Citation

Sander G. Int. J. Drug Policy 2021; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103266

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The last decade has seen a significant amount of progress in the struggle to abolish the death penalty for drug offences, a practice that is both illegal under international law and proven to be ineffective. Political, legal and policy developments at the international, regional and national level have led to a progressive shift away from capital punishment as a tool for drug control, resulting in a relatively sharp decrease in global executions. Yet a small number of countries, primarily in Asia, continue to aggressively pursue the policy, executing hundreds of disadvantaged individuals every year, often following trials that do not meet international standards of fairness. At the same time, populist rhetoric advocating for the death penalty for drugs is on the rise in the region, reinvigorating aggressive drug wars and threatening to undermine the framework of existing international legal obligations and unravel decades of progress.

Language: en

Keywords

Drugs; Drug control; Capital punishment; Death penalty; Drug offences; Human rights; War on drugs