Feminist organisations demand a review of drug policy at the Summit of the Americas

Dozens of feminist organisations have joined together to draw attention to how the war on drugs negatively impacts women, and to urge states from North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean to use the opportunity of this weekend's Summit of the Americas to initiate a debate on reforming drug policy so as to better protect women's rights. 

The press release announcing this call states that:

"This war has serious impacts for women: the murder of women has grown steadily over much of Central America and Mexico, and in countries like Honduras, its increase is four times the increase in murder of men. Many crimes include sexual cruelty, torture and mutilations. The wide availability or arms also encourages and exacerbates domestic violence. The high rates of impunity in criminal justice system - over 95% in countries like Guatemala and Mexico - also favor all those crimes."

The full text of the call can be found in English, Spanish and Portuguese here. It concludes:

"The Sixth Summit of the Americas is an opportunity for the States to show their compromise with human rights and, in particular, the guarantee of women’s rights in the region, opening the debate on regulation of legal trade in drugs. The