Window of hope.

• Author: Fondaumiere, Bertrand Juppin de
• Position: UN International Drug Control Programme

At a Special Session in June, the General Assembly decides to move from a drug-control strategy centred around substances to one focused on the people who fall victim to them. And the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) prepares to serve as the world's early warning system on trends and problems emerging in its field.

The United Nations is now poised to play a leading role in guiding the international response to drug abuse. The Commission on Narcotic Drugs has now been mandated to receive, every two years, and analyze reports on States' efforts to meet the goals and targets set at the Special Session (8-10 June 1998) as a part of a monitoring process. What has emerged from New York could rightfully be termed a new approach in international drug control-with global consensus reached to pursue for the first time a balanced approach-giving equal priority to both demand and supply reduction.

Under the guidance of its Executive Director, Pino Arlacchi, UNDCP implements a broad range of drug control activities worldwide and is entrusted with the leadership and coordination of drug control efforts throughout the United Nations system. The Programme already is working to ensure that a balanced approach will be reflected in our activities worldwide, at our headquarters in Vienna and in our approximately 20 field offices active in every region of the world. Of a budget of approximately $160 million, most will support projects which will reflect closely the spirit of New York.

The Declaration on the Guiding Principles of Drug Demand Reduction, adopted at the Special Session, establishes a new equilibrium-recognizing demand reduction as one of the pillars of the new global strategy.

Moving from a strategy centred around substances (drugs) to one more focused on people that fall victim of these substances is not just a change in terminology. When Member States decided that the Special Session would be identified as devoted to countering the world drug problem together, this new terminology reflected the new world thinking, emphasizing that this is a major human tragedy. This is in line with a balanced approach and a more humane and inventive approach, from the elimination of the illicit cultivation and production of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances to the treatment, rehabilitation and social reintegration of drug abusers, underscoring the view that drug control is a means to ensure the protection of the human rights of...