Governments of opium-producing Parties are required to "purchase and take physical possession of such crops as soon as possible" after harvest to prevent diversion into the illicit market.
Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs
Opened for signature	March 30, 1961 at New York
Entered into force	December 13, 1964[1]
Conditions for entry into force	40 ratifications
Parties	180[2]

The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs is the international treaty against illicit drug manufacture and trafficking that forms the bedrock of the global drug control regime. Previous treaties had only controlled opium, coca, and derivatives such as morphine and heroin. The Single Convention, adopted in 1961, consolidated those treaties, broadening their scope to include cannabis and allow control of any drugs with similar effects to those specified in the treaty. The Commission on Narcotic Drugs and the World Health Organization were empowered to add, remove, and transfer drugs among the treaty's four Schedules of controlled substances. The International Narcotics Control Board was put in charge of administering controls on drug production, international trade, and dispensation. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) was delegated the Board's day-to-day work of monitoring the situation in each country and working with national authorities to ensure compliance with the Single Convention. This treaty has since been supplemented by the Convention on Psychotropic Substances, which controls LSD, Ecstasy, and other mind-altering pharmaceuticals, and the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, which strengthens provisions against money laundering and other drug-related offenses. Opium harvesters, courtesy of DEA. http://www. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ... In the terminology of the DEA, diversion is the use of prescription drugs for recreational purposes. ... March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in Leap years). ... 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... December 13 is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A treaty is a binding agreement under international law concluded by subjects of international law, namely states and international organizations. ... These lollipops, above, were found to contain heroin when inspected by the US Drug Enforcement Administration In jurisdictions where legislation restricts or prohibits the sale of certain popular drugs, it is common for an illegal drugs trade to develop. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ... Binomial name Erythroxylon coca For the American comedian, see Imogene Coca. ... Morphine (INN), the principal active agent in opium, is a powerful opioid analgesic drug. ... Heroin or diamorphine (INN) (colloquially referred to as junk, babania, horse, golden brown, smack, black tar, H, big H, lady H, dope, skag, juice, diesel, etc. ... 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... At the presiding table, from left to right: Mr. ... For other meanings of the acronym WHO, see WHO (disambiguation) WHO flag Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Health Organization (WHO) is an agency of the United Nations, acting as a coordinating authority on international public health. ... Mr. ... United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a United Nations agency which was founded in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention with the intent to fight drugs and crime on an international level. ... Convention on Psychotropic Substances Opened for signature February 21, 1971 at Vienna Entered into force August 16, 1976 Conditions for entry into force 40 ratifications Parties 175 The Convention on Psychotropic Substances is a United Nations treaty designed to control psychoactive drugs such as amphetamines, barbiturates, and LSD. During the... D-Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, commonly called acid, LSD, or LSD-25, is a powerful semisynthetic psychedelic drug. ... MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine), most commonly known today by the street name ecstasy, is a synthetic entactogen of the phenethylamine family whose primary effect is to stimulate the secretion of large amounts of serotonin as well as dopamine and noradrenaline in the brain, causing a general sense of openness, empathy... United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Opened for signature December 20, 1988[1] at Vienna Entered into force November 11, 1990[2] Conditions for entry into force 20 ratifications Parties 170[3] The 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and... Money laundering is the practice of engaging in financial transactions in order to conceal the identity, source and destination of the money in question. ...

Influence on domestic legislation

Russian Minister of Interior Affairs Boris Gryzlov told the State Duma that "total prohibition" of illicit drug use was "not the government’s own initiative...but rather the result of our responsibility to implement the UN drug conventions of 1961, 1971, and 1988.”

U.S. Federal Commissioner of Narcotics Harry Anslinger remarked in 1953, "It is obviously most desirable to revise these international agreements, one of which dates back to 1912, and to incorporate them if possible into a single agreement".

Since the Single Convention is not self-executing, Parties must pass laws to carry out its provisions. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime works with countries' legislatures to ensure compliance. As a result, most of the national drug statutes in the UNODC's legal library share a high degree of conformity with the Single Convention and its supplementary treaties, the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances and the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. File links The following pages link to this file: Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs Categories: Conditional use images ... File links The following pages link to this file: Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs Categories: Conditional use images ... Boris Gryzlov Boris Gryzlov or Boris Grizlov (Russian: Борис Грызлов) (b. ... A Duma (Ду́ма in Russian) is any of various representative assemblies in modern Russia and Russian history. ... Harry Anslinger This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Harry J. Anslinger (1892-1975) is widely considered to be The first United States drug czar. Currently, many firmly oppose Anslinger for his rhetoric-based crusade against marijuana, fueling decades of misinformation about the drug based on racism and fear. ... 1953 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1912 is a leap year starting on Monday. ... United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a United Nations agency which was founded in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention with the intent to fight drugs and crime on an international level. ... Chamber of the Estates-General, the Dutch legislature. ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... Convention on Psychotropic Substances Opened for signature February 21, 1971 at Vienna Entered into force August 16, 1976 Conditions for entry into force 40 ratifications Parties 175 The Convention on Psychotropic Substances is a United Nations treaty designed to control psychoactive drugs such as amphetamines, barbiturates, and LSD. During the... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Opened for signature December 20, 1988[1] at Vienna Entered into force November 11, 1990[2] Conditions for entry into force 20 ratifications Parties 170[3] The 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and...

