Drugs and Development Policies: a discussion with the Global Commission on Drug Policy

Contributor(s): Kgalema Motlanthe, Ruth Dreifuss, Helen Clark, Juan Manuel Santos Calderón |
In the last decade, the negative consequences of the international drug control regime based on repression and coercion have increasingly become visible barriers to sustainable development. Despite important reforms and paradigm changes in certain countries and regions, drug policies still pose serious challenges to the international development objectives.
These consequences range from negative outcomes in control of infectious diseases, in access to controlled pain relief, in over incarceration and disproportionality of sentencing targeting certain populations, to breaches in the rule of law as drug laws are not complied with. These consequences are visible and dire at all levels of governance, and affect the most marginalized populations first.
What can be done to mitigate the negative consequences of drug policies on development, and what reforms are suggested? This high-level discussion w