According to the study, Is Legal Pot Crippling Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations? The Effect of Medical Marijuana Laws on US Crime, when a state on the Mexican border legalised medical use of the drug, violent crime fell by 13% on average. Most of the marijuana consumed in the US originates in Mexico, where seven major cartels control the illicit drug trade.…

Terms such ‘drug user’, ‘drug abuser’, ‘addict’ and ‘junkie’ should be avoided as they are derogatory and dehumanise people who take drugs, fuelling harmful drug policies which affect their health and human rights. These views are voiced in a new report launched on 9 January by the Global Commission on Drug Policy – a leading advocate speaking to the failures of…

Unlike other Europeans who scorned aboriginal medicine in favor of Western medicine, Aubert studied traditional Maori medicine and incorporated it into her healing practice. Aubert also recognized the medicinal properties of cannabis, and is believed to be the first New Zealander to ever cultivate the plant in the country. The prospective saint created numerous medicinal formulations, many of which contained…

On Thursday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions opened a new front in the War on Weed, rescinding Obama-era policies that discouraged federal prosecution of pot crimes in legal-weed states. Given that study after study suggests marijuana availability is linked to lower overdose death rates, reduced use of opioids for chronic pain, and lower rates of opioid addiction, a stranger, more ill-advised policy is hard…

The fear of drugs has translated into messages for prevention that promote complete abstinence and state that all drugs are equally bad. However, providing information which is incomplete and often even incorrect lessens any chance of trust between the authorities and young people. A better way forward would be to offer honest information, 9 encourage moderation in youthful experimentation, and…

Why are the local media so interested in publishing stories updating their readership of the latest results of the national methamphetamine wastewater analysis competition? It provides the media with an opportunity to perpetuate the so called “ice epidemic” and associated moral panic. It is worth noting that the ACIC data does not mention cannabis, giving methamphetamine a much higher profile…

Speaking at a lunch hosted by the Global Commission on Drug Policy, of which he is a member, Clegg said: “I experienced coalition with the Conservatives, and I couldn’t find a sensible Conservative who didn’t privately entirely agree that the law is a complete ass and everything should be changed. […]

Here is a plan for governments of all persuasions in 2018: 1. Convene a national summit to commit to introducing policies that reduce drug harm. 2. Redirect funding from ineffective policies and practices to those that are effective. 3. Stop criminalising people for the simple act of possessing or using drugs and expunge the existing records of people with such…

This is a crisis caused by drug prohibition—an unintended consequence of nonmedical drug users accessing the black market in drugs. Policymakers should stop harassing doctors and their patients and shift the focus to reforming overall drug policy. A good place to start would be to implement harm reduction measures, such as safe syringe programs, making Medication Assisted Treatments like methadone…

“Needle and syringe programmes are an important harm-reduction intervention,” says Kathryn Leafe, the current executive director of the NZ Needle Exchange Programme. “Harm reduction is based on empathy and a non-judgmental approach, working with people where they are at and however they understand their drug use.” This is the “support don’t punish” model. […]