CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS, FIVE FORMER TORONTO MAYORS CALL ON TORONTO TO DECRIMINALIZE SIMPLE DRUG POSSESSION NOW HIV Legal Network comment on report to Toronto Board of Health report This statement can be attributed to the HIV Legal Network. June 8, 2021 — As Toronto continues to experience unprecedented numbers of overdose deaths, each new month … Read more
National coalition comprised of people who use drugs and drug policy, human rights, and community organizations decry serious flaws in “Vancouver Model” and call for change A system designed ‘by’ police is ‘for’ police, not the people it was intended to help. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, May 11, 2021 Vancouver, B.C.—A broad-based Canada-wide coalition of … Read more
Promoting equity and evidence in drug policy in the midst and wake of COVID-19 This brief is submitted by the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network (Special Consultative Status) on behalf of the Canadian Civil Society Working Group on United Nations Drug Policy. It should be considered alongside the submission by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use … Read more
The HIV Legal Network, the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, and Pivot Legal Society have written to Kennedy Stewart, mayor of Vancouver, urging him to develop a “Vancouver Model” for decriminalization that is appropriately broad and responds to the aspirations and needs of people who use drugs. This letter follows up on the submission sent in … Read more
The HIV Legal Network submitted this brief to the Health Canada Expert Task Force on Substance Use as part of their look into alternatives to criminal penalties for simple possession of controlled substances. As we wrote, “Canada has both important latitude under the drug control conventions, and important obligations under human rights treaties it has ratified. … Read more
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CANNABIS IN KYRGYZ REPUBLIC FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Will Kyrgyz Republic win the war on poverty through the use of industrial hemp, medical and recreational cannabis? Professor Nazaraliev will discuss this topic with the world’s top experts. The first international conference on the legalization of cannabis and its derivatives in Kyrgyz Republic will … Read more
From April 2017 to May 2020, with the support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, a pilot project of social and legal support for people who inject drugs was carried out in St. Petersburg in order to improve health outcomes, specifically along the HIV testing, treatment, and care cascade. The results of the project are … Read more
Statement on suspension of injectable opioid agonist treatment (iOAT) in Alberta Personal health and safety at risk due to court ruling Edmonton, AB—Canadian Association of People Who Use Drugs, Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, Friends of Medicare, Moms Stop the Harm, and HIV Legal Network are deeply concerned about the health and safety impacts to vulnerable … Read more
STATEMENT: BILL C-22 INTRODUCES WELCOME DRUG POLICY AMENDMENTS BUT FALLS SHORT, ADVOCATES SAY The following can be attributed to Richard Elliott, Executive Director, HIV Legal Network. February 18, 2021 – Ottawa – Today, the HIV Legal Network welcomes some of the amendments in Bill C-22, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Controlled … Read more
The following letter was sent to Federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu on behalf of the HIV Legal Network, the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, and Pivot Legal Society. DELIVERED BY EMAIL February 10, 2021 The Hon. Patty Hajdu Minister of Health Dear Minister: Re: Vancouver and British Columbia exemptions to decriminalize simple drug possession … Read more