Press release. In Budapest, the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) staged a protest during the European Psychiatric Association Congress, criticizing harmful psychiatric practices. The event featured a march and an exhibition, highlighting the need for substantial reforms in the mental health industry, as requested by United Nations and the World Health Organization.
A protest took place in Budapest challenging practices within the field of psychiatry during the European Psychiatric Association Congress. The Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) organized this demonstration to shed light on what they view as abusive or harmful methods in psychiatry. The event included a march and an exhibition aiming to bring attention to issues within the mental health industry and advocate for significant reforms.
The EPA Congress, held in April 2024 faced criticism for not taking action in response to recent directives from international bodies such as the UN and the World Health Organization. These directives called for an end to abusive psychiatric approaches, a matter that critics felt was not adequately addressed by the EPA’s theme of “Mental Health: Open and Inclusive.”
Led by CCHR Hungary, the protest began with a march through Budapest’s city center that concluded at the Budapest Congress and Exhibition Center, where the EPA Congress was being held. The march remained peaceful yet impactful, underscoring the protesters calls for reforms in practices.
After the march, CCHR Hungary presented an exhibit titled “Psychiatry; An Industry of Death.” This display, showcased in cities across the United States and Europe, utilizes records, videos and other types of evidence gathered over a span of more than five decades to scrutinize the field of psychiatry. The exhibit reveals the repercussions of psychiatric methods, including contentious treatments like brain operations and “electroconvulsive therapy” and how they have influenced various aspects of society including prominent artists and historical events.
During the exhibit’s unveiling, János Dobos, the head of CCHR Hungary, spoke fervently. “This material underscores the impact of psychiatry and the often harmful effects it has on individuals and society as a whole” stated Dobos. “It is essential for us to question these practices and advocate for treatment alternatives.”
Known for its intense content, the exhibition cautions visitors about its nature and allows entry to individuals only above 16 years old, unless accompanied by an adult. Its goal is to inform the public about events and current challenges in psychiatry while promoting a reassessment of how mental health issues are addressed and treated.
CCHR, the mental health watchdog organization founded in 1969 by psychiatrist Thomas Szasz in collaboration with the Church of Scientology, has consistently sparked attention and support due to its critical yet accurate perspective on psychiatry and its methods.
Recent incidents in Budapest have triggered a discussion on the involvement of psychiatry, in contemporary healthcare and the moral consequences of its methods. As discussions progress CCHR aims to persist in supporting what they see as changes to safeguard individuals rights and enhance mental health services globally.
Members of the Church of Scientology, the religion founded by L. Ron Hubbard, are dedicated to promoting rights, especially in the realm of mental health. Drawing inspiration from Mr. Hubbard’s teachings, they advocate for the safeguarding and acknowledgment of the rights of all individuals in healthcare, stressing the importance of holistic approaches to mental health care. This dedication forms part of a goal to make human rights a tangible reality across all aspects of life, including within the field of mental health.
Haitians have been facing a multitude of challenges over the years, encompassing political, security, social and economic issues. The protracted crisis has been further exacerbated by months of brutal gang violence that claimed more than 2,500 lives in the first quarter of 2024 alone.
Having recently returned from the country, Carl Skau, WFP Deputy Executive Director, told journalists at UN Headquarters in New York that the crisis was the worst since the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
“Half the population – some five million people are acutely food insecure,” he said, adding that over a million are in the IPC Phase 4 or Emergency level of hunger.
He stressed that a political and security response to the crisis needs to be accompanied by a robust humanitarian response.
“What I saw on the ground is that this can be done, also at the centre of the crisis, in Port-au-Prince. But that we need also to do more on resilience and development elsewhere to really try to break this vicious cycle,” he added.
‘Crisis felt everywhere’
About 90,200 people are displaced in the Port-au-Prince Metropolitan Area, with that number continuing to rise, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office (OCHA).
At the same time, trade is disrupted in other parts of the country, inflation is rising sharply, and supplies are beginning to run out.
“The crisis is felt everywhere,” Mr. Skau said, urging a differentiated response.