The Single Convention has been extremely influential in standardizing national drug control laws. In particular, the United States' Controlled Substances Act and the United Kingdom's Misuse of Drugs Act were designed to fulfill treaty obligations. Both Acts include analogous schemes of drug Scheduling, along with similar procedures for adding, removing, and transferring drugs among the Schedules. The Controlled Substances Act follows the Single Convention's lead in granting a public health authority a central role in drug Scheduling decisions. It also includes a provision mandating that federal authorities control all drugs of abuse at least as strictly as required by the Single Convention(21 U.S.C. § 811(d)). The Controlled Substances Act (CSA), 21 U.S.C. § 801 , Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, is the legal foundation of the United States governments fight against the abuse of drugs and other substances. ... Misuse of Drugs Act is the name of several similar national drug control laws passed by countries in the Commonwealth of Nations. ...

As of January 2005, the Single Convention had 180 Parties. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

History

The League of Nations adopted several drug control treaties prior to World War II specifying uniform controls on addictive drugs such as cocaine, opium, and its derivatives. However, the lists of substances to be controlled were fixed in the treaties' text; consequently, the conventions had to periodically be amended or superseded by new treaties in order to keep up with advances in chemistry. The cumbersome process of conference and state-by-state ratification could take decades. The League of Nations was an international organization founded after the First World War at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air, August 9, 1945. ... Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ...

A Canadian Senate committee report notes, "The work of consolidating the existing international drug control treaties into one instrument began in 1948, but it was 1961 before an acceptable third draft was ready"[3]. That year, the UN Economic and Social Council convened a plenipotentiary conference of 73 nations for the adoption of a single convention on narcotic drugs. Canadian William B. McAllister, Q.C., notes that the participating states organized themselves into five distinct caucuses[4]: The Senate (French: Sénat) is a component of the Parliament of Canada, which also includes the Sovereign (represented by the Governor General) and the House of Commons. ... 1948 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development. ... The term plenipotentiary (from the Latin, plenus + potens, full + power) refers to a person who has full powers. ...

• Organic states group: As producers of the organic raw materials for most of the global drug supply, these countries had been the traditional focus of international drug control efforts. They were open to socio-cultural drug use, having lived with it for centuries. While India, Turkey, Pakistan and Burma took the lead, the group also included the coca-producing states of Indonesia and the Andean region of South America, the opium- and cannabis-producing countries of South and Southeast Asia, and the cannabis-producing states in the Horn of Africa. They favored weak controls because existing restrictions on production and export had directly affected large segments of their domestic population and industry. They supported national control efforts based on local conditions and were wary of strong international control bodies under the UN. Although essentially powerless to fight the prohibition philosophy directly, they effectively forced a compromise by working together to dilute the treaty language with exceptions, loopholes and deferrals. They also sought development aid to compensate for losses caused by strict controls.
• Manufacturing states group: This group included primarily Western industrialized nations, the key players being the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Switzerland, the Netherlands, West Germany, and Japan. Having no cultural affinity for organic drug use and being faced with the effects that drug abuse was having on their citizens, they advocated very stringent controls on the production of organic raw materials and on illicit trafficking. As the principal manufacturers of synthetic psychotropics, and backed by a determined industry lobby, they forcefully opposed undue restrictions on medical research or the production and distribution of manufactured drugs. They favored strong supranational control bodies as long as they continued to exercise de facto control over such bodies. According to W.B. McAllister's Drug Diplomacy in the Twentieth Century, their strategy was essentially to "shift as much of the regulatory burden as possible to the raw-material-producing states while retaining as much of their own freedom as possible."
• Strict control group: These were essentially non-producing and non-manufacturing states with no direct economic stake in the drug trade. The key members were France, Sweden, Brazil, and the Republic of China. Most of the states in this group were culturally opposed to drug use and suffered from abuse problems. They favored restricting drug use to medical and scientific purposes and were willing to sacrifice a degree of national sovereignty to ensure the effectiveness of supranational control bodies. They were forced to moderate their demands in order to secure the widest possible agreement.
• Weak control group: This group was led by the Soviet Union and often included its allies in Europe, Asia and Africa. They considered drug control a purely internal issue and adamantly opposed any intrusion on national sovereignty, such as independent inspections. With little interest in the drug trade and minimal domestic abuse problems, they refused to give any supranational body excessive power, especially over internal decision-making.
• Neutral group: This was a diverse group including most of the African countries, Central America, sub-Andean South America, Luxembourg and the Vatican. They had no strong interest in the issue apart from ensuring their own access to sufficient drug supplies. Some voted with political blocs, others were willing to trade votes, and others were truly neutral and could go either way on the control issue depending on the persuasive power of the arguments presented. In general, they supported compromise with a view to obtaining the broadest possible agreement.

