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‘Drugs, Alcohol and Criminal Justice:

ethics, effectiveness and economics of interventions'
Friends House, London, UK -24-25 June 2010

Report & presentations >>>

21-01-2009: Council of Europe anti-torture Committee publishes report on Albania prisons and police detention centres

The Council of Europe's Committee for the prevention of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (CPT) published its report on the June 2008 ad hoc visit to Albania.

The main objective of the visit was to review progress made as regards the implementation of the recommendations made by the CPT following its previous visits to Albania. Particular attention was paid to the treatment of persons detained by the police and conditions of detention in remand prisons and pre-trial detention centres.

8-12-2008: EU Action Plan on Drugs approved by Member States

Thanks to adoption by the European Council in December 2008, the EU has a new 4-year Action Plan on Drugs.

The Plan wants to provide a coherent frame of intervention at EU level for the formulation, implementation and coordination of drug policies among Member States. In the area of prevention, the Plan intends to mobilise European communities and the civil society around the initiative of an European Alliance against Drugs.

One of the Action Plan objectives invites Member States to “Provide access to health care for drug users in prison”. Particular emphasis is to be placed on follow-up care after release from prison to prevent and reduce health-related harms associated with drug abuse.

The text of the Action Plan can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/fsj/drugs/fsj_drugs_intro_en.htm

14-11-2008: UNODC publication on Women and HIV in prison settings

Globally, female prisoners represent about 5 per cent of the total prison population, but this proportion is increasing rapidly, particularly in countries where levels of illicit substance use are high. In 2005, worldwide, on any given date more than half a million women and girls were detained in prisons, either awaiting trial or serving sentences.
UNODC published a short report on specific threats and needs for women prisoners in the area of HIV prevention, recommending the provision of comprehensive HIV prevention, treatment, care and support for women in prisons.

Click here to download the PDF version

14-11-08: The EC publishes an experts’ report on Prevention, Treatment, and Harm Reduction Services in Prison

The report on drugs in prison, prepared by a group of German experts and recently published, summarises the current situation of drug related issues in prisons, the status quo of prevention, treatment, and harm reduction services for prisoners in the European Union as well as reintegration services for prisoners on release. Furthermore, current approaches to monitor and analyse drug use and related infectious diseases in prison have been described and analysed.