“What we need is an emergency response in Port-au-Prince, but we can continue to do other kinds of support, including development support in the rest of the country,” he said.
The WFP official noted that aid supplies are starting to run out on the ground.
“And so, we would need to replenish also with shipments. So, we are hoping, having seen that the international airport open at least for one flight, that that can be sustained and expanded, and also that there would be an opening of the port in Port-au-Prince.”
Carl Skau, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), briefs reporters on his recent visit to Haiti.
In an open letter to the European Union’s (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security, human rights organisations have urged Josep Borrell to ‘protect EU citizens and institutions from complicity’ in China’s state-sanctioned practice of forced organ harvesting.
Initiated by the International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China (ETAC) and supported by more than a dozen global human rights organisations, the joint correspondence was penned in response to the promulgation of new regulations in China concerning organ donation and transplantation.
However, human rights experts have since condemned the new measures as grossly inadequate. According to campaigners, the ‘Regulation lacks necessary transparency measures’ with respect to the sourcing of organs, and ‘fails to incorporate the World Health Organisation (WHO) Guiding Principles on Human Cell, Tissue and Organ Transplantation into its framework.’
This has led to a system that ‘lacks accountability and denies justice to victims of forced organ harvesting.’
In view of credible reports of forced organ harvesting continuing in China, and no evidentiary indication that forced organ harvesting has ceased, signatories to the letter warn that ongoing EU institutional support for entities engaged in organ transplantation and research in China leaves EU institutions and professionals ‘complicit in aiding and abetting forced organ harvesting.’[1]
Given the prospect of EU citizens travelling to China for transplantations using illegally harvested organs with impunity, the letter also calls for the introduction of ‘mandatory reporting of transplant tourism outside the EU by health professionals and institutions to protect EU citizens and institutions from complicity in the abuse abroad.’
In addition to urging Chinese counterparts to introduce greater transparency and access in line with WHO guidelines, the EU’s foreign policy chief was also pressed to hold China to account for ‘historic injustices of forced organ harvesting against persecuted minorities.’
Researchers estimate that since the early 2000s, there have been between 60,000 and 100,000 transplants taking place every year in China.
Falun Gong practitioners, who are killed when the organs are removed, are believed to be the main source of supply. Since 2017, the Uyghurs, a Turkic ethnic group based in China’s northwestern region of Xinjiang, have also been victims of forced organ harvesting.
Background
For over two decades, China has been accused of prosecuting a state-sponsored campaign of forced organ harvesting using prisoners of conscience, most notably, members of the Falun Gong, a Buddhist spiritual practice.
In 2019, the China Tribunal, chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice KC, the lead prosecutor of former Serbian war criminal Slobodan Milošević at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, conducted an independent legal analysis of all available evidence.
The inquiry concluded that ‘forced organ harvesting has been committed for years throughout China on a significant scale and that Falun Gong practitioners have been one – and probably the main – source of organ supply.’
In January, the European Parliament passed aresolution urging the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to end its persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. The motion also called for the EU and Member States to impose diplomatic and financial sanctions on entities and individuals found responsible.
Susie Hughes, Executive Director of the International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China (ETAC), said:
“In line with its human rights responsibilities, the EU must urgently investigate initiatives – backed by institutional funding – that are engaged with China’s transplant sector for potential breaches of international law.
“At the same time, the EU and its Member States must confront rising cases of transplant abuse involving EU citizens. The EU must introduce mandatory reporting requirements on the provenance of organs obtained overseas to ensure compliance with international law and ethical standards.
“Failure to act risks the EU, its institutions or citizens being complicit in egregious abuses of human life and in the commission of crimes against humanity.”
Thierry Valle, President of the Coordination of Associations and Individuals for Freedom of Conscience (CAP Freedom of Conscience), commented:
“In light of the Regulation’s continued failure to comply with international law and standards of transparency concerning organ donation and transplantation, and with no evidence the practice of forced organ harvesting has ended in China, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) must finally face censure for its systemic brutality.
“It is high time that the EU uses the tools at its disposal, including the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime, to deter further violations of human rights and seek redress for victims by imposing sanctions on CCP officials guilty of gross abuses.”