These competing interests, after more than eight weeks of negotiations, finally produced a compromise treaty. Several controls were watered down; for instance, the proposed mandatory embargoes on nations failing to comply with the treaty became recommendatory. The 1953 New York Opium Protocol, which had not yet entered into force, limited opium production to seven countries; the Single Convention lifted that restriction, but instituted other regulations and put the International Narcotics Control Board in charge of monitoring their enforcement. A compromise was also struck that allowed heroin and some other drugs classified as particularly dangerous to escape absolute prohibition[5]. Binomial name Erythroxylon coca For the American comedian, see Imogene Coca. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ... Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in East Africa that juts into the Arabian Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. ... The prohibition of drugs through legislation or religious law is a common means of controlling the perceived negative consequences of recreational drug use at a society- or world-wide level. ... These lollipops, above, were found to contain heroin when inspected by the US Drug Enforcement Administration In jurisdictions where legislation restricts or prohibits the sale of certain popular drugs, it is common for an illegal drugs trade to develop. ... The Republic of China (Traditional Chinese: 中華民國; Simplified Chinese: 中华民国; Wade-Giles: Chung-hua Min-kuo, Tongyong Pinyin: JhongHuá MínGuó, Hanyu Pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó, Taiwanese POJ: Tiong-hoâ Bîn-kok) is a multiparty democratic state that is effectively composed of the island groups of Taiwan, the Pescadores, Quemoy... Sovereignty is the exclusive right to exercise supreme authority over a geographic region, group of people, or oneself. ... A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... World map showing location of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of the continent of Eurasia, defined by subtracting the European peninsula from Eurasia. ... Africa is the worlds second-largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. ... Africa is the worlds second-largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. ... Central America is the region of North America located between the southern border of Mexico and the northwest border of Colombia, in South America. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... In international commerce and politics, an embargo is the prohibition of commerce and trade with a certain country. ... 1953 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... Mr. ... Heroin or diamorphine (INN) (colloquially referred to as junk, babania, horse, golden brown, smack, black tar, H, big H, lady H, dope, skag, juice, diesel, etc. ...

The Single Convention created four Schedules of controlled substances and a process for adding new substances to the Schedules without amending the treaty. The Schedules were designed to have significantly stricter regulations than the two drug "Groups" established by predecessor treaties. For the first time, cannabis was added to the list of internationally controlled drugs. In fact, regulations on the cannabis plant – as well as the opium poppy, the coca bush, poppy straw and cannabis leaves – were embedded in the text of the treaty, making it impossible to deregulate them through the normal Scheduling process. A 1962 issue of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs' Bulletin on Narcotics proudly announced that "after a definite transitional period, all non-medical use of narcotic drugs, such as opium smoking, opium eating, consumption of cannabis (hashish, marijuana) and chewing of coca leaves, will be outlawed everywhere. This is a goal which workers in international narcotics control all over the world have striven to achieve for half a century"[6]. Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ... Papaver rhoeas Poppy at High Wood cemetery, France. ... Binomial name Erythroxylon coca For the American comedian, see Imogene Coca. ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... At the presiding table, from left to right: Mr. ... The Bulletin on Narcotics is a publication of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. ...

An August 3, 1962 Economic and Social Council resolution ordered the issuance of the Commentary on the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs[7]. The legal commentary was created by the United Nations Secretary-General's staff (specifically, Adolf Lande, former Secretary of the Permanent Central Narcotics Board and Drug Supervisory Body), operating under a mandate to give "an interpretation of the provisions of the Convention in the light of the relevant conference proceedings and other material"[8]. The Commentary contains the Single Convention's legislative history and is an invaluable aid to interpreting the treaty. August 3 is the 215th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (216th in leap years), with 150 days remaining. ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The United Nations Secretary-General is the head of the Secretariat, one of the principal divisions of the United Nations. ... Adolf Lande served for many years as secretary of the Permanent Central Narcotics Board and the Drug Supervisory Body (two international drug organs) and was the primary drafter of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. ... Legislative history referes to various materials generated in the course of creating legislation, such as committee reports, analysis by legislative counsel, floor debates and histories of actions taken. ...

The Single Convention was the first international treaty to prohibit cannabis.

The Single Convention entered into force on December 13, 1964, having met Article 41's requirement of 40 ratifications. As of January 1, 2005, 180 states were Parties to the treaty[9]. Others, such as Cambodia, have committed to becoming Parties[10]. Cannabis from http://www. ... Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A state is an organized political community occupying a definite territory, having an organized government, and possessing internal and external sovereignty. ...

On May 21, 1971, the UN Economic and Social Council called a conference of plenipotentiaries to consider amendments to the Single Convention. The conference met at the United Nations Office at Geneva from March 6 to March 24, 1972, producing the 1972 Protocol Amending the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. The amendments entered into force on August 8, 1975[11]. May 21 is the 141st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (142nd in leap years). ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development. ... March 6 is the 65th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (66th in Leap years). ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in Leap years). ... 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... The 1972 Protocol Amending the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs made several changes to the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. ... August 8 is the 220th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (221st in leap years), with 145 days remaining. ... 1975 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ...

