The Drugreporter video team will live-stream sessions and talkshows from the annual UN meeting on drugs in Vienna on 12-14 March. Please follow us on Facebook and tune in!
The Drugreporter video advocacy team has been filming the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) since 2008. Every year we attend the event as media representatives to make UN decision making processes more transparent and accountable. We go to press conferences to ask questions the mainstream media rarely ask, we interview key representatives to put recent developments in context and give voice to those civil society activists who are often sidelined at the official sessions (this is a YouTube playlist with all videos we have ever filmed at the CND).
Last year we started to live-stream thematic sessions (including one with activists and another one with global drug commissioners). We would like to continue this at the 61st session of the CND, Vienna, 12-16 March 2018. We will live-stream sessions from the Vienna UN headquarters, each highlighting a key issue concerning latest developments in international drug policies and human rights.
Human Rights Defenders Under Threat – 1:10 pm CET, Monday, 12 March
Around the world, NGOs and human rights defenders are facing increasing risks and challenges for speaking out against injustice and standing up for human rights. Guests: Maricela Oroczo Montalvo, Familiares en Busqueda María Herrera, Carlos Ellecer, Philippines Alliance of Human Rights Advocates, Peter Sárosi, Rights Reporter Foundation, Host: Daniel Joloy, Amnesty International. You can watch the session here:
The UN on Drugs: Paving the Road to 2019 – 3:00 pm CET, Monday, 12 March
In 2019 the current UN Political Declaration and Plan of Action, adopted in 2009, will come to an end. There are heated debates among member states about how to go forward. More progressive member states would continue broadening the debate about alternatives of current drug control measures while more conservative member states do not tolerate any diversion from the spirit and letter of drug conventions. What is at stake and how can civil society influence the debate? Guests: Marie Nougier, International Drug Policy Consortium, Stig Erik Sorheim, EURAD, Host: Péter Sárosi, RRF. You can watch the discussion here:
Drug Policies in Latin-America: New Frontiers
Discussing new trends in drug policies in Mexico and Colombia with two drug policy reform advocates, Zara Snapp, Isabela Pereira and Luciana Zaffalon. Host: Péter Sárosi, RRF. You can watch the discussion here:
Psychedelic Science – A New Frontier in Mental Health
From depression to anxiety, from trauma to addiction — new research is demonstrating that psychedelic substances can be extraordinarily effective in treating some of the most prevalent psychiatric conditions of the modern world. SSDP Österreich (Students for Sensible Drug Policy) and the Psychedelic Society Vienna have teamed up to get a conversation about the psychedelic research field in Austria. Participants were: Natalie Ginsberg and Ismail Ali Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Constanza Sanches Aviles, International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research and Service (ICEERS), Marlene Rupp, Psychedelic Society of Vienna (PSV), hosted by Orsolya Fehér Students for Sensible Drug Policy Österreich (SSDP). Watch the full session here:
UN Treatment Standards Under Fire
The UNODC and WHO will host a side event at the CND to discuss and disseminate their new ‘International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders’. Many civil society organisations claim that the document is using a stigmatizing language and it was not made with the meaningful involvement of people who use drugs. Meanwhile, the Canadian government proposed a progressive resolution to reduce the stigma of people entering drug treatment. How can we ensure that people who use drug have a voice in this process? Guests: Judy Chang, International Network of People Who Use Drugs, Donald McPherson, Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, Shaun Shelly, Universiteit van Pretoria. Host: Peter Sarosi
Human Rights and Drug Control
The human rights impact of drug control policies is high on the agenda of civil society organisations, both in relation to repressive law enforcement and to abuse in the name of treatment. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights will co-organise an event at the CND with governments and NGOs on this subject. How can we make sure that human rights violations are measured and addressed in a systemic way?
Guests: Julie Hannah, University of Essex, Ricky Gunavan, Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Masyarakat Community Legal Aid Institute, Damon Barrett, Stockholm University, Faculty of Law. Host: Péter Sárosi.
These videos are also available on the Drugreporter Facebook page!
Thanks to IDPC for helping us organising these sessions!
Posted by Peter Sarosi
