January 2010      
www.ihra.net      



arrow     Welcome

arrow     Call for Expressions of Interest to Host Future IHRA International Conferences

arrow     Canadian Safe Injection Site to Remain Open

arrow     Kenya Launches National AIDS Strategic Plan III

arrow     Nominations Invited for IHRA Awards and Paolo Pertica Fellowship 2010

arrow     Conference Programme Created for Harm Reduction 2010

arrow     New Gender Project in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

arrow     IHRA Invites Applications for Two New Posts





Welcome

Welcome to the IHRA e-newsletter for January 2010. This month saw welcome news from Canada as a court firmly stood behind a critical harm reduction approach to keep North America’s first safe injection site open. This month also witnessed promising signs for harm reduction in Kenya’s Third National AIDS Strategic Plan and in Eastern Europe and Central Asia where the Eurasian Harm Reduction Network have launched a project to promote gender equality in HIV-related and harm reduction services. This newsletter also contains some valuable news on Harm Reduction 2010: IHRA’s 21st International Conference..

All of IHRA’s websites –  www.ihra.net, www.ihrablog.net, and www.ihraconferences.net – are updated on a regular basis, so please visit us whenever you can.




Call for Expressions of Interest to Host Future IHRA International Conferences

The International Harm Reduction Association has invited expressions of interest for future IHRA international conferences. Click the below link for a document detailing the venue specification and other information required from organisations and groups wishing to make a bid to host future IHRA conferences. We have venues for 2010, in Liverpool, UK, and 2011, in Beirut, Lebanon, but would like to fix venues and dates for 2012 and beyond.
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Canadian Safe Injection Site to Remain Open

British Columbia’s Court of Appeal rejected the Canadian government’s attempt to shut down the first safe injecting site in North America. The facility, called Insite has operated since 2003 under a constitutional exemption to the federal Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. As the exemption was due to expire, Insite successfully obtained a permanent exemption, which the Conservative government unsuccessfully challenged. Justice Carol Huddart wrote in her decision “What is at issue is the provincially-authorized supervision of the injection of illegally-obtained heroin to prevent health problems associated with its self-injection. Like palliative care, it is a form of harm reduction with benefits for both the patient and the community.”
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Kenya Launches National AIDS Strategic Plan III

Kenya released its third National AIDS Strategic Plan (KNASP III), which pledges to ease restrictions on programmes that work with drug users and other at-risk groups whose behaviour has been criminalised. The plan states, “Sex work, homosexuality and drug use are illegal in Kenya, and attempts to de-criminalise them have faced significant religious and cultural resistance among the population. However, based on new evidence, KNASP III will work with all most at risk groups and seek innovative ways to reduce HIV transmission. Programmes have been working with all these groups for many years, but under constraints, which KNASP III aims to alleviate systematically.”
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Nominations Invited for IHRA Awards and Paolo Pertica Fellowship 2010

Nominations are now being invited for the 2010 International Rolleston Award, National Rolleston Award, the Carol and Travis Jenkins Award as well as the Paolo Pertica Fellowship. The IHRA awards are given out annually to leading individuals or organisations in the field of harm reduction. The Paolo Pertica Fellowship was established in 2004 by the European Network of Drugs and Infections Prevention in Prisons (ENDIPP). All will be presented at Harm Reduction 2010: IHRA’s 21st International Conference.
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Conference Programme Created for Harm Reduction 2010

In December 2009, the Executive Programme Committee for Harm Reduction 2010: IHRA’s 21st International Conference held a three-day meeting in Liverpool to review the 1,000 abstracts that were submitted and to create the conference programme. This is always a very challenging task but, once again, the end result is an excellent programme with over 200 speakers in 57 sessions which cover a huge range of topics.
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New Gender Project in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

The Eurasian Harm Reduction Network and Harm Reduction Knowledge Hub have launched a project aimed to promote gender equality in HIV-related and harm reduction services. Eastern Europe and Central Asia are experiencing a growing prevalence of new HIV infections among women. However, the Eurasian Harm Reduction Network notes that women drug users face a number of obstacles to access harm reduction and drug treatment services in the region that are not being sufficiently dealt with at the local or national levels.

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IHRA Invites Applications for Two New Posts

Networking and Advocacy Officer (full-time)
The successful candidate will work collaboratively with other staff members to maximise the visibility and impact of harm reduction advocacy activities within key multilateral fora. She or he will be responsible for a challenging and multifaceted programme of work, which will include the coordination of a new European Harm Reduction Network, as well as collaboration with other harm reduction networks and key civil society partners to develop and conduct international campaigns, from monitoring multilateral activity and identifying advocacy opportunities to writing policy briefs and representing IHRA in multilateral fora. The postholder will work as part of IHRA’s Public Health Team.

Human Rights Analyst: Death Penalty Project (full-time)
The successful candidate will coordinate IHRA’s campaign to restrict the application of the death penalty for drug offences worldwide by implementing an ambitious programme of legal research and analysis, policy development and international advocacy. The postholder will be responsible for: monitoring and tracking the status of the death penalty for drugs internationally, as well as multi-lateral donor projects in death penalty states ; lobbying and advocacy with donor governments and multi-lateral donors on meeting their human rights obligations vis-a-vis drug enforcement assistance in death penalty states; and designing and implementing human rights impact assessment as a core element of multi-lateral drug enforcement assistance in retentionist states. The postholder will work as part of the IHRA’s Human Rights Team.
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Dear mario, welcome to IHRA

IHRA is the leading organisation in promoting evidence based harm reduction policies and practices on a global basis for all psychoactive substances (including illicit drugs, tobacco and alcohol).




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