful role that criminalisation, poverty and stigma, play in the lives of so many. People who use drugs, especially those who experience dependence, face discrimination every day, and the Scottish Government’s desire to end the exclusion of this group from equality legislation is to be commended.

We also welcome the Scottish Government’s acknowledgment and commitment to centring those with living and lived experience in policy making and implementation.

UK legislation and regulations, especially the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, serve as an impediment to many of the urgently needed evidence-based reforms highlighted in the report, including the decriminalisation of drug possession; the provision of supervised drug consumption facilities and drug safety checking services; and even heroin assisted treatment.

Scotland has developed innovative responses using its own legal system, police force, healthcare system and civic society. Progress has already been made in terms of the extension of recorded warnings for drug possession, policing arrangements and the legal basis for injecting equipment provision services and its world-leading take home naloxone programme. Scotland must also use these same assets to deliver supervised drug consumption rooms and drug checking services as a matter of urgency.

Drug-related deaths are at an all-time high, in Scotland and across the UK. The UK Government must either work to reform legislation to enable the vital reforms proposed in this report across all four nations, or sufficiently devolve powers to allow each country to enact these policies themselves in order to save lives, and support communities.

INPUD – International Network of People who Use Drugs

EuroNPUD – European Network of People who Use Drugs

Jason Kew, Senior Innovative Practice Officer,

IDPC joins NGO coalition's response to Scottish Government's report on drug policy reform

Release, the UK’s centre of expertise on drugs and drugs law, is proud to invite applications to the 

2023 South East Asian Fellowship Program on Drug Policy

. Fellows will be hosted at Release in London, UK from 

. This program supports those working in sectors related to drug policy in order to increase their understanding of international drug policy reform issues, to improve their advocacy skills, and to enhance their capacity in working with the media on drug policy. The fellowship seeks to increase the capacity and knowledge of emerging and new leaders in drug policy in the Asian region, including people not necessarily working full-time on drug-related issues.

The objectives of the fellowship are for the participants to:

increase their knowledge of global drug policy issues on a region by region approach;

increase their understanding of the international drug control system and conflicts with other United Nations priorities;

have a greater awareness of the drug policy reform landscape and key figures within that movement;

establish links with those working in drug policy, particularly in the UK;

build and develop their communications skills, including for media interviews, press releases, press databases, public speaking;

have an understanding of the tools for debate, so that they can confidently challenge anti-reform positions;

improve their confidence as drug policy advocates both through participation in the program and through ongoing support from the host organisation.

This two-week program will be based within the drug policy organisation Release in London, United Kingdom. Release is the UK’s centre of expertise on drugs and drugs law – providing free and confidential specialist advice to the public and professionals. Release also aims to raise awareness of how British and international drug policy affects those who use drugs in our society. Release has had significant success in both service delivery and campaign work. In particular, the organisation has been very effective in engaging traditional and social media as a forum to promote drug policy reform within the UK and further afield.

The program includes the following topics:

Overarching issues relevant to drug policy

Overview of international human rights in the context of drug policy

There will also be an opportunity to meet key drug policy organisations, experts and leading policy advocates based in the UK.

Successful candidates will have a track-record of public engagement in human rights, law, or relevant government experience. Ideally their work should intersect with the issue of drug policy and/or human rights. Priority will be given to these applicants. However, we also welcome applications from those working in drug policy reform or another relevant field (e.g., public health) at the local, national or international levels.

Previous fellows have worked in drug policy NGOs, at law enforcement agencies, in national governments, in health care facilities, media, and at universities, among other organisations. Please note that before receiving the fellowship, finalists will be asked to present a letter from their employer agreeing to their two-week participation in the course.

Applicants must have a strong command of the English language to participate in the course. 

Candidates must fill out the Application Form (downloadable at the bottom of this page) and send it along with their CV

We are particularly interested in applicants from the 

: the purpose of this program is to promote the capacities of both new advocates and individuals who are emerging leaders in drug policy reform, rather than those already significantly established within the field.

The Fellowship program provides funding to a maximum of four people to attend the two-week training program on drug policy reform at Release in London. Funding covers fellows' travel, accommodation, and all associated costs. The placement decision will be made by the program selection committee comprised of regional experts and representatives from Release.

Participation in the fellowship is contingent upon acquiring a letter of support from the finalist’s employer as well as proper immigration and travel authorisations.

The Fellowship is designed to expose participants to international networks of global drug policy and to connect them with various advocates at the host organization, in their home country or region, and globally. Participants are expected to take skills gained during the fellowship back to their home country, further promoting drug policy reform through various projects and initiatives in their home contexts. The program is designed so that the connections and international networks will serve as a resource and support for the fellow both during and following their fellowship experience.

Course: Two-week program in London will take place from 25 September – 6 October 2023.

 is the UK’s centre of expertise on drugs and drug laws, providing free and confidential legal and drug services to people who use drugs and/or those caught up in the criminal justice system. The organisation campaigns for evidence-based drugs policies and for reform of the UK’s current drug policy, with a specific call for the end of criminal sanctions for possession offences. Release has Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council.

2023 South East Asian fellowship program on drug policy

Whatever our postcode or the colour of our skin, we all deserve to grow up in communities where we are cared for and given the tools we need to flourish in life.

But instead of investing in young people or providing support to deal with the causes of social problems, the government has given the police more powers to try and tackle the symptoms of these issues.

This has led to more and more people being treated unfairly by the police, rather than being given the help they need.

Our communities need investment, so that together we can create spaces and services that we know will give our young people the best chance in life.

And we need to roll back the powers of the police so no-one faces harsh and traumatising treatment at the hands of police.

That’s why a coalition including Liberty, have launched a groundbreaking report calling for a new approach to tackling serious youth violence, with the powers of the police rolled back and more funding and support given for young people to thrive.

Authored by nine organisations working across human rights, youth services, racial justice, mental health and policing, ‘

Holding Our Own: A guide to non-policing solutions to serious youth violence

’ provides a vital blueprint for how we can undo the harm currently being done to our communities, and instead build a society where all children are given the chance to thrive.

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