Trump aside, Canada should reject trade deals that put drugs out of reach

By Richard Elliott, Executive Director, and Nicholas Caivano, Policy Analyst, Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network February 1, 2017 Donald Trump has withdrawn the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and declared his intention to renegotiate NAFTA. But as some try to revive the TPP, and trade talks between Ottawa and Washington heat up, Canada should … Read more

Case Information Sheet: Kurmanayevskiy et al. v. Russia

Unsafe injecting drug use is a primary driver of HIV infection in Russia. The inability of current or former injecting drug users to access prevention and treatment services is compounded by the highly punitive measures meted out by law enforcement, including frequent arrest and incarceration. These trying circumstances led three brave individuals to pursue access … Read more

Recommendations for Aligning Canada’s International Obligations with the Country’s New Legal Framework for Cannabis

“As Canada prepares to enact legislation that will legalize and regulate cannabis, the government should begin to explore Canada’s options for ensuring that the country’s international legal obligations are brought into alignment with its new legal framework for cannabis. Canada’s reform will inevitably involve entering into non-compliance with specific elements of the UN drug control … Read more

Indigenous Communities: Summary of Legal Needs Assessment

In 2014, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network (“Legal Network”) and the Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network (CAAN) began collaborating to produce a series of legal information resources for Indigenous communities living with and affected by HIV and/or hepatitis C (HCV). In support of this effort, a legal needs assessment was carried out to determine priority legal … Read more

Government walks away from talks on critical harm reduction measure in Canadian prisons

TORONTO, January 17, 2017 — In a profoundly disappointing move by a government that claims to support harm reduction and “evidence-based policies,” the Government of Canada has withdrawn from a planned mediation, preferring to waste more money on lawyers to fight evidence-based harm reduction services in prisons. Meanwhile, prisoners will continue to needlessly contract preventable … Read more

Bill C-37 a welcome step forward for life-saving supervised consumption sites and sound drug policy in Canada

TORONTO, December 12, 2016 — The Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network welcomes the introduction of Bill C-37, which – at long last – signals a real turning point in Canada’s drug policy, emphasizing evidence, public health and human rights above fear, stigma and misinformation. We are heartened that the federal government is taking this much-needed action … Read more

Letter to 17th Philippines Congress Re: House Bill No. 1 on the Death Penalty

“We call on the 17th Philippines Congress to preserve the right to life, and to not bring back use of the death penalty as proposed in House Bill No. 1. We urge all members of the House of Representatives and Senate to uphold the right to life enshrined in the Philippines Constitution 1987 (the Constitution) … Read more