I support the Vienna Declaration because drug use should not be a matter left for judges and police to try and resolve. Drug use is a public health issue. As such, it can only be addressed including people that use drugs as part of the solution, instead of considering them as the problem.
When it comes to drug use, all too often the role of law enforcement is over-emphasized at the expense of public health interventions. This is a mistake. Not only does over-investing in “war on drugs” approaches to drug policy undermine the efficacy of public health programming, it actually endangers the broader public by exposing people to violence, increased transmission of HIV, and human rights abuses.
We need not look any further than the United States or Argentina for examples of the suffering, illness, and danger that extend beyond people who use drugs to their larger communities.
Why do I support the Vienna Declaration? As a scientist I can only support evidence-based responses, and currently drug policies in most countries are precisely the contrary.
Furthermore, people who use drugs deserve the same standards of care as any other human being. There are neither ethical, nor biological reasons to continue the ongoing model based on criminalization, law enforcement and compulsory detentions. It is time for our fellow scientists and health care providers to speak up. Signing the Vienna declaration is the first step.
Dr Pedro Cahn is Director of Fundacion Huesped and Chief of the Infectious Diseases Unit, Juan A Fernandez Hospital, and Assistant Professor in Infectious Diseases at the Buenos Aires University Medical School. He served as IAS President from 2004 to 2006.
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