Model legislation can be a useful tool for fighting HIV/AIDS, but only if it is based on sound human rights principles. In 2004, AWARE–HIV/AIDS prepared a model law on HIV for use in Western Africa. Several countries in the region have already drafted national laws based on the model law. In this article, Director of … Read more
Non-binding agreements, or “soft law,” have played a role in influencing government policy and reducing HIV vulnerability among construction workers in the Greater Mekong Subregion of Southeast Asia. In this article, David Patterson et al. state that soft law sometimes offers advantages over treaty law, but that challenges remain in the implementation of soft law. … Read more
Drug treatment courts, which are judicially mandated treatment alternatives to the incarceration of illicit drug offenders, were introduced in Canada in late 1998. Recent announcements from the federal government suggest that the drug treatment court model will continue to operate and expand in a number of Canadian jurisdictions. Two major evaluations of these programs – … Read more
This article, published in Global AIDSLink #105, September–October 2007, is based on the report, Closed to Reason: The International Narcotics Control Board and HIV/AIDS.
Given the extensive evidence of known risks and successful responses to harm-reduction strategies, denying prisoners access to sterile injection or tattooing equipment infringes their human rights and raises questions about the legal liability of correctional systems.
In this article, Joanne Csete identifies some of the most important human rights questions that should be taken into account in the development of guidelines for national governments. The author argues that a scale-up of services to provide male circumcision provides an excellent opportunity to address issues concerning the subordination of women. Related Publications HIV/AIDS … Read more
The importance of leadership, especially human rights-driven leadership, in the fight against HIV/AIDS is widely recognized. However, argues Michael Pates in this commentary, the type of bold leadership required to really make a difference has been lacking. Pates calls for the development of an AIDS Leadership Initiative and describes how it might happen. Related Publications … Read more
“For more than two decades, the International Narcotic Control Board (INCB) has tried to stop harm reduction and its HIV prevention programs. This posture is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of their responsibilities and of drug addiction itself — i.e. as a public health and clinical care matter made criminal by decree. A recent focal … Read more
Article in “The Power of Pills — Social, Ethical & Legal Issues in Drug Development, Marketing and Pricing” (Pluto Books, 2006) In May 2004, Canada became the first country to enact detailed legislation to allow compulsory licensing of patented pharmaceuticals so that lower-cost, generic versions could be exported to eligible developing countries lacking the industrial … Read more
About three-quarters of the resources of Canada’s Drug Strategy are directed towards enforcement-related efforts, despite a lack of scientific evidence to support this approach and little, if any, evaluation of the impacts of this investment. In this feature article, the authors report on a study that examined expenditures and activities related to the Drug Strategy … Read more