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‘It’s clear that the
global consensus
on prohibition
is breaking...’
ANN FORDHAM
18 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| May 2013
Profile |
Ann Fordham
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
‘I
t’s clear that the global consensus on prohibition is breaking,’ says
International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) executive director Ann
Fordham. ‘But that doesn’t mean there’s going to be a new
consensus.’ IDPC is a global network of nearly 100 NGOs and other
organisations that aims to encourage debate and promote more
humane and effective policies across the spectrum of drug control. ‘If we look at
the global drug policy debate there’s been some significant shifts in the last few
years, with more and more countries looking at the option of the removal of
criminal sanctions for drug use and possession for personal use,’ she says.
The Organization of American States (OAS), for example, has been leading a
review of Latin American policy, and is expected to launch two reports later this
month – an analysis of the current situation as well as a ‘scenarios’ document
on what might happen if countries were to adopt approaches not necessarily
based in strict prohibition.
Looking at those discussions, it’s clear that ‘there’s been a massive shift’, she
states, but that doesn’t mean that all countries are moving in the same
direction. ‘Russia is absolutely entrenched in complete rejection of any kind of
harm reduction, for example,’ she says. ‘Human rights NGOs are being shut
down on a daily basis, and last year they asked USAID and other multi-lateral
bodies to leave the country. They’re positioning themselves as a donor for the
Central Asia/Eastern Europe region, and that’s a scary thought – what kind of
conditionality will be tied to Russian funding, given that they don’t accept
needle and syringe programming? In Russia, 50 per cent of people who inject
drugs are living with HIV. That’s a million people.’
Is there any effective way to exert pressure? ‘It is the challenge, and it’s why we
do what we do,’ she says. ‘There are two lines of advocacy, and one is to show them
as increasingly isolationist. They look like they’re on the outside now because so
many countries are discussing more pragmatic and public health-based approaches
to drug control. The other option that is still really important is to find lines of
constructive engagement where possible, and that’s extremely difficult.’
Was it any easier in the days before Putin? ‘They’ve always been fairly hard
line,’ she says. ‘The difference is that the US used to be the global enforcers of a
very prohibition-led approach, but they’re moving away from being the
hardliners and Russia is moving into that space. It is a challenge, but we need to
keep putting pressure where we can, using relationships with other donor
agencies and institutions like UNODC, and reminding the European Commission
that they need to focus on Russia because of the neighbouring countries and
the rising HIV epidemic.’
There was a fear that Yuri Fedotov taking over as UNODC executive director
would signal a tougher approach (
DDN
, 19 July 2010, page 5), but it seems that
may have been unfounded – does IDPC share that view? ‘That was a concern
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