International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy
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Contents and Drug Rights Policy on Human International Journal Volume 1, 2010 1, 2010 Volume ISSN: 2046-4843 Volume 1, 2010 Editorial ‘Deliver us from evil’? – The Single International Journal Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 50 years on Rick Lines on Human Rights Original Articles Targeted Killing of Drug Lords: Trackers as and Drug Policy Members of Armed Opposition Groups and/or Direct Participants in Hostilities Patrick Gallahue Ocial Journal of the International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy Yong Vui Kong v. Public Prosecutor and the Mandatory Death Penalty for Drug Offences in Singapore: A Dead End for Constitutional Challenge? Yvonne McDermott Interview Litigating against the Death Penalty for Drug Offences: An interview with Saul Lehrfreund & Parvais Jabbar Commentaries Children who use Drugs: The Need for More Clarity on State Obligations in International Law Damon Barrett & Philip E Veerman The Function and Relevance of the Commission in Narcotic Drugs in the pursuit of Humane Drug Policy (or the ramblings of a bewildered diplomat) Alison Crocket Case Summary Canadian Court of Appeal Upholds Supervised Injection Site’s Right to Operate Sandra Ka Hon Chu International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy Editors-in-Chief Damon Barrett & Rick Lines International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy Editorial Board Dr David Bewley-Taylor – School of Arts and Humanities, Swansea University, United Kingdom Prof Neil Boister – School of Law, University of Canterbury, New Zealand Asmin Fransiska – Faculty of Law, Atma Jaya Catholic University, Jakarta, Indonesia Prof Paul Hunt – Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, United Kingdom Dr Ursula Kilkelly – Senior Lecturer in Law, University College Cork, Ireland Rebecca Schleifer – Advocacy Director, Health and Human Rights Division, Human Rights Watch Prof William A Schabas, OC – Director, Irish Centre for Human Rights, National University of Ireland Galway Aims and Scope The International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy seeks to expand the current body of legal research and analysis on drug policy issues as they intersect with international human rights law, international humanitarian law and international criminal law. To this end, the Journal promotes and disseminates high quality, original research and analysis in the form of articles, commentaries, case summaries and other analysis relevant to its mandate. The International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy is the official journal of the International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy, whose academic base is the Irish Centre for Human Rights at the National University of Ireland Galway. Subscription Information The International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy is published annually. It is an open access journal available free online at www.humanrightsanddrugs.org. ISSN 2046-4843 (print) ISSN 2046-4851 (online) Hard copies may be obtained free of charge from the International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy, c/o Irish Centre for Human Rights, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland or by contacting [email protected]. There may be a postage charge applied for those requesting multiple copies. Submitting Articles Submissions to the International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy are accepted year round for review. Information on submitting an article or commentary is available online at www.humanrightsanddrugs.org or by emailing [email protected]. Thanks Irish Centre for Human Rights. Prof William A Schabas. Mark Joyce. Bi Yingxi. Nancie Prudhomme. Patrick Gallahue. Thanks also to those who reviewed submissions. Designed by Mark Joyce. All content is © International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy, 2011 ‘Deliver us from evil’? – The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 50 years on International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy, vol. 1 (2010) Contents Contents Volume 1, 2010 Volume 1, 2010 Editorial Editorial ‘Deliver us from evil’? – The‘Deliver Single us Convention from evil’? –on The Narcotic Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 50 years on Drugs, 50 years on Rick Lines Page 3 Original Articles Original Articles Targeted Killing of Drug Lords:Targeted Tra ckers Killing of as Drug Members Lords: of Tra ckers as Members of Armed Opposition GroupsArmed and/or Opposition Direct Participants Groups and/or in Direct Participants in Hostilities Hostilities Patrick Gallahue Page 15 Yong Vui Kong v. Public ProsecutorYong Vui andKong the v. PublicMandatory Prosecutor Death and the Mandatory Death Penalty for Drug OffencesPenalty in Singapore: for Drug A OffencesDead End in for Singapore: A Dead End