On November 11, 1990, mechanisms for enforcing the Single Convention were expanded significantly by the entry into force of the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, which had been signed at Vienna on December 20, 1988. The Preamble to this treaty acknowledges the inadequacy of the Single Convention's controls to stop "steadily increasing inroads into various social groups made by illicit traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances". The new treaty focuses on stopping organized crime by providing for international cooperation in apprehending and convicting gangsters and starving them of funds through forfeiture, asset freezing, and other methods. It also establishes a system for placing precursors to Scheduled drugs under international control. Some non-Parties to the Single Convention, such as Andorra, belong to this treaty and thus are still under the international drug control regime. November 11 is the 315th day of the year (316th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 50 days remaining. ... 1990 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Opened for signature December 20, 1988[1] at Vienna Entered into force November 11, 1990[2] Conditions for entry into force 20 ratifications Parties 170[3] The 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and... Vienna (German: Wien [viːn]) is the capital of Austria, and also one of Austrias nine federal states (Bundesland Wien). ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Organized crime is crime carried out systematically by formal criminal organizations. ... Search and seizure is a legal tool whereby police who suspect that a crime has been committed may do a search of the property. ...

Medical and other drug uses

Parties are required to phase out the traditional practice of coca leaf chewing.

Under Article 37, "Any drugs, substances and equipment used in or intended for the commission of any of the offenses . . . shall be liable to seizure and confiscation."

The Single Convention repeatedly affirms the importance of medical use of controlled substances. The Preamble notes that "the medical use of narcotic drugs continues to be indispensable for the relief of pain and suffering and that adequate provision must be made to ensure the availability of narcotic drugs for such purposes". Articles 1, 2, 4, 9, 12, 19, and 49 contain provisions relating to "medical and scientific" use of controlled substances. In almost all cases, parties are permitted to allow dispensation and use of controlled substances under a prescription, subject to record-keeping requirements and other restrictions. Coca chewing, from http://www. ... Coca chewing, from http://www. ... Binomial name Erythroxylon coca For the American comedian, see Imogene Coca. ... Opium processing, courtesy DEA. http://www. ... The term narcotic, derived from the Greek word for stupor, originally referred to a variety of substances that induced sleep (such state is narcosis). ... Prescription has various meanings. ...

The Single Convention unambiguously condemns drug addiction, however, stating that "addiction to narcotic drugs constitutes a serious evil for the individual and is fraught with social and economic danger to mankind". It takes a prohibitionist approach to the problem of drug addiction, attempting to stop all non-medical, non-scientific use of narcotic drugs. Article 4 requires nations to limit use and possession of drugs to medicinal and scientific purposes. Article 49 allows countries to phase out coca leaf chewing, opium smoking, and other traditional drug uses gradually, but provides that "the use of cannabis for other than medical and scientific purposes must be discontinued as soon as possible." Drug addiction, or dependency is the compulsive use of drugs, to the point where the user has no effective choice but to continue use. ... The prohibition of drugs through legislation or religious law is a common means of controlling the perceived negative consequences of recreational drug use at a society- or world-wide level. ... Binomial name Erythroxylon coca For the American comedian, see Imogene Coca. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ...

The discontinuation of these prohibited uses is intended to be achieved by cutting off supply. Rather than calling on nations to prosecute drug users, the treaty focuses on traffickers and producers. As of March 2005, 116 drugs were controlled under the Single Convention. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

Penal provisions

Article 36 requires Parties to criminalize "cultivation, production, manufacture, extraction, preparation, possession, offering, offering for sale, distribution, purchase, sale, delivery on any terms whatsoever, brokerage, dispatch, dispatch in transit, transport, importation and exportation of drugs contrary to the provisions of this Convention," as well as "[i]ntentional participation in, conspiracy to commit and attempts to commit, any of such offences, and preparatory acts and financial operations in connexion with the offences referred to in this article".

The Article also provides for extradition of drug offenders, although a Party has a right to refuse to extradite a suspect if "competent authorities consider that the offense is not sufficiently serious." A 1971 amendment to the Article grants nations the discretion to substitute "treatment, education, after-care, rehabilitation and social reintegration" for criminal penalties if the offender is a drug abuser. A loophole in the Single Convention is that it requires Parties to place anti-drug laws on the books, but does not clearly mandate their enforcement, except in the case of drug cultivation[12]. Extradition is a formal process by which a criminal suspect held by one government is handed over to another government for trial or, if the suspect has already been tried and found guilty, to serve his or her sentence. ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... Substance-abuse rehabilitation is a process of medical and/or psychotherapeutic treatment, for dependency on psychoactive substances. ... Embrasures along the fortifications of Morro Castle, San Juan Bay, Puerto Rico The term embrasure, in architecture, refers to the opening in a crenellation or battlement between the two raised solid portions or merlons, sometimes called a crenelle; also to the splay of a window. ...

