I support the Vienna Declaration because, in the era of HIV/AIDS, the criminalization of people who use drugs is tantamount to a death sentence – and no one deserves to die because they are addicted to drugs.
While western governments are often vocal advocates of democracy and freedom, within many of these nations the most basic freedoms have been eroded because of the war on drug users. If you disagree, take a moment to consider just one example of a recent incident from the United States:
If you are saddened by police breaking down the door, shooting a family pet, and dragging a father away in front of his screaming children, for a small bag of marijuana, it will, no doubt, upset you to hear that around the world there are much more severe atrocities committed in the name of drug prohibition.
Where I live, in Thailand, as documented by Human Rights Watch, in February 2003, the Thai government instructed police to deal with persons charged with drug offenses as “security threats” and to deal with them in a “ruthless” and “severe” manner. The first three months of this “drug war” saw mass arbitrary detentions of drug users and an estimated 2,275 extrajudicial killings. Offenses like this continue around the world today with billions of dollars going into drug law enforcement instead of evidence-based and HIV and drug treatment programs.
The United Nations system has failed to react to this incredible violation of human rights. Instead, the drug war in Thailand was tacitly supported by the UN’s International Nacrotics Control Board (INCB).
Why do I support the Vienna Declaration? Who wouldn’t?
Paisan Suwannawong is the director of the Thai Treatment Action Group (TTAG) and former intravenous drug user.
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