for Constitutional Challenge?Constitutional Challenge? Yvonne McDermott Page 35 Interview Interview Litigating against the DeathLitigating Penalty for against Drug Offences:the Death An Penalty for Drug Offences: An interview with Saul Lehrfreundinterview & Parvais with Jabbar Saul Lehrfreund & Parvais JabbarPage 53 Commentaries Commentaries Children who use Drugs:Children The Need who for useMore Drugs: Clarity The on Need State for More Clarity on State Obligations in InternationalObligations Law in International Law Damon Barrett & Philip E Veerman Page 63 The Function and RelevanceThe ofFunction the Commission and Relevance in Narcotic of the Commission in Narcotic Drugs in the pursuit of HumaneDrugs in Drug the pursuitPolicy (or of theHumane Drug Policy (or the ramblings of a bewilderedramblings diplomat) of a bewildered diplomat) Alison Crocket Page 83 Case Summary Case Summary Canadian Court of AppealCanadian Upholds Court Supervised of Appeal Injection Upholds Supervised Injection Site’s Right to Operate Site’s Right to Operate Sandra Ka Hon Chu Page 91 1 1 2 International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy, vol. 1 (2010) EDITORIAL ‘Deliver us from evil’? – The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 50 years on Rick Lines* This body of legislation rests (so far as it concerns drug trafficking offences) on a series of important premises: that the unlawful consumption of drugs…is a very grave, far-reaching and destructive social evil; that persistence of this evil depends on the availability of an adequate supply of drugs for consumption;…that the evil consequences of drug trafficking are such as properly to engage the sanctions and procedures of the criminal law. Privy Council (Scotland), 20011 The first evil that we must deal with is that which exists as a consequence of the fact that the whole thing is the wrong way round. Aneurin Bevan, MP, 19462 This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Single Convention on Narcotics Drugs. Ratified in 1961, the Single Convention was the first of three United Nations treaties enshrining the international community’s approach to drug control.3 The original purpose of the Convention was a ‘Transfer to the United Nations of the powers * Rick Lines, MA, LL.M., is Project Director, International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy and an Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy ([email protected]). 1 HM Advocate v McIntosh (Robert) (No.1), Privy Council (Scotland), 5 February 2001, para. 4. 2 House of Commons (30 April 1946) HC Deb, vol. 422 c 44. 3 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961 (as amended by the 1972 Protocol) (30 March 1961), UNTS vol. 520 no. 7515. [hereinafter ‘Single Convention’]; 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances (21 February 1971) UNTS vol. 1019 no. 14956. [hereinafter ‘1971 Convention’]; UN Convention against the Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (20 December 1988) UNTS vol. 1582 no. 27627. International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy, vol. 1, 2010 © International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy, 2011 2 3 Lines | ‘Deliver us from evil’? I.J.H.R.D.P (2010) exercised by the League of Nations in connexion with Narcotic Drugs’,4 and the task given to the drafters by the UN General Assembly was to bring together the content of the pre- existing international drug control agreements established under the League of Nations into one single international instrument (hence the title, the Single Convention).5 In recent years there has been growing attention to the human rights implications of the international narcotics control regime among non-governmental organisations6 and UN human rights monitors.7 Human rights violations documented in the name of drug control in countries across the world include: the execution of hundreds of people annually for drug offences;8 the arbitrary detention of hundreds of thousands of people who use (or are accused of using) illicit drugs;9 the infliction of torture, or other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, in the name of ‘drug treatment’;10 the extrajudicial killings of people suspected of being drug users or drug traffickers;11 and the denial of potentially life saving health services for people who use drugs.12 While all of this work is significant, with some notable exception this emerging body of commentary has tended to focus on the documentation specific human rights violations linked to drug enforcement laws, policies and practices, rather than interrogating the drug conventions themselves, and the practices that emerge from their domestic implementation, from the perspective of international human rights law. Yet bringing such a human rights law perspective to the international drug control regime is a crucial exercise, both to promote consideration of international drug control law in the context of overall State obligations