About the International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China (ETAC)
The International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China (ETAC) is a coalition of lawyers, academics, ethicists, medical professionals, researchers and human rights advocates dedicated to ending forced organ harvesting in China.
ETAC is an independent, non-partisan organisation. We are not aligned with any political party, religious or spiritual group, government or any other national or international institution. Our members are from a range of backgrounds, belief systems, religions and ethnicities. We share a common commitment to supporting human rights and ending the horror of forced organ harvesting.
The China Tribunal, a people’s tribunal into forced organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience in China, chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice KC, conducted an independent legal analysis into the allegations and all available evidence.
Following 12 months of inquiry, the Tribunal unanimously and ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ concluded that forced organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience has been a state-sanctioned, systematic, widespread practice in China that has claimed the lives of a substantial number of victims and that it continues today.
[1] We note the Council of Europe Convention against Trafficking in Human Organs and its ratification by at least some EU Member States, as well as their implementing legislation. We note further that several EU Member States have nationality jurisdiction, which means that their local laws against forced organ harvesting apply to their nationals abroad.
Volker Türk said he was concerned by the increasing number of journalists charged, convicted and jailed for their independent reporting, in what appears to be an intensification of a crackdown on dissenting voices.
He described the continuous attacks on free speech and the criminalization of independent journalism in Russia as “very troubling”.
“The intensification of the crackdown on journalists’ independent work must immediately cease and the right to inform – a key component of the right to freedom of expression – needs to be upheld,” he said.
The number of imprisoned journalists in Russia has reached an all-time high since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the High Commissioner’s Office, OHCHR, reported.
At least 30 journalists are currently detained under a variety of criminal charges that include terrorism, extremism, disseminating knowingly false information about the armed forces, spying, treason, extortion, infringing upon people’s rights, violating the provisions of the law on foreign agents, inciting mass disturbances, and illegal possession of explosives or drugs.
Twelve are serving sentences ranging from five-and-a-half to 22 years behind bars. They include Vladimir Kara-Murza, a contributing columnist to The Washington Post newspaper in the United States, who was on Monday awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.
Controlling the narrative
Since March, at least seven journalists have faced administrative or criminal charges, particularly for criticism of Russia’s actions in Ukraine or for alleged links to the late opposition politician Alexey Navalny, and his Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), which was labelled as ‘extremist’ in 2021.
“The Russian authorities appear to be attempting to further strengthen control of the narrative, both around domestic issues and the conduct of hostilities in Ukraine,” Mr. Türk said.
“As a result, people in Russia have increasingly restricted access to non-State information and viewpoints, which hampers their ability to benefit from diverse sources and make fully informed decisions on matters of vital public interest.”
Release jailed journalists
The UN rights chief also expressed concern over the frequent use of the broad legislative framework to combat terrorism and extremism, urging the authorities to amend the legislation.
“Journalists should be able to work in a safe environment without fear of reprisals – in line with Russia’s international human rights obligations,” he said. “I call on the authorities to immediately drop charges against journalists detained solely for doing their jobs, and to release them.”
OpenAI, the organization behind ChatGPT, announced on Tuesday the launch of a new tool capable of detecting images created by its text-to-image generator, DALL·E 3.
The decision to develop and release this software comes amid growing concerns about the role of AI-generated content in this year’s global elections, including the prominent use of such content to spread misinformation.
The tool, backed by Microsoft, has shown in internal testing to correctly identify images created by DALL·E 3 approximately 98% of the time and is able to withstand common image alterations like compression, cropping, and changes in saturation.
Additionally, OpenAI is implementing tamper-resistant watermarking to help authenticate digital content such as photos and audio, making these watermarks difficult to remove. In an effort to establish more robust standards for media provenance, OpenAI has joined an industry coalition that includes tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Adobe.
To further address the existing global challenges, OpenAI, in collaboration with Microsoft, is initiating a $2 million “societal resilience” fund aimed at bolstering AI education and awareness. This initiative reflects a growing recognition of the need to equip societies with the knowledge to navigate the complexities introduced by advanced AI technologies.
Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Pramila Patten together with Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Joyce Msuya said that more than a year into the battle for control of the country between rival militaries, the “barbaric acts” being committed “echo the horrors witnessed in Darfur two decades ago”.
They urged Security Council members who met this week to debate Ms. Patten’s latest report on sexual violence to send “an unequivocal message: under international humanitarian law, civilians in Sudan must be protected and must never be subjected to acts of sexual violence, which constitute war crimes”.
The disturbing reports show how women and girls are being disproportionately impacted.
Allegations of rape, forced marriages, sexual slavery, and trafficking of women and girls – especially in Khartoum, Darfur and Kordofan – continue to be recorded with millions of civilians at risk as they flee conflict areas in search of shelter, inside Sudan and in neighbouring countries.
The two top women officials noted that the true scale of the crisis remains unseen, “a result of severe underreporting due to stigma, fear of reprisals, and a lack of confidence in national institutions.”
Without more financial and political support for frontline responders, access to life-saving services will only continue to shrink, they warned.
UN welcomes Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council
Hopes rose on Thursday of political progress amid the multiple crises engulfing gang-ravaged Haiti, with the formal resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry and the official installation of the Transitional Presidential Council.
Mr. Henry had agreed to step down in March after heavily armed criminal gangs seized the country’s airport and blocked his return. He will be replaced by former Finance Minister Michel Patrick Boisvert, who takes over as interim Prime Minister.
Spokesperson for the Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric said the UN welcomed the newly-formed Council.
Call for swift international police deployment
“We call on the new authorities and all stakeholders to expedite the full implementation of the transitional governance arrangements,” he said.
The Secretary-General reiterates his call for the swift deployment of the Multinational Security Support mission to Haiti, authorized by the Security Council in October last year, to support the Haitian National Police and return law and order to the streets after months of turmoil which has left millions in need, Mr. Dujarric added.
“The Secretary-General appeals to all Member States to ensure the Multinational Security Support mission receives the financial and logistical support it needs to succeed.”
Iran: Rights experts alarmed by death sentence imposed on rapper Toomaj Salehi
“Criticism of government policy, including through artistic expression is protected under the rights to freedom of expression and the right to take part in cultural life. It must not be criminalised,” the experts said.
“Art must be allowed to criticise, to provoke, to push the boundaries in any society.”
They expressed alarm at his sentencing and alleged ill-treatment “which appears to be related solely to the exercise of his right to freedom of artistic expression and creativity”.
Freedom of expression
“As harsh as Mr. Salehi’s songs are to the government, they are a manifestation of artistic freedom and cultural rights,” they said.
The rapper was initially sentenced to six years in prison for his role in the 2022 Mahsa Amini protests but was released after Iran’s Supreme Court ruled that it had identified flaws in the original sentence.
However, he was detained again on 30 November last year for expressing his opinion on the Iranian government and revealing that he was tortured and placed in solitary confinement for 252 days following his arrest in October 2022.
Toomaj Saleh’s harsh sentencing takes place against a backdrop of severe restriction on artistic freedom and other forms of expression in the country said the experts.
“We have received allegations that it is increasingly common for artists, activists and journalists to be arrested and detained on charges such as ‘publishing false news’ or ‘propaganda against the state’,” the experts said.
They called on Iran to establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty.
Special Rapporteurs are not UN staff and are independent from any government or organization. They serve in their individual capacity and receive no salary for their work.
On Tuesday, the European Parliament and the International Charlemagne Prize Foundation awarded the 2024 European Charlemagne Youth Prize in a ceremony in Aachen.
First prize – “Sisterhood Pathways” from Lithuania
The first prize of €7,500 went to “Sisterhood Pathways” from Lithuania – a multifaceted campaign to raise awareness and combat violence against women in the Baltic Sea region. It uses wall painting, handbooks, workshops, webinars and social media campaigns for community engagement and to provide information about preventing violence against women and support victims.