Drug enforcement varies widely between nations. Many European countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany, and, most famously, the Netherlands, do not prosecute petty drug offenses. Dutch coffee shops are allowed to sell small amounts of cannabis to consumers. However, the Ministerie van Volksgezondheid's report, Drugs Policy in the Netherlands, notes that large-scale "[p]roduction and trafficking are dealt with severely under the criminal law, in accordance with the UN Single Convention. Each year the Public Prosecutions Department deals with an average of 10,000 cases involving infringements of the Opium Act"[13]. Some of the most severe penalties for drug trafficking are handed down in certain Asian countries, such as Malaysia, which mandate capital punishment for offenses involving amounts over a certain threshold. Singapore mandates the death penalty for trafficking in 15 grams (half an ounce) of heroin, 30 grams of cocaine or 500 grams of cannabis[14]. Most nations, such as France and the United States, find a middle ground, imposing a spectrum of sanctions ranging from probation to life imprisonment for drug offenses. A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... Coffeehouse in Damascus This article is about an establishment where coffee is sold and consumed. ... Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... The Ministerie van Volksgezondheid is the public health authority of the Netherlands. ... World map showing location of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of the continent of Eurasia, defined by subtracting the European peninsula from Eurasia. ... Death Penalty World Map Color Key: Blue: Abolished for all crimes Yellow: Abolished for crimes not committed in exceptional circumstances (such as crimes committed in time of war) Orange: Abolitionist in Practice Red: Legal Form of Punishment Capital punishment, also referred to as the death penalty, is the judicially ordered... Probation is the suspension of a prison or jail sentence - the criminal who is on probation has been convicted of a crime, but instead of serving prison time, has been found by the Court to be amenable to probation and will be returned to the community for a period in... Life imprisonment is a term used for a particular kind of sentence of imprisonment. ...

The Single Convention's penal provisions frequently begin with clauses such as "Subject to its constitutional limitations, each Party shall . . ." Thus, if a nation's constitution prohibited instituting the criminal penalties called for by the Single Convention, those provisions would not be binding on that country. However, Professor Cindy Fazey's A Growing Market: The Domestic Cultivation of Cannabis points out, "Whilst this strategy may be practical politics for some countries, critics will ask why it has taken almost half a century to discover that the UN conventions conflict with a constitutional principle. The argument is particularly difficult to deploy for countries like Britain, where constitutional principles are not formalized or codified to any significant degree." Cindy Fazey is a criminologist and former Chief of Demand Reduction for the United Nations Drug Control Programme. ...

Possession for personal use

Different nations have drawn different conclusions as to whether the treaty requires criminalization of drug possession for personal use.

It is unclear whether or not the treaty requires criminalization of drug possession for personal use. The treaty's language is ambiguous, and a ruling by the International Court of Justice would probably be required to settle the matter decisively. However, several commissions have attempted to tackle the question. With the exception of the Le Dain Commission, most have found that states are allowed to legalize possession for personal use. Bust from http://www. ... The International Court of Justice (known colloquially as the World Court or ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. ...

The Canadian Le Dain Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of Drugs' 1973 report cites circumstantial evidence suggesting that states must prohibit possession for personal use[15]: The Le Dain Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of Drugs was a Canadian commission that called for an end to charges for marijuana possession and cultivation in 1973. ... 1973 was a common year starting on Monday. ...

It has generally been assumed that "possession" in Article 36 includes possession for use as well as possession for the purpose of trafficking. This is a reasonable inference from the terms of Article 4, which obliges the parties "to limit exclusively to medical and scientific purposes the production, manufacture, export, import, distribution of, trade in, use and possession of drugs." There is also Article 33, which provides that "The Parties shall not permit the possession of drugs except under legal authority." [...] On the face of Article 26 it would not be unreasonable to argue that what is contemplated is possession for the purpose of trafficking rather than possession for use, and that the requirements of the article are satisfied if the former kind of possession is made a penal offense. The prevailing view, however, is that the word "possession" in Article 36 includes simple possession for use.

The Canadian Department of National Health and Welfare's 1979 report, The Single Convention and Its Implications for Canadian Cannabis Policy, counters with circumstantial evidence to the contrary[16]: 1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ...

The substantive argument in support of simple possession falling outside the scope of Article 36 is founded on the assumption that it is intended to insure a penal response to the problem of illicit trafficking rather than to punish drug users who do not participate in the traffic. (See United Nations, 1973:112; Noll, 1977:44-45) The Third Draft of the Single Convention, which served as the working document for the 1961 Plenipotentiary Conference, contained a paragraph identical to that which now appears as Article 36, subparagraph 1(a). This paragraph was included in a chapter entitled Measures Against Illicit Traffickers, but the format by which the Third Draft was divided into chapters was not transferred to the Single Convention, and this, apparently, is the sole reason why this chapter heading, along with all others, was deleted. (See United Nations, 1973:112) Article 36 is still located in that part of the Convention concerned with the illicit trade, sandwiched between Article 35 (Action Against the Illicit Traffic) and Article 37 (Seizure and Confiscation). In addition, it should be noted that the word "use," suggesting personal consumption rather than trafficking, appears in conjunction with "possession" in Article 4 (which pertains to non-penal "general obligations"), but not in the penal provisions of Article 36.

The Sackville Commission of South Australia concluded in 1978 that: 1978 was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ...

. . . the Convention does not require signatories to make either use or possession for personal use punishable offenses ... This is because ‘use’ is not specifically covered by Article 36 and the term ‘possession’ in that Article and elsewhere can be read as confined to possession for the purpose of dealing".

The American National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse reached a similar conclusion in 1972, finding "that the word 'possession' in Article 36 refers not to possession for personal use but to Possession as a link in illicit trafficking." The National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse was created by Public Law 91-513 to study marijuana abuse in the United States. ... 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ...

