In 2004 the Transnational Institute (TNI) and the Andreas G. Papandreou Foundation (APF) started an Informal Drug Policy Dialogue. Purpose of the dialogues is to have an open-minded exchange of views on current dilemmas in international drug policy making and discuss strategies on how contradictions might be resolved. The meetings are guided by 'Chatham House Rule' to encourage a free exchange of thoughts and confidentiality. In 2007, TNI and the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) started a Latin American Informal Drug Policy Dialogue.
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Informal Drug Policy Dialogue 2011 Lisbon
Lisbon, January 21-22, 2011
The eighth meeting of the Informal Drug Policy Dialogue series took place in Lisbon on January 21-22, 2011, a joint initiative of Transnational Institute (TNI) and Diogenis, Drug Policy Dialogue in South East Europe that has replaced the Andreas Papandreou Foundation (APF) in co-operation with the Portuguese Institute on Drugs and Drug Addiction (IDT). Over 50 policy makers, practitioners, academics, and representatives from NGOs and governmental organisations attended the meeting, and discussed the Portuguese decriminalisation model, cannabis policy reform, and the agenda and global initiatives at the 54th Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
Download the report (PDF)Prior to the Dialogue an Expert Seminar on Threshold Quantities was held in cooperation with the European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drugs Addiction (EMCDDA). The issues under discussion were the advantages and disadvantages of threshold quantities as a policy and legislative tool and it was hoped that this seminar would provide a springboard to inform current debate and to assist the elaboration of evidence-based drug law reform proposals now and in the future.
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Informal Drug Policy Dialogue 2009 Amsterdam
Amsterdam, December 10-12, 2009
The seventh meeting of the Informal Drug Policy Dialogue series, a joint initiative of the Andreas Papandreou Foundation and the Transnational Institute was co-hosted by the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sports and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. The two-day dialogue focused on several themes: law enforcement, human rights and proportionality of sentences; the classification of controlled substances; current developments of the Dutch drugs policy; and various UN-level drug policy developments and preparations for the upcoming CND.Download the report (PDF)Prior to the Dialogue an Expert Seminar on the Classification of Controlled Substances was held. The issues under discussion were the UN treaty schedules – inconsistencies and options for reform; National classification systems – comparing the UK and Dutch models; and Conclusions - achieving more consistency and rationality.
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Latin America Drug Policy Dialogue 2009 Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, October 22-24, 2009
The sixth meeting was held near Buenos Aires and was organized by WOLA and TNI, and sponsored by the Argentine Government through the Chief of Cabinet and its Scientific Advisory Committee with the support of Intercambios. Participants included people involved in the reform processes of national and international legal instruments related to drug issues. Debates centered on three key areas: (1) Reforms in policies regarding the prevention and treatment of problematic use of substances; the future of Harm Reduction programs in Latin America; (2) Decriminalization of possession; limits to and extent of current penal reforms; and (3) Legal reforms in the international arena: the case of the coca leaf.Download the report (PDF) -
Informal Drug Policy Dialogue 2009 Crete
Kolymbari (Crete), May 22-23, 2009
The sixth meeting of the Informal Drug Policy Dialogue series took place in Kolymbari-Chania, Crete, at the same venue where the dialogue series began in 2004. Over 35 people attended, approximately one-third policy makers and two-thirds representatives of non-governmental organizations or academic institutions. Four themes were covered over the two days: the 52nd Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), including the High Level Segment (HLS) and its Political Declaration; drug law reform, law enforcement and supply reduction; UN system-wide coherence; and the UNGASS review process and the Informal Drug Policy Dialogues.Download the report (PDF) -
Latin America Drug Policy Dialogue 2009 Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, February 26-28, 2009
The fifth meeting of the Informal Drug Policy Dialogues in Latin America took place in Rio de Janeiro, and was organized by WOLA and TNI, in cooperation with the Department of Mental Health of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Justice of Brazil. The discussion focused on the UNGASS review process and the Political Declaration to be adopted at the high-level segment of the 52nd session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna on March 11-12, 2009. The dialogue focused on three key issues: (1) Latin American Perspectives on the Political Declaration; (2) The Effectiveness of the Conventions: The Case of Latin America; and (3) Human Rights and Policies Related to Drug Law Enforcement.Download the report (PDF) -
Informal Drug Policy Dialogue 2008 Berlin
Berlin, October 9-11, 2008
The fifth informal drug policy dialogue took place in Berlin in cooperation with the German Federal Health ministry. The principal focus of the meeting was the UNGASS review process, the Political Declaration to be adopted at the next CND meeting in March 2009 and future goals in international drug policy. Discussion also took place on the outcomes of the five Working Groups held between June and September as part of the period of “global reflection” and the preparations for the high level segment to be held on the first two days of the 52nd CND session from 11-20 March 2009.Download the report (PDF) -
Latin America Drug Policy Dialogue 2008 Cochabamba
Cochabamba, 29-30 August 2008
The fourth meeting in the series of Informal Drug Policy Dialogues in Latin America was held in Cochabamba and was organised by WOLA and TNI with the support of the Government of Bolivia, in coordination with CONALTID (Ministry of Foreign Relations). People who are directly or indirectly involved in the debates on current policies participated in the meeting. Three sessions covered the following topics: (1) Progress and Challenges in the UNGASS Review Reflection Period; (2) Coca Leaf and Integrated and Sustainable Development: What are the options for the future? (3) No Escape? The Prison Problem and Drug Policy in Latin America: proposals for change.Download the report (PDF) -
Latin America Drug Policy Dialogue 2008 Quito
Quito, February 21-23, 2008
The third meeting of the Informal Dialogue on Drug Policy in Latin America took place in Quito and was organized with the support of the Ministry of Internal and External Security and the Ministry of Government of Ecuador. It focused on the evaluation of the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on Drugs in 2008 and 2009, and the high level meeting of the Commission on Narcotics Drugs (CND) in March 2009. The dialogue had four sessions: (1) From the Andean Initiative to Plan Colombia (1989-2005); (2) Perspectives for Latin America in the 2008 – 2009 UNGASS review; (3) Criminal justice, the prison system and drugs: a human rights perspectives; (4) Proposals and strategies for the 2008-2009 reflection period and for the UNGASS review.Download the report (PDF) -
Informal Drug Policy Dialogue 2007 Rome
Rome, November 9-10, 2007
The fourth informal drug policy dialogue took place in Rome in cooperation with the Italian Ministry of Social Solidarity. The two-day dialogue had seven sessions focused on (1) New developments in the field of Harm Reduction; (2) Drugs and prisons; (3) Social spending of confiscated criminal assets; (4) Access to controlled medications; (5) Evaluating the UN drug control system and the 1998 UNGASS review; (6) Towards another control model for cannabis and a reassessment of the coca leaf?; and (7) What to expect from the UNGASS review process.Download the report (PDF) -
Latin America Drug Policy Dialogue 2007 Montevideo
Montevideo, September 10-12, 2007
The first meeting of the Informal Dialogue on Drugs Policy in Latin America took place in Montevideo, Uruguay. The meeting had the support of the National Drugs Council in Uruguay (Junta Nacional de Drogas or JND). Twenty-five people took part from eight countries in Latin America, Europe and the US. Three sessions centred around: (1) Consumption of base paste and crack in the South of Latin America; scientific and political responses. (2) Overview of the UNGASS review and evaluation process for the period 2008/2009, and discussion of the contributions from the point of view and practices of Latin American countries. (3) The prison problem in the region associated with drug related crimes: realities, problems and proposals.Download the report (PDF)
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