2009 Drug Policy Symposium: Healthy Drug Law
In the run-up to the High Level Meeting, a three-day International Symposium on drug policy will be convened in Wellington, New Zealand. Attended by around 100 delegates from Australia and New Zealand, as well as some key international figures (including from the UNODC and WHO), the symposium will address the question of how to reform drug laws so as to support health-based responses to illicit drug use. The resulting report will be used to further inform and educate government officials. Extensive media coverage of the event is planned.
Outcomes and recommendations drawn up will be presented at IHRA's 2009 conference. It is hoped that participating officials will, as a result, become more engaged in drug policy issues. The symposium is also timed to coincide with the New Zealand law commission consultation process and the start of a parliamentary term with a new government. The Symposium will be jointly organized with the National Society on Alcohol and Drug Dependence.