Second prize – “Think, act and advocate together” (France)
A second prize (€5,000) was awarded to French platform to empower youth “Think, act and advocate together to leave no young people behind”. The project aimed to mobilise European young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. For over two years, the project gathered one hundred young people from over ten European countries who have experienced poverty and exclusion. They met regularly to reflect and discuss the unfair situations they experience daily.
Third prize – Europe magazine (Germany)
A third prize (€2,500) went to the online Europe magazine from Germany, which visualises Europe’s diversity through infographics, maps, and statistics, offering clarity and accessibility, to make it easier to understand Europe. Instead of lengthy texts, the magazine uses visual journalism and easily digestible visuals to cover politics, culture, environment, and society.
Background
The European Charlemagne Youth Prize, jointly awarded by the European Parliament and the International Charlemagne Prize Foundation, is open to initiatives by young people aged 16-30 involved in projects that strengthen democracy and support active participation. Since 2008, 5,866 projects have competed for the prize.
Every year, national and European juries select a project from each EU country. 27 national winners were invited to the award ceremony in Aachen on 7 May 2024, where the three EU winners were announced.
Making Gaza safe again from unexploded bombs could take 14 years, UN demining experts said on Friday.
Pehr Lodhammar, a senior officer from the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), said that the war has left an estimated 37 million tonnes of debris.
He said it was impossible to determine the exact amount of unexploded ordnance in the enclave where formerly heavily built-up and densely populated neighbourhoods have been reduced to rubble, after nearly seven months of intense Israeli bombardment.
Every square metre in Gaza impacted by the conflict contains some 200 kilogrammes of rubble, the veteran UN demining expert told journalists in Geneva.
“All I can say is that at least 10 per cent of the ammunition that is being fired potentially fails to function…with 100 trucks we’re talking about 14 years of work with 100 trucks, so that’s 14 years to remove with about 750,000 workdays – person workdays – to remove the debris.”
The development came as the leaders of 18 nations including the United States called on Thursday for the release of all remaining hostages taken during the Hamas-led terror attacks in southern Israel that killed some 1,250 people.
Israel reportedly believes that more than 130 hostages are still being held in Gaza after the 7 October attacks which prompted the Israeli bombardment that has killed more than 34,350 Palestinians and wounded over 77,360, according to the enclave’s health authorities.
Famine threat remains
Meanwhile, UN humanitarians repeated warnings that famine is imminent in the northern Gaza Strip, in a renewed urgent appeal for more aid relief to be allowed into the enclave.
Israel pledged three weeks ago to improve aid access via the Erez Crossing just north of Gaza and Ashdod cargo port, further northwards. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that a small increase in aid had happened, but not nearly enough in volume – or diversity.
“We’re still heading towards a famine, we haven’t seen that paradigm shift that’s needed to avert a famine, we need more volume, more predictability and a sustained effort to get more diverse assistance into the north,” said Carl Skau, WFP Deputy Executive Director.
Amid reports of sustained Israeli strikes on eastern Rafah, Mr. Skau underlined continuing deep concerns that any ground invasion of the enclave’s southernmost city risked disrupting already insufficient aid distributions.
And turning to efforts to establish a marine corridor for humanitarian aid, the WFP official insisted that “there is no substitute for land” deliveries into Gaza.
Flotilla appeal
In a related development, top rights experts have appealed to Israel for safe passage for a flotilla of boats carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The “Freedom Flotilla” plans to depart from Türkiye carrying 5,500 tonnes of aid, along with hundreds of international humanitarian observers, en route for the besieged Gaza Strip.
“As the Freedom Flotilla approaches Palestinian territorial waters off Gaza, Israel must adhere to international law, including recent orders from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to ensure unimpeded access for humanitarian aid,” said the experts, who include Michael Fakhri, Special Rapporteur on the right to food.
In 2010, the experts noted that Israel intercepted and attacked the Freedom Flotilla’s civilian ships in international waters, killing 10 passengers and wounding many others.
At the time, the Freedom Flotilla had attempted to break the Israeli blockade by delivering humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza.
Europe Day, over 60 cities across Europe will display messages calling on citizens to vote, one month ahead of the 6-9 June EU elections.