The Canadian Department of National Health and Welfare report cites the Commentary itself in backing up its interpretation[17]:

The official Commentary on the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961, as prepared by the office of the U.N. Secretary-General, adopts a permissive interpretation of possession in Article 36. It notes that whether or not the possession of drugs (including prohibited forms of cannabis) for personal use requires the imposition of penal sanctions is a question which may be answered differently in different countries. Further, the Commentary notes that parties which interpret Article 36 as requiring a punitive legal response to simple possession, may undoubtedly choose not to provide for imprisonment of persons found in such possession, but to impose only minor penalties such as fines or even censure (since possession of a small quantity of drugs for personal consumption may be held not to be a serious offense under article 36... and only a serious offense is liable to adequate punishment particularly by imprisonment or other penalties of deprivation of liberty.

The Bulletin on Narcotics attempted to tackle the question in 1977[18]: The Bulletin on Narcotics is a publication of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. ... 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ...

Since some confusion and misunderstanding had existed in the past and some instances still persist in respect of the legal position laid down in the international treaties concerning the relationship between penal sanctions and drug abuse, some clarifying remarks are called for. These were already offered at the XIth International Congress on Penal Law. 5 They were reiterated at the Fifth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders. 6 The international treaties in no way insist on harsh penal sanctions with regard to drug abuse, as is sometimes alleged by persons criticising the international drug control system; the treaties are much more subtle and flexible than sometimes interpreted.

First of all, Article 4 of the Single Convention contains the general obligations for Parties to this Convention to "take such legislative and administrative measures as may be necessary, subject to the provisions of this Convention, to limit exclusively to medical and scientific purposes the production, manufacture, export, import, distribution of, trade in, use and possession of drugs." From the contents of this provision it is clear that use of drugs and their possession for personal consumption has also to be limited by legislation and administrative measures exclusively to medical and scientific purposes. Consequently, "legalization" of drugs in the sense of making them freely available for non-medical and non-scientific purposes-as it is sometimes demanded by public mass media and even experts in discussions on the subject-is without any doubt excluded and unacceptable under the present international drug control system as established by the international treaties. The question, however, remains whether Parties are obliged by the international treaties to apply penal sanctions for unauthorized use and unauthorized possession of drugs for personal consumption. It is on this point that confusion still exists and clarification is needed.

It is a fact that "use" (or "personal consumption") is not enumerated amongst the punishable offences in accordance with paragraph 1 of Article 36 of the Single Convention. Although, as mentioned above, Parties are required to limit the use of drugs exclusively to medical and scientific purposes, the Single Convention does not require them to attain the goal by providing penal sanctions for unauthorized "use" or "personal consumption" of drugs.

Unauthorized "possession" of drugs is mentioned in paragraph 1 of Article 36, but from the context it is clear that, as stated in the Official Commentary by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, "possession" of drugs for personal consumption is not to be considered a "punishable offence" by a Party to the Single Convention. The whole international drug control system envisages in its penal provisions the illicit traffic in drugs; this also holds true for the 1972 Protocol Amending the Single Convention and for the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. As there is no obligation to provide penal sanctions for "use" in the sense of personal consumption and "possession" of drugs for personal consumption, any criticism levelled against the international drug control system by protagonists in favour of the so-called "liberalization" or decriminalization or "de-penalization" of use and possession of drugs for personal consumption is quite beside the point.

Schedules of drugs

The World Health Organization, headquartered in Geneva, issues scientific and medical findings that are binding on the Scheduling process.

The Single Convention's Schedules of drugs range from most restrictive to least restrictive, in this order: Schedule IV, Schedule I, Schedule II, Schedule III. The list of drugs initially controlled was annexed to the treaty. Article 3 states that in order for a drug to be placed in a Schedule, the World Health Organization must make the findings required for that Schedule, to wit: Public Domain - Must credit author  ©  This image is copyrighted. ... Public Domain - Must credit author  ©  This image is copyrighted. ... For other meanings of the acronym WHO, see WHO (disambiguation) WHO flag Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Health Organization (WHO) is an agency of the United Nations, acting as a coordinating authority on international public health. ... Geneva (French: Genève) is the second-most populous city in Switzerland located where Lake Geneva (French: Lac Léman, but the Genevois are fond of calling it Lac de Genève) empties into the Rhône River. ... For other meanings of the acronym WHO, see WHO (disambiguation) WHO flag Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Health Organization (WHO) is an agency of the United Nations, acting as a coordinating authority on international public health. ...

• Schedule I – The substance is liable to similar abuse and productive of similar ill effects as the drugs already in Schedule I or Schedule II, or is convertible into a drug.
• Schedule II – The substance is liable to similar abuse and productive of similar ill effects as the drugs already in Schedule I or Schedule II, or is convertible into a drug.
• Schedule III – The preparation, because of the substances which it contains, is not liable to abuse and cannot produce ill effects; and the drug therein is not readily recoverable.
• Schedule IV – The drug, which is already in Schedule I, is particularly liable to abuse and to produce ill effects, and such liability is not offset by substantial therapeutic advantages.

