Endgame on War on Drugs?

Newsletter 19 April 2012

25 April 2012

For the first time heads of state met to discuss alternatives to drugs prohibition at the Organisation of American States Summit in Cartagena. Transnational Institute, which for years has advocated for an end to the war on drugs, analyses this breakthrough.

En español

Cartagena Summit debates alternatives to War on Drugs

The debate on alternatives to the war on drugs has finally received unprecedented attention. Read TNI's analysis, comments by civil society and media reports of this historic shift.

Chronicle of a Debate Foretold
Martin Jelsma
A critical rethink of the war on drugs provides opportunities to move forward but also faces several risks that could suffocate the remarkable yet incipient political opening of the drugs debate in Latin America.

Six Steps towards a Drugs Policy that Promotes Peace and Respects Human Rights
Open Letter to Presidents of the Americas
Civil society organisations from Latin America and worldwide outline concrete steps that the presidents of the Americas can take to start a humane drugs control policy.

Burma

The recent electoral victories of Aung San Suu Kyi have put Burma back in the media spotlight, but little attention is given to ethnic issues, drugs and land policies that affect ordinary Burmese. Read the latest analysis from our Burma Project.

Financing Disposession
Tom Kramer
China’s opium crop substitution programme has very little to do with providing mechanisms to decrease reliance on poppy cultivation or provide alternative livelihoods for ex-poppy growers. Financing dispossession is not development.

Civil Society Gaining Ground
Tom Kramer
Local organisations have adopted different strategies towards the authoritarian government in Burma. What are the possibilities and risks of growing international interest in engagement with emerging Burmese civil society.

Assessing Burma/Myanmar’s New Government
Challenges and Opportunities for European Policy Responses. A report of the TNI-BCN conference in February to assess ongoing social and political changes.

Ending Burma’s Conflict Cycle? Prospects for Ethnic Peace
Bringing about peace does not just involve the government and ethnic armed opposition groups, but involves all of Burma's citizens.

Burma's longest war
Ashley South
As Burma enters a period of political transition, the role of the Karen ethnic communities will be critical in responding to the political and economic challenges that will shape their future.

Tackle Burma's Drugs Problem
Tom Kramer & Martin Jelsma
Policy priorities should focus on how best to manage and reduce the many health and social harms associated with the reality of a persistent and ever changing drugs market.

Recent interviews with Tom Kramer on Burma

Burma's misguided Drug War
The Diplomat
Keen to impress the West and get sanctions lifted, Burma is cracking down on opium production. But hundreds of thousands may be left in poverty.

Nu begint het moeilijke werk
Trouw (Dutch)
De oppositie in Burma behaalde op 1 april een klinkende verkiezingsoverwinning. De verwachtingen zijn hoog gespannen. Te hoog?

En español

La Cumbre de Cartagena debate sobre las alternativas de la guerra a las drogas
En América Latina, el debate sobre alternativas posibles a la guerra contra las drogas ha conocido un tremendo impulso en los últimos meses. Decepcionados ante los magros resultados de políticas con base en el prohibicionismo y las consecuencias devastadoras del negocio ilícito de las drogas en la región, varios presidentes han tomado la iniciativa de llevar el tema a una de las más altas instancias intergubernamentales que reúne a la mayoría de los países del hemisferio....

Crónica de un debate anunciado
Martin Jelsma
El presidente de Guatemala Otto Pérez Molina hizo un llamado a favor de un debate abierto sobre la crisis de seguridad y las políticas para reducir la desenfrenada violencia vinculada al narcotráfico. En el último momento, tres presidentes cancelaron su participación. Jelsma examina las posibilidades y riesgos del encuentro de Cartagena.

La otra cara (sucia) del debate sobre drogas - La compleja trama de ilegalidad y el poder mafiosa en países de la oferta y el tránsito de drogas(pdf)
Ricardo Vargas
La guerra contra las drogas ha fracasado. Pese a ello, y en el camino hacia un modelo que la sustituya, América Latina continúa huérfana de una estrategia regional frente a la economía ilegal de las drogas.

Innovaciones legislativas en políticas de drogas
Martin Jelsma
Este informe presenta un resumen de buenas prácticas en reformas legislativas de drogas de todo el mundo, que representan un alejamiento del modelo represivo de la tolerancia cero y un avance hacia políticas de drogas más humanas y fundamentadas en pruebas empíricas..