The Arc de Triomphe in Paris, the Colosseum in Rome, and the Grand Place in Brussels are among many landmarks across the EU that will be illuminated to mark 9 May, Europe Day, and the one-month countdown for the European Elections (6-9 June). They will display the election campaign slogan “Use your vote. Or others will decide for you.” or the European flag between Wednesday 8 May and Thursday 9 May.
Amongst the other landmark buildings and monuments participating are the the Samuel Beckett Bridge and national parliament buildings in Dublin, Vilnius’ town hall, Fort St Angelo in Valletta, the Presidential Palace in Bratislava, Cibeles square in Madrid, the National Parliament in Bucharest, to name just a few.
With these illuminations taking place in cities across the continent, the European Parliament and national and local authorities are collaborating to send a message of togetherness to 440 million European citizens about the importance these European elections will have for everyone’s future. 9 May, Europe Day, is a not just a day of remembrance, but also a day to consider our shared future. The day’s proximity to the elections makes it a more meaningful occasion than ever.
Europe Day held on 9 May every year celebrates peace and unity in Europe. The date marks the anniversary of the historic ‘Schuman declaration‘ that set out his idea for a new form of political cooperation in Europe, which would make war between Europe’s nations unthinkable. Schuman’s proposal is considered to be the beginning of what is now the European Union.
In order to federate the different activities in the drug prevention fields of the hundred of Say No To Drugs European organisations and groups located in some 20 countries across Europe, the Foundation for a Drug Free Europe (FDFE) was created in March 2004, during the 47th Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Since its creation (1946) the CND purpose is “to review, analyze the global drug situation, considering supply and demand reduction. And to take action through resolutions and decisions.” The CND is mandated “to decide on the scope of control of substances under the three international drug control conventions (1961, 1971 and 1988 Conventions).”
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20 years later (March 2024), pursuing its Mission purpose, the FDFE is aware, since a decade, of the push of the high levels drug dealers whether they are “white-collars”, including Big Pharma (providing the precursors), the psychiatric field always complaining for “more resources” to get results, of all the NGOs money-centered in guise of “help”and concerned by the drug business with harm reduction, shooting rooms, making an illegal drug use legal, broadly using the “no-stigmatisation” to support them, highly using substitution treatments (legal drugs vs. the same illegal ones) but rarely promoting an effective rehabilitation not to say the prevention!
The first only basic action which can curtail the drug availability is the primary prevention at the youth level with the full support of a government enough concerned by the health of his population and of its developing youth, to take the correct decision about the drug expansion! There had been enough discussions years after years by the UNODC/Governments on the subject, but few realisation at the grass root levels despite the UNODC efforts. The worst is when governments are violating the Conventions and deciding to “legalize” some most common used drugs (to make more money…) but omitting to consider the following health expenses directly or not in relation with these drug use.
So, 2024 had been an opportunity for FDFE with the key support of the Fundacion para la Mejora de la Vida, la Cultura y la Sociedad having the ECOSOC status, to organize the side-event “20 Years of Good Practices of Drug Prevention for a Drug-Free Europe, at the UN, 21th March, Room MOE100, 14:10-15:00, during this 47th Session of the CND, always in Vienna (Austria) in the huge Vienna International Center (VIC).
In the following, we will strive to share with you the importance of prevention, education and illustrate what can be done at a responsible NGO level to revert the drug use trend among the youth.
About FDFE and the Drug Problem
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FDFE is a non-profit NGO established in March 2004 (20 years ago!) and a partner of the Foundation for a Drug-Free World, freely providing the educational materials. FDFE is also member of different international organisations and had been invited across the world to present its educative materials of prevention, now translated in 17 languages!
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The Drug Problem!
In all countries, from the richest to the poorest, drugs are challenging the health, weakening the education, flooding the criminal justice, threatening the social welfare and the economy, perverting the political system, generating huge wealth and power for the few and limitless harm and misery for the many, costing millions of lives and endangering the very sustainability of communities.
This alarming statement was written about 6 years ago. But despite the repeated warnings of UNODC, today all these points that have not been taken up seriously by the different authorities are unfortunately and durably affecting a still drug-affairs ignorant social fabric!
