Drug Policy

...promoting more effective and humane drug policies

The U.S.-led war on drugs has failed to suppress illicit drug production or trafficking, while harsh drug laws have led to human rights abuses, overcrowded prisons and threats to democratic institutions. WOLA advocates reducing the harms caused by both the drug trade and by the misguided war on drugs. Across the hemisphere, we work for drug reforms that protect human rights and public health.

Featured Content

Central American Presidents to Meet to Discuss Alternatives to “War on Drugs”

Four Reforms Prime for Consideration and Implementation
22 Mar 2012
News
On Saturday, March 24, Guatemalan President Otto Pérez Molina will host a meeting of Central American presidents. Here, WOLA suggests four alternatives to the current strategy.

Systems Overload: Drug Laws and Prisons in Latin America

TNI/WOLA Drug Law Reform Project
9 Dec 2010
Publication
Study reveals alarming pattern in imprisonment for drug crimes in Latin America

The Human Face

Drugs and Prisons in Latin America
6 Jun 2011
Publication
The people in the videos are featured because they represent the rarely revealed human side of the war on drugs.

For a Drug Policy that Promotes Peace and Respect for Human Rights

WOLA and Six Other NGOs Send a Letter to the Region's Presidents
13 Apr 2012
Publication
"It is time for governments’ drug policy agendas to change directions and focus on alternative, innovative, and concerted responses"

Drug Policy News & Analysis

Just How “New” is the 2012 National Drug Control Strategy?

8 May 2012
Analysis & Commentary
The Obama administration deserves credit for at least acknowledging the wasteful excesses of domestic drug enforcement and for taking steps to bolster treatment. But talk of a revolution in U.S. drug policy is still premature.

Los de atrás vienen conmigo

Part of WOLA's "On the Table: Deepening Democratic Debate over Drug Policy in Latin America" Series
30 Apr 2012
Publication
Ambassador Romani challenges Latin American civil society and political leadership to connect drug policy reform to broader agendas of development and social inclusion

Drug-Law Reform Genie Freed From Bottle at Summit of the Americas

An article by WOLA Senior Fellow Coletta Youngers in Foreign Policy in Focus
18 Apr 2012
Analysis & Commentary
A topic long considered taboo – the U.S. “war on drugs” – is now being seriously questioned and debate on new strategies – including legal, regulated markets – is officially on the regional agenda.

The Drug Policy Debate: Putting Everything on the Table

10 Apr 2012
Analysis & Commentary
When the hemisphere’s leaders emerge from their Summit conversations about drug policy, no one should expect them to announce a consensus position. But Cartagena can be the springboard to a sustained, structured, and increasingly specific consideration of a range of promising options.
more

Stay Informed

Experts

Maureen Meyer

Senior Associate for Mexico and Central America

John Walsh

Senior Associate for Drug Policy and the Andes

Adam Isacson

Senior Associate for Regional Security Policy

Gimena Sánchez-Garzoli

Senior Associate for the Andes

Coletta Youngers

Senior Fellow

More Information

 IDPD

Stop Arms Trafficking