European UpdateEMCDDAScientific Paper Awards 2013The prize, inaugurated in 2011 by the EMCDDA andits Scientific Committee, celebrates scientific writingand distinguishes high-quality research in the field ofillicit drugs. This year's winners of the 2013 EM-CDDA scientific paper award were honoured in Lis-bon on 7 November 2013 at the third annual awardceremony hosted by the EU agency. (Video)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8sLeXnhCX0&feature=youtu.beEMCDDAEMCDDA launches new toolkit for monitoring infec-tious diseases among people who inject drugs. Thetoolkit is designed to help health professionals im-prove their monitoring practice in order to reduce theburden of disease in this vulnerable group and im-prove the coverage and quality of services delivered.http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/news/2013/fs11Council of EuropeDuring the 73rd Permanent Correspondents Meetingof the Pompidou Group, two jurors are launching the6th European Drug Prevention Prize in Athens. Weherewith are calling for projects to apply to the Prize2014 which will be awarded at the end of 2014.http://www.coe.int/T/DG3/Pompidou/Source/Initiatives/PreventionPrize/Prize2014/Application_en.htmBelgiumBelgian police and customs have seized a massivehaul of seven tonnes of cannabis hidden in a ship-ment of coconuts from Africa. The drug, with anestimated street value of 14 million euros, was foundin a cargo container filled with coconuts near thesmall town of Ypres in the west close to the Frenchborder. http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/belgian-police-seize-seven-tonnes-of-cannabis-in-coconut-cargo-452660Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic this week awarded its first li-cense for the wholesale import of cannabis but it maydo little to help the country’s foundering medicalmarijuana initiative get off the ground half-a-yearafter such use was made legal.http://blogs.wsj.com/emergingeurope/2013/11/20/cz

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ech-medical-cannabis-unavailable-despite-import-license-award/GermanyBerlin could soon be enjoying its very own legalmarijuana, as the parliament of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district voted overwhelmingly in favor ofa measure that could see the first legal coffee shopin the country. http://rt.com/news/marijuana-berlin-shop-opens-462/GreeceGreece has set up its first "drug consumption"room to contain infectious diseases among drugaddicts in the crisis-hit country, Greece's Organiza-tion Against Drugs, OKANA, said.http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/25/us-greece-drugs-idUSBRE9AO0VF20131125IrelandA senior member of the Gardaí has called on theGovernment to establish a dedicated agency toprevent drug-related deaths. Chief SuperintendentMick Finn proposes that authorities launch a DrugSafety Agency and operate it in a similar manner tothe Road Safety Authority if they're serious aboutslashing the number of drug deaths.http://www.newstalk.ie/Senior-Garda-calls-for-dedicated-drug-safety-agencyUnited KingdomThe Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs(ACMD) recommends NBOMe drugs, which havea hallucinogenic affect similar to LSD, are con-trolled as Class A drugs under the Misuse of DrugsAct 1971. It further recommends the group ofstimulants known as Benzofury are controlled asClass B drugs.https://www.gov.uk/government/news/acmd-recommends-permanent-ban-on-two-legal-highsUnited KingdomStatistics on Drug Misuse: England 2013This compendia report presents a range of pub-lished information on drug misuse among bothadults and children which has been drawn togetherfrom a variety of sources. The report also presentssome new information on hospital admissions re-lated to drug misuse.http://www.hscic.gov.uk/catalogue/PUB12994