Schedule I, according to the Commentary, is the category of drugs whose control provisions "constitute the standard regime under the Single Convention"[19]. The principal features of that regime are:

• Limitation to medical and scientific purposes of all phases of narcotics trade (manufacture, domestic trade, both wholesale and retail, and international trade) in, and of the possession and use of, drugs;
• Requirement of governmental authorization (licensing or state ownership) of participation in any phase of the narcotics trade and of a specific authorization (import and export authorization) of each individual international transaction;
• Obligation of all participants in the narcotics trade to keep detailed records of their transactions in drugs;
• Requirement of a medical prescription for the supply or dispensation of drugs to individuals;
• A system of limiting the quantities of drugs available, by manufacture or import or both, in each country and territory, to those needed for medical and scientific purposes.

Schedule II drugs are regulated only slightly less strictly than Schedule I drugs. The Commentary confirms, "Drugs in Schedule II are subject to the same measures of control as drugs in Schedule I, with only a few exceptions"[20]: In commerce, a wholesaler buys goods in large quantities from their manufacturers or importers, and then sells smaller quantities to retailers, who in turn sell to the general public. ... In commerce, a retailer buys goods or products in large quantities from manufacturers or importers, either directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells individual items or small quantities to the general public or end user customers, usually in a shop, also called store. ... International trade is the exchange of goods and services across international borders. ... A medical prescription (â„ž) is a written order by a medical doctor to a pharmacist for a treatment to be provided to the doctors patient. ...

• The drugs are not subject to the provisions of Article 30, paragraphs 2 and 5, as regards the retail trade.
• Governments are thus not bound to prevent the accumulation of drugs in Schedule II in the possession of retail distributors, in excess of the quantities required for the normal conduct of business.
• Medical prescriptions for the supply or dispensation of these drugs to individuals are not obligatory.
• Such drugs are also exempted from the provision – which in fact is no more than a suggestion – concerning the use of official prescription forms in the shape of counterfoil books issued by the competent governmental authorities or by authorized professional associations.
• Parties to the Single Convention need not require that the label under which a drug in Schedule II is offered for sale in the retail trade show the exact content by weight or percentage.

Preparations containing 100 mg per dosage unit or less of codeine are eligible for Schedule III status. The acetominophen in these pills makes them less likely to be abused.

Schedule III "contains preparations which enjoy a privileged position under the Single Convention, i.e. are subject to a less strict regime than other Preparations," according to the Commentary[21]. Specifically: Codeine preparations in Schedule III of the Single Convention, due to having 100 mg/dosage unit or less. ... Codeine preparations in Schedule III of the Single Convention, due to having 100 mg/dosage unit or less. ... Codeine (INN) is an opioid used for its analgesic, antitussive and antidiarrhoeal properties. ... Acetaminophen (USAN) or paracetamol (INN), is a popular analgesic and antipyretic drug that is used for the relief of fever, headaches, and other minor aches and pains. ...

• Government authorizations are not required for each import or export of preparations in Schedule III. The import certificate and export authorization system laid down in Article 31, paragraphs 4 to 15, which governs the international transactions in drugs and their preparations, does not apply to the preparations in Schedule III.
• The only estimates and statistical returns that a Party need furnish to the INCB in reference to Schedule III preparations are estimates of the quantities of drugs to be utilized for the compounding of preparations in Schedule III, and information on the amounts of drugs actually so used.

Schedule IV is the category of drugs, such as heroin, that are considered to have "particularly dangerous properties" in comparison to other drugs. According to Article 2, "The drugs in Schedule IV shall also be included in Schedule I and subject to all measures of control applicable to drugs in the latter Schedule" as well as whatever "special measures of control"; each Party deems necessary. This is in contrast to the U.S. Controlled Substances Act, which has five Schedules ranging from Schedule I (most restrictive) to Schedule V (least restrictive), and the Convention on Psychotropic Substances, which has four Schedules ranging for Schedule I (most restrictive) to Schedule IV (least restrictive). Heroin or diamorphine (INN) (colloquially referred to as junk, babania, horse, golden brown, smack, black tar, H, big H, lady H, dope, skag, juice, diesel, etc. ... Convention on Psychotropic Substances Opened for signature February 21, 1971 at Vienna Entered into force August 16, 1976 Conditions for entry into force 40 ratifications Parties 175 The Convention on Psychotropic Substances is a United Nations treaty designed to control psychoactive drugs such as amphetamines, barbiturates, and LSD. During the...

Under certain circumstances, Parties are required to limit Schedule IV drugs to research purposes only:

(b) A Party shall, if in its opinion the prevailing conditions in its country render it the most appropriate means of protecting the public health and welfare, prohibit the production, manufacture, export and import of, trade in, possession or use of any such drug except for amounts which may be necessary for medical and scientific research only, including clinical trials therewith to be conducted under or subject to the direct supervision and control of the Party.

The Commentary explains two situations in which this provision would apply:

For a considerable period of time - and still at the time of writing - there has been no significant diversion of legally manufactured drugs from legal trade into illicit channels; but if a Government were unable to prevent such a diversion of drugs in Schedule IV, a situation would arise in which the measures of prohibition mentioned in subparagraph (b) would be "the most appropriate means of protecting the public health and welfare". Whether this was or was not the case would be left to the judgement of the Party concerned whose bona fide opinion on this matter could not be challenged by any other Party.

