Campaign to Eliminate Violence Against Women Who Use Drugs Archives

A very successful regional campaign

Posted on 11/12/202312/12/2023 by Milutin

The Drug Policy Network South East Europe (DPNSEE) coordinated the „Eliminate Violence Against Women Who Use Drugs – EVAWUD“ campaign in South East Europe, together with its 25 member organisations from 11 countries of the region. The campaign lasted from 25 November and lasted until 10 December 2023.

The campaign started in early November with informing the member organisations and inviting them to participate. The press release, originally prepared by the Women and Harm Reduction International Network (WHRIN) and adjusted by DPNSEE, was translated into local languages of the region and distributes to media and institutions >>>. DPNSEE also prepared and distributed a document with key facts related to women and drug use.

From more than 30 social networks accounts (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) of partners in the region, 70+ posts, stories and photos were shared. They reached arounf half a million users who interacted seeing reacting, commenting and reposting. Most of these posts were at the DPNSEE Instagram account.

DPNSEE organised a meeting dedicated to eliminating violence against women who use drugs on Friday 8 December 2023 in the Palace of Serbia, in Belgrade, with the support from the Office for Combating Drugs of the Government of Serbia. It was the opportunty to share thoughts and experiences in working on this important issue.

Participants came from several intitutions, including ministries on human and minority rights and social dialogue and health, the Institute for Public Health and UNODC representatives for South East Europe, and civil society organisations.

The meeting was very well covered by the media in Serbia (N1 >>>, Beta >>>, Danas >>>, Radio 021 >>>, NasloviNet >>>).

Other media from the region also reported about the issue of women who use drugs: Vijesti (MNE) >>>, TRN (RNM) >>>, Telma (RNM) >>> , SMK (RNM) >>>, CIN (MNE) >>>, IMA (RNM) >>>.

Thanks to media and social networks, we estimate that we reached out to more than half a million people. We regret that we didn’t have funds to pay te adverts at the social networks. With them, we should have had 10 times wider reach.

Eliminate Violence Against Women Who Use Drugs

Posted on 08/12/202312/12/2023 by Milutin

The Drug Policy Network Southe East Europe organised a meeting dedicated to eliminating violence against women who use drugs on Friday 8 December 2023 in the Palace of Serbia, in Belgrade, with the support from the Office for Combating Drugs of the Government of Serbia. It was the opportunty to share thoughts and experiences in working on this important issue.

Ivana Joksimović, the Assistant Minister for human rights and social dialogue spoke about human rights of marginalised and discriminated communities. Milutin Milošević, the DPNSEE Executive Director presented the EVAWUD campaign to eliminate violence against women and gender diverse people who use drugs and presented some results from recent surveys published by DPNSEE.

Irena Molnar from ReGeneration shared about their program on improving the competencies of employees in social protection through examples of activities aimed at working with women who have survived violence and are drug users and young people at risk. Nebojša Djurasović from Prevent, the DPNSEE President, presented their experiences in working with the shelter for sex workers in Novi Sad.

The discussion showed a shared determination to continue fostering and protecting human rights of women and gender diverse people who use drugs in Serbia.

Campaign to Eliminate Violence Against Women Who Use Drugs

Posted on 24/11/2023 by Milutin

With the International Campaign for the Elimination of Violence Against Women UNiTE, a UN
initiative of 16 days of activism, the Women and Harm Reduction International Network (WHRIN)
and Drug Policy Network South East Europe (DPNSEE), with campaign partners YouthRISE,
EuroNPUD and EWNA call for an end to all forms of violence against women and gender diverse
people who use drugs. The EVAWUD campaign highlights the need to end violence against women
and gender diverse people who use drugs and improve drug policies from a feminist, human rights
and harm reduction perspective.

Women and gender diverse people who use drugs are subject to extreme levels and a wide range of violence due to patriarchal norms combined with punitive prohibition of some drugs. State-driven stigma, criminalization, harmful gender norms, and corruption drive substantive health and safety harms. These act as barriers for women and gender diverse people who use drugs accessing critical harm reduction and gender-based violence (GBV) services.

Women and gender diverse people who use drugs experience GBV at up to 25 times the rate experienced by women in the general public. This violence includes, (but is not limited to) extra judicial killing, capital punishment, forced and coerced sterilisation and abortion, rape, sexual harassment, loss of child custody, bashings, imprisonment for personal possession or use, penalisation for drug use in pregnancy, along with other types of gendered violations, stigma and discrimination.

Woman and gender diverse people who use drugs around the world can face arbitrary detention, extortion, police violence, torture and ill-treatment, with well over a third of women in prison for drug offences and with the incarceration of women for drug offences spiking globally by 53% since 2000.

Due to the so-called “war on drugs”, survivors have little recourse and often no support, particularly in cases of violence from police, prison guards and compulsory ‘treatment’ centre staff. The experiences of violence against women who use drugs are even more extreme for those facing intersecting oppressions such as women of colour, sex workers, or trans women. Additionally, young people face more barriers to accessing essential health and harm reduction services due to policies and laws on age restrictions, affecting young women and gender diverse people.

WHRIN and DPNSEE and partners note that, by collaborating with groups of women and gender diverse people who use drugs and documenting peer led actions and services, the appropriate responses to these inequities and violations are clear.

Meaningful community involvement must feature as the cornerstone to all good practice responses in developing GBV services. As the criminalisation of drug use stands as a primary barrier between women and gender diverse people who use drugs and attainment of human rights including the right to safety, access to harm reduction and other essential health services.

Decriminalisation which removes all sanctions and punishment, including coerced or court-imposed treatment programs, for all people who use drugs, and all types of drugs is also imperative. Properly implemented decriminalisation will reduce the stigma and violence associated with the “war on drugs”.

Expansion of harm reduction and inclusion of violence prevention and mitigation, and gender sensitive, affirming and age-appropriate support services are also critical. It is also noted that sexual and reproductive health is now promoted as an additional essential service that should be incorporated within the harm reduction suite of services for people who use drugs, and that best practice service delivery integrates comprehensive GBV services.

DPNSEE and WHRIN, EuroNPUD, YouthRISE and ENWA call for an end to the “war on drugs”, to end this violence against women and gender diverse people who use drugs. Legislation and legal principles, procedures, policies, programmes and practices relating to criminal justice must be reviewed to determine if they are adequate to prevent and eliminate violence against women and gender diverse people who use drugs. If they are found to have a negative impact, they must be modified in order to ensure that people who use drugs enjoy fair and equal treatment.

Please join us in ensuring adequate resources and legislative frameworks uphold the safety and human rights of women and gender diverse people who use drugs.