World UpdateWADAWhat precisely would a nation have to do for theWorld Anti-Doping Agency to rule it noncompliantwith its code – a judgment which would force theInternational Olympic Committee to at least ruleone way or the other as far as its Olympic participa-tion is concerned?http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2013/nov/13/world-anti-doping-agency-drug-wadaBoliviaA study released by Bolivia's government says 58percent of the country's coca crop is devoted totraditional uses, meaning the rest is processed intococaine. The European Union-financed study said31 percent of Bolivia's 10 million people consumecoca, a mild stimulant used in religious rituals andchewed and taken in tea to fight off fatigue andaltitude sickness.http://www.kansas.com/2013/11/13/3115244/bolivia-less-than-half-its-coca.htmlBrazilBrazilian police officials say nearly 450 kilograms(about 990 pounds) of cocaine were found in ahelicopter owned by a senator's two sons. Policesays the helicopter was seized when it landed in anopen field. Four people including the pilot werearrested as they loaded the drug into a van.http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11163376ChinaChina aiding UK in fight against potentially lethalsubstances. Whitehall officials met with Beijing’sMinistry of Public Security. Many Chinese chemistsare involved in the trade and they constantly de-velop highs with fresh chemical compositions –even before the existing ones have been outlawed.http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/legal-highs-china-aiding-uk-2844112#ixzz2lZb63tlTColombiaA peace deal between FARC rebels and the Co-lombian government would greatly help cut cocaineproduction in Colombia, but officials fear new crimegangs could fill the gap while anti-narcotics policefight a new scourge: synthetic drugs.http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/27/us-colombia-farc-drugs-idUSBRE9AQ11L20131127GhanaGhanaian authorities have impounded a SouthAmerican ship carrying 400 kilogrammes (880pounds) of cocaine and arrested its crew, the na-tion's anti-narcotics agency said.http://news.yahoo.com/ghana-impounds-ship-carrying-cocaine-worth-50-million-222737524.htmlPage 2

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JapanIn what is turning out to be Japan's biggest-everdrugs' haul, two more backpacks of cocaine havewashed up on the shores of Japan. The value ofthe drugs has been put at around $72m (£44.5m),making it the biggest-ever haul of the drug in Japan.http://news.sky.com/story/1172298/japan-huge-cocaine-haul-washes-up-on-beachLebanonLebanon cannabis trade thrives in shadow of Syr-ian war: the Syrian conflict has paralysed authori-ties at home and left the nearby border virtuallyuncontrolled.http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/131125/lebanon-cannabis-trade-thrives-shadow-syri-an-warNew ZealandStudents using Ritalin as a party stimulant andstudy aid need to be aware that recreational usecould be as harmful as methamphetamine, anexpert says. The class B drug is prescribed forattention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) andnarcolepsy, but has become popular among youngpeople looking to get a competitive edge fromRitalin's "methamphetamine-like" effects.http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/recreational-ritalin-risky-methamphetamine-5708548PakistanPolice seized 31 kilogrammes of heroin from theCantt Station in Karachi. The heroin was found ina case of guavas on a Pak Business Express trainduring a search operation.http://tribune.com.pk/story/634813/police-seize-31-kilos-of-heroin-in-karachi/Solomon IslandsReports of fraudulent medicines in the south-westPacific islands states of Solomon Islands andPapua New Guinea have drawn attention to theneed for more public awareness of the lethal tradeand its tragic consequences. The medicines arefake, the illnesses real.http://www.islandsbusiness.com/2013/11/health/the-medicines-are-fake-the-illnesses-real/South AfricaReport titled “At what cost? The futility of the waron drugs in South Africa“.It looks at the actualfinancial cost of processing a successful drug con-viction through our criminal justice system. Thereport gives us a clear indication of what it costs tokeep feeding the war on drugs in South Africa. Butmore importantly, it tells us how much of an impactit is making. http://www.belowthelion.co.za/2-reports-on-cannabis-in-south-africa-that-government-is-ignoring/

Drug WebwatchReports

AfghanistanOpium Poppy Survey 2013Summary of findings.http://www.unodc.org/documents/crop-monitoring/Afghanistan/Afghan_report_Summary_Findings_2013.pdf

World Anti-Doping AgencyWADA Anti-Doping Code 2015 version 3New code of practice regarding Drugs in Sporthttp://www.wada-ama.org/Documents/World_Anti-Doping_Program/WADP-The-Code/Code_Review/Code%20Review%202015/WADC-2015-draft-version-3.0-Overview.pdf

United KingdomACMD Second report of the Recovery Committee - November 2013This second report from the Recovery Committee of the Advisory Council on the Misuseof Drugs (ACMD) explores ‘what recovery outcomes the evidence tells us we can expectfrom drug and alcohol dependence’. This paper builds on our first report which scopedevidence around the topic of recovery: ‘Recovery from drug and alcohol dependence: anoverview of the evidence’. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/acmd-second-report-of-the-recovery-committee-november-2013

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Issue 86 December 2013

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