3 July 2026 – Geneva, Switzerland and Online

During the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council (HRC), Commissioner Adeeba Kamarulzaman delivered a video address at the side-event, “Human Rights Implications of Drug Policy: Decriminalizing Drug Use in HIV Response – A Guidance Note”.

The event was organized by OHCHR, UNAIDS, UNDP, the International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD), the International Centre for Human Rights and Drug Policy (ICHRDP), and Release, with co-sponsorship of Albania, Brazil, Colombia, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland, the European Union, the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association, Harm Reduction International (HRI), the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), the Open Society Foundations (OSF) and Youth RISE.

The event served to introduce the recently published “Decriminalization of drug use in the context of HIV: a guidance note” to Geneva-based audiences. Developed by the event organizers, the publication was initially launched at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in March.

The side event was moderated by Julie Hannah (ICHRDP), with opening remarks from Ambassador João António da Costa Mira Gomes of Portugal. Umunyana Rugege of UNAIDS presented the guidance note, followed by a panel discussion featuring Commissioner Kamarulzaman, Anton Basenko (INPUD), Ehab Salah (UNODC), Doris Schmitz-Meiners (OHCHR), and Elina Steinerte, Member of the Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT) and of the independent expert panel established under CND resolution 68/6 – a panel on which Commissioners Kamarulzaman and Bém also serve.

In her remarks, Commissioner Kamarulzaman emphasized the Global Commission’s longstanding advocacy for the decriminalization of drug use and possession for personal use as one of its five pathways to drug policies that work. She highlighted the benefits of decriminalization not only for the HIV response, but also in reducing incarceration, easing prison overcrowding, tackling stigma and discrimination, and enabling resources to be redirected towards health and social support services.

She also reflected on the experience of her home country, Malaysia, where a shift from punishment-dominant approaches towards health-based responses – including harm reduction and opioid agonist maintenance therapy (OAMT) – contributed to reducing HIV transmission among people who inject drugs. While decriminalization is only one component of broader drug policy reform, it remains an essential step towards aligning drug policies with public health, human rights, and HIV objectives.

Participants also held a moment of silence to commemorate the passing of Ambassador Gustavo Gallón of Colombia, who had been scheduled to deliver the closing remarks but tragically passed away earlier that week. Ambassador Gallón was remembered as a longstanding champion of human rights in Colombia and globally, including in the field of drug policy. During his tenure in Geneva, he played a central role in advancing Colombia’s leadership on human rights and drug policy and was a valued friend of the Global Commission.