On 18 September, the Global Commission co-sponsored a side event to the 60^th regular session of the Human Rights Council (HRC); organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy at the University of Essex, entitled “Implications of International Guidelines on Human Rights and Drug Policy: Insights from Diverse National Contexts”. The event was also co-sponsored by Colombia, Portugal, Switzerland, Czechia, Mexico, the Global Partnership on Drug Policies and Development (GPDPD), the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), Justice Project Pakistan (JPP), Dejusticia, Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) International, the International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD), Harm Reduction International (HRI), UNAIDS, and the UN Development Program (UNDP).

The session was moderated by Simon Walker, Chief of the Rule of Law and Democracy Section of OHCHR, with opening remarks delivered by H.E. Ambassador Gustavo Gallón, Permanent Representative of Colombia to the UN in Geneva, and Julie Hannah, Executive Director of the International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy at the University of Essex. Panelists included Marta Machado, National Secretary for Drug Policies and Assets Management of Brazil; Barrister Aqeel Malik, Minister of State for Law and Justice of Pakistan; Lucia Kiššová, Director, Drug Policy Department, Office of the Government of the Czech Republic (via video); Charity Monareng, Executive Director, SSDP International; and Aditia Taslim, Advocacy Lead, INPUD (via video). They discussed how the Guidelines have informed advocacy, law and policy reform, and program development and implementation globally and in countries such as Brazil, Pakistan, Czechia and South Africa, reaching policymakers, jurists, healthcare professionals, youth advocates, and affected communities.

Christine Stegling, Deputy Executive Director, Policy, Advocacy and Knowledge Branch, UNAIDS, provided closing remarks, emphasizing the urgent need for reforms that decriminalize people who use drugs and facilitate their access to HIV, health and social services in line with the Guidelines, as a critical step toward ending AIDS by 2030.