Another situation in which measures of prohibition would be "appropriate" for the protection of public health and welfare might exist where the members of the medical profession administered or prescribed drugs in Schedule IV in an unduly extensive way, and other less radical measures, such as warnings by public authorities, professional associations or manufacturers, were ineffective. It may however be assumed that such a situation could rarely if ever arise.

The Commentary notes that "Whether the prohibition of drugs in Schedule IV (Cannabis and cannabis resin, desomorphine, heroin, ketobemidone) should be mandatory or only recommended was a controversial question at the Plenipotentiary Conference." The provision adopted represents "a compromise which leaves prohibition to the judgement, though theoretically not to the discretion, of each Party." The Parties are required to act in good faith in making this decision, or else they will be in violation of the treaty. Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... Heroin or diamorphine (INN) (colloquially referred to as junk, babania, horse, golden brown, smack, black tar, H, big H, lady H, dope, skag, juice, diesel, etc. ...

Power structure

The UN General Assembly elects nations to the 54-member ECOSOC, which in turn elects countries to the 53-member Commission on Narcotic Drugs and individuals to the 13-member International Narcotics Control Board.

The Single Convention gives the UN Economic and Social Council's Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) power to add or delete drugs from the Schedules, in accordance with the World Health Organization's findings and recommendations. Any Party to the treaty may request an amendment to the Schedules, or request a review of the Commission's decision. The Economic and Social Council is the only body that has power to confirm, alter, or reverse the CND's scheduling decisions. The United Nations General Assembly can approve or modify any CND decision, except for scheduling decisions. power structure from http://www. ... power structure from http://www. ... United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. ... The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development. ... At the presiding table, from left to right: Mr. ... Mr. ... The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development. ... At the presiding table, from left to right: Mr. ... For other meanings of the acronym WHO, see WHO (disambiguation) WHO flag Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Health Organization (WHO) is an agency of the United Nations, acting as a coordinating authority on international public health. ... United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. ...

The CND's annual meeting serves as a forum for nations to debate drug policy. At the 2005 meeting, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia and Iran rallied in opposition to the UN's zero-tolerance approach in international drug policy. Their appeal was vetoed by the United States, while the United Kingdom delegation remained reticent[22]. Meanwhile, U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy Director John Walters clashed with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa on the issue of needle exchange programs. Walters advocated strict prohibition, while Costa opined, "We must not deny these addicts any genuine opportunities to remain HIV-negative"[23]. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), a component of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, was established in 1988 by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act. ... John Walters (May 16, 1938 - July 30, 2001) was a British radio producer and presenter and musician. ... United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a United Nations agency which was founded in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention with the intent to fight drugs and crime on an international level. ... Antonio Maria Costa is an Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, appointed in May 2002 to the positions of Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and Director-General of the United Nations Office in Vienna (UNOV). ... A needle exchange programme is a controversial public service endorsed by some governments which give clean needles to intravenous drug addicts, in exchange for education of the drug user. ... HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) is a retrovirus that infects cells of the human immune system. ...

The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) is mandated by Article 9 of the Single Convention to "endeavour to limit the cultivation, production, manufacture and use of drugs to an adequate amount required for medical and scientific purposes, to ensure their availability for such purposes and to prevent illicit cultivation, production and manufacture of, and illicit trafficking in and use of, drugs." The INCB administers the estimate system, which limits each nation's annual production of controlled substances to the estimated amounts needed for medical and scientific purposes. Mr. ... NLM (National Library of Medicine, contains resources for patients and healthcare professionals) Virtual Hospital (digital health sciences library by the University of Iowa) Online Medical Dictionary Collection of links to free medical resources Wikicities has a wiki about medicine: Medicine Categories: Medicine | Health ... // What is science? There are different theories of what science is. ...

Article 21 provides that "the total of the quantities of each drug manufactured and imported by any country or territory in any one year shall not exceed the sum of" the quantity:

• Consumed, within the limit of the relevant estimate, for medical and scientific purposes;
• Used, within the limit of the relevant estimate, for the manufacture of other drugs, of preparations in Schedule Ill, and of substances not covered by this Convention;
• Exported;
• Added to the stock for the purpose of bringing that stock up to the level specified in the relevant estimate; and
• Acquired within the limit of the relevant estimate for special purposes.

Article 21 bis, added to the treaty by a 1971 amendment, gives the INCB more enforcement power by allowing it to deduct from a nation's production quota of cannabis, opium, and coca the amounts it determines have been produced within that nation and introduced into the illicit traffic. This could happen as a result of failing to control either illicit production or diversion of licitly produced opium to illicit purposes[24]. In this way, the INCB can essentially punish a narcotics-exporting nation that does not control its illicit traffic by imposing an economic sanction on its medicinal narcotics industry. 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... Species Cannabis sativa Cannabis indica Cannabis ruderalis Cannabis is a plant genus and may refer to any of these articles: Uses, effects, areas of study: Cannabis (drug) discusses its use as a psychoactive drug. ... Opium is a narcotic drug which is obtained from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy . ... Binomial name Erythroxylon coca For the American comedian, see Imogene Coca. ... In the terminology of the DEA, diversion is the use of prescription drugs for recreational purposes. ... Economic sanctions are economic penalties applied by one country (or group of countries) on another for a variety of reasons. ...