International Day Against Drug Abuse & Illicit Trafficking 2020

Global deaths from illicit drug use (i.e. opioids, cocaine, amphetamines, and cannabis) have continued to increase over the years, with the rise in opioid overdose deaths being the most significant [1]. A 2017 Global Burden of Disease study estimated that there were 585,000 deaths and 42 million “healthy” life years lost during the year as a result of drug use [2].

One of the main issues continues to be the access to and availability of treatment services: only 1 in 7 people with drug use disorders globally receive treatment [2]. In 2009, the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) came up with an international cooperation action plan and strategy to “Counter the World Drug Problem”, which specifically emphasized reintegrating drug users, who are usually marginalized, back into society to curb the illicit drug trade [3].

Nevertheless, a report released in 2019 by the International Drug Policy Consortium titled “10 years of drug policy in Asia: How far have we come?” found that most efforts across the region have been ineffective, and usually counter-productive. Rather than helping drug users seek care, countries have tended to stress on criminalization, which only leads to further alienation of drug users [3]. Some even enact the death penalty for drug use; in fact, half of all countries worldwide that impose the death penalty for drug crimes are in Asia [3, 4].

In countries like Indonesia, Thailand, and Myanmar, 50-70% of the total prisoners are accused drug offenders, needlessly clogging overwhelmed facilities. In Thailand, 80% of the 47,000 women in prison are incarcerated for a mild, non-violent drug offense, such as possession or personal use [4]. Unfortunately, these facilities also rarely offer any form of counseling, treatment, or psychological support for the convicted drug users [3].

Countries in SE Asia, such as Malaysia, have also become increasingly involved in the international drug trade because of their strategic location (watch video below for details):

This year on 26 June 2020, the CND will be launching their “World Drug Report 2020” in honor of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. As part of this report, general information, new analysis, and recommendations will be provided to the international community on how best to implement drug policies worldwide [5]. 

On this day, we remember how important it is to limit the marginalization, stigmatization, and harsh criminalization of people who use drugs. We call upon policymakers and criminal justice, social service, and health systems to work together and come up with valuable solutions to limit drug use and abuse [6]!

References:

1. Ritchie H, Roser M. Drug Use [Internet]. Our World in Data. 2019 [cited 1 June 2020]. Available from: https://ourworldindata.org/drug-use

2. Executive Summary – 2019 World Drug Report [Internet]. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). 2020 [cited 1 June 2020]. Available from: https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2019/en/exsum.html

3. Liotta E. New Report Shows War on Drugs in Asia is a Massive Failure [Internet]. Vice. 2019 [cited 1 June 2020]. Available from: https://www.vice.com/en_in/article/wjm4py/war-on-drugs-asia-failure-report

4. Stoicescu C, Lasco G. Has the decade-old war on drugs in Asia succeeded? [Internet]. Aljazeera. 2019 [cited 1 June 2020]. Available from: https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/war-drugs-asia-succeeded-190218160811303.html

5. CND Special Event commemorating the United Nations International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking [Internet]. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). 2020 [cited 1 June 2020]. Available from: https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CND/session/63_Session_2020/special-event-launch-of-world-drug-report-26-june.html.html

6. World Drug Campaign – UNODC [Internet]. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). 2020 [cited 1 June 2020]. Available from: https://www.unodc.org/drugs/indexNEW.html