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Bolivia wins a rightful victory on the coca leaf
Creates a positive example for modernizing the UN drug conventions
TNI/WOLA press release
Friday, January 11, 2013
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Today the Plurinational State of Bolivia can celebrate a rightful victory, as the country can become formally a party again to the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, but without being bound by its unjust and unrealistic requirement that “coca leaf chewing must be abolished.” This represents the successful conclusion of an arduous process in which Bolivia has sought to reconcile its international treaty obligations with its 2009 Constitution, which obliges upholding the coca leaf as part of Bolivia’s cultural patrimony. -
Latin American members of the International Drug Policy Consortium call for new approaches to drug control strategies
International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC)
June 26, 2012
In this declaration, organizations based in or working on Latin America and members of the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) claim the democratic and sovereign right of their countries to make any necessary corrections to current drug policy and call on the international community, meeting in the Thematic Debate of the 66th Session of the United Nations General Assembly on Drugs and Crime as a Threat to Development on the Occasion of the UN International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, and the International Conference of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Heads of Specialized National Agencies on the Global Drug Problem, to make profound reforms to current drug policies.
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The UN International Narcotics Control Board Releases 2011 Annual Report
Accuses Bolivia of Threatening Integrity of the Global Drug Control System by Reserving the Right to Use Coca Leaf
TNI/WOLA Press release
February 28, 2012The UN’s International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), which monitors implementation of the global drug treaties, has trained its fire on Bolivia, this time accusing the country of threatening the integrity of the entire international drug control regime by defending traditional uses of the coca leaf.
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Nieuwe publicatie van het Transnational Institute raadt de regering af khat te verbieden
Persverklaring (in Dutch)
Woensdag, 11 januari 2012
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De engelstalige briefing Chewing over Khat Prohibition rekent af met de effectiviteit van een ban, zoals is gebleken uit andere Europese landen. Problematisch gebruik hangt nauw samen met andere social problemen en is geen reden tot verbod. Andere oplossingen zijn te prefereren. -
Bolivia Withdraws from the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs
TNI/WOLA Press release
Thursday, June 30, 2011
READ MORE...The Bolivian government formally notified the UN Secretary General of its withdrawal from the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (as amended by the 1972 Protocol) yesterday. The withdrawal will enter into effect on 1 January 2012. At that time, Bolivia will re-accede to the Convention with a reservation on the coca leaf and its traditional uses. -
The U.S. Can Still Correct its Position on Bolivia's UN Coca Chewing Amendment
Civil Society Letter to Secretary of State Clinton Requests that U.S. Government Withdraw its Objection to Bolivia's Proposal
Press release
Frtiday, January 28, 2011The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), the Andean Information Network (AIN), and more than 200 other concerned organizations and individuals yesterday sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, calling for the Obama administration to immediately withdraw its objection to Bolivia’s proposed amendment to the 1961 United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.
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The U.S. Moves to Block Bolivia’s Request to Eliminate U.N. Ban on Coca Leaf Chewing
TNI/WOLA Press release
Tuesday, January 18, 2011The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and the Transnational Institute (TNI) have learned that the United States is moving to oppose, as soon as this week, Bolivia’s formal request to remove the obligation to ban the chewing of coca leaves— an indigenous practice dating back more than 2,000 years. TNI and WOLA strongly encourage countries to support Bolivia’s proposal, which is a legitimate request based on scientific evidence and respect for cultural and indigenous rights.
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Study reveals alarming pattern in imprisonment for drug crimes in Latin America
Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America
Press release
December 9, 2010
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A comparative study on the impact of drug policies on the prison systems of eight Latin American countries – Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay – reveals that drug laws have contributed to the prison crises these countries are experiencing. The drug laws impose penalties disproportionate to many of the drug offenses committed, do not give sufficient consideration to the use of alternative sanctions, and promote the excessive use of preventive detention. The study Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America, published today by the Transnational Institute (TNI) and the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), found that the persons who are incarcerated for drug offenses tend to be individuals caught with small amounts of drugs, often users, as well as street-level dealers. -
Major Study on Drugs Laws and Prisons in Latin America to be Released
Conference to be held in Buenos Aires
Media Advisory
November 29, 2010
An unprecedented one-year comparative study of the drug laws and prison systems in eight Latin American countries - Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay - will be released on December 9, 2010, by the Transnational Institute (TNI) and the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA).Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America is the first major study to explore the way drug laws have contributed to prison overcrowding, analyze who is imprisoned on drug charges, and evaluate the impact of incarceration on people's lives, their families and their communities. Based on the available data, each country-study presents and analyzes statistics on the situation in the prisons, including levels of over-crowding; the percentage of prisoners behind bars on drug charges; the percentage of those who are consumers, low-level offenders or bigger traffickers; and the level of involvement in the drug trade of those in jail.
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WOLA and Prodh Publish Report of Human Rights Violations in Ciudad Juarez
Victims Describe Torture, Disappearances, and Harassment by Security Forces
Press release
October 5, 2010Residents in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, are caught between the drug-related violence and the human rights violations committed by the security forces, concludes a report published today by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and the Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez Human Rights Center (Center Prodh).
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