OSI Launches Program to Challenge International Drug Policy

In order to promote a more balanced approach to international drug policy, the Open Society Institute launched the Global Drug Policy program in early 2008. With a focus on public health and human rights, the program will engage and support efforts to analyze, challenge, and publicize the effects of the “war on drugs.”

The Global Drug Policy program will broaden, diversify, and consolidate the network of organizations actively challenging the adverse effects of international drug policy. Working with drug and policy experts, economists, government officials, and others, the program will also develop policy recommendations that incorporate scientific evidence and input from those affected by drug use and drug policies.

Recognizing that current drug policies have adverse effects in a number of areas, such as HIV-prevention, the Global Drug Policy program will focus on four main areas of advocacy:

• opposing incarceration or forced institutionalization of drug users
• challenging eradication, seizure, and interdiction policies that violate civil liberties
• promoting the humane treatment of drug users in- and outside of prison
• encouraging local and regional solutions to drug problems

The Global Drug Policy Program will work with other OSI programs, including the Central Eurasia Project, the Latin America Program, and the International Harm Reduction Program.