Irena Molnar is a Serbian youth activist, working on promoting harm reduction and safer nightlife programs in South-Eastern Europe. Please read our interview and learn about her insights on regional developments!

As of 3 years ago, Serbia stopped being eligible for funding from the Global Fund, which resulted in the closure of harm reduction programs around the country. Our movie gives you a glimpse of the desperate situation faced by injecting drug users in Serbia, and also explores the consequences of the closure of needle exchange programs in Belgrade, whilst trying to assess the current situation in the country!

“Instead of promoting harm reduction programs, journalists and other relevant actors use stigmatizing and discriminating terminology” Ognjen Martinović and Irena Molnar from the Serbian NGO Re Generation deconstruct the problem drug and terminological confusion.

Interview with two psychonauts from Belgrade who are testing new psychoactive substances on themselves. Read the article of Bojan Arsenijevic!

Medical cannabis activists formed an alliance with a political party, in order to contest the parliamentary elections in Serbia. Read Irena Molnar’s report from Belgrade, and watch the video!

Razmena pribora za injektiranje među korisnicima droga dovodi do širenja krvno prenosivih infekcija, kao što su Hepatitis C ili HIV. Bačene igle po ulicama izazivaju gađenje sugrađana. Rešenje ovog problema se ne nalazi u rukama policije – privođenje osoba koje koriste drogu ne smanjuje broj korisnika droga, već ih navodi da droge koriste na mnogo rizičniji način, kao i da što pre bace iskorišćen pribor za injektiranje. Tradicionalne metode borbe protiv droga nemaju efekta. Ova kampanja je namenjena pronalaženju novih rešenja – da se napravi mesto za promenu.

Sharing of injecting equipment by people who use drugs leads to infections, such as Hepatitis C or HIV. Discarded needles on the streets are not welcomed by people who live in the area. The solution does not lie in the hands of the police – arresting people who use drugs does not reduce the number of drug users, but pushes them to use in a more risky way, and to discard their needles as soon as possible. The old ways of fighting drug problems don’t work. This is a campaign to find new solutions – to provide room for change.

Serbia is not eligible for any more money from the Global Fund – harm reduction programs are in danger. Our movie gives you a glimpse of the desperate situation of Roma injecting drug users in Belgrade, help us to share the message!

Our new report (PDF) aims to assess the various policy responses to new psychoactive substances (so called “legal highs”) in five European countries – Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania and Serbia – , from the perspective of researchers, service providers, law enforcement officials and activists working with the most affected communities of people who use drugs. 

Videos of a conference organised by Drugreporter at the European Parliament on new psychoative substances.