Our different European fields of activity:
Fully aware of the importance of acting at grass roots levels, directly concerned by the harming effects of drug use, FDFE developed many Drug Prevention Centers across Europe, and is currently working with a hundred of associations and groups located in: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, UK, etc.
So, to harmonize the activities, educative materials were developed:
-14 factual booklets from the series The Truth About Drugs.
As a reminder, the first “educative booklet” had been written in the 1980ies in Switzerland by a colleague and already using scientific data. He was eager to warn the youngsters about the untold harming effects of the drug use. Based on its success, the idea had been progressively developed across the world to reach today the number of 14 booklets in 17 languages. They have even inspired some governments or be used by them to inform and protect the youth from the drug use!
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-A Documentary DVD with testimonies from former drug addicts, and short Public Service Messages (as for TV channels).
-A full education package Guide with lessons for teachers and educators.
The final purpose is to empower the youth and young adults with scientifically proven facts, easily understandable. So, fully aware of the drug reality, away of dealers and marketing influences, they can responsibily make an informed decision.
FDFE, its associations and groups are definitely supporting the UN International Drug Control Conventions (1961, 1971, 1988), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (2015-2030), the activities of the European Monitoring Center (EMCDDA) and of the different agencies protecting the European borders.
During the Opening of the 67th Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, 14th March 2024, the UNODC Director-General/Executive Director, Ghada Waly, again, clearly positioned the problem and the needed actions:
“The international drug control conventions have a timeless goal at their heart: the health and wellbeing of humankind.
“UNODC pledges to stand with you for a healthier, safer, and more prosperous future for all.”
“And we must invest far, far more in prevention, with a special focus on children and adolescents, who are more likely to develop disorders the earlier they begin drug use.”
Our Actions on the European Ground
To fit in the 50 min allocated time for the side event, 4 associations were selected to compose our panel:
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1) Sag Nein Zu Drogen, Zag Ja Zum Leben (Austria).
This is a non-profit Organisation for drug education and prevention with the following goals: A society without abuse of drugs, alcohol and medication or other narcotics.
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To raise public awareness about the destruction caused by drugs and to provide young people and adults with the facts so that they can make informed decisions about living a drug-free life.
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This is achieved by contacting the youth and people where they are and making the real facts about drugs available to them.
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2) Say No To Drugs (Belgium)
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3) OUI à la Vie, NON à la Drogue (France)
In a recent interview (on Boulevard Voltaire – March 2024), Professor Xavier Raufer from Paris-Sorbonne, criminologist and specialist in social and political violence, terrorism and organized crime, considers that the recent attacks in Marseille (49 killed and 123 injured in one year) perpetrated by gangs and traffickers can be solved in 6 months! He said that the central question is not the one of means or even of political will, but of a currently missing political decision and the willing to face and to confront the 3 possible gangs weapons: intimidation, violence or assassination. X. Raufer said that they have in France the appropriate and national highly trained organization to solve this drug problem, in 6 months…
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Indeed, the gangs will never dare to confront the State apparatus, especially since the French regalian State (those rights which belong exclusively to the State and cannot be delegated) is one of the strongest in Europe. The problem comes from the lack of orders…
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4) Mondo Libero Dalla Droga (Italy)
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In Fine,
Too often we are forgotting that all these psychotropic substances from plants, small animals, these “secondary matabolites” are only synthezised to defend the concerned species against any possible predator, including humans!
Being in direct contact with the population, youth, parents, teachers, institutions, and even former drug users and for many, how they went out of the dependance the hard way, we are deeply convinced that education is the real drug basic solution as already noticed 500 years ago by Leonardo da Vinci, and also later by Will Durant.
The Drugs, the 67th CND and the FDFE, 20 Years of Good Practices of Drug Prevention for a Drug-Free Europe 45
Starting by an early Prevention, that has to be continued along the curriculum, using progressive educative tools, and with a sane consensus from the Governments and Communities, this will enable to empower the youngsters on the harmful effects of illicit drug use.
Thus, aware, they can make an informed decision for a clean and successful life and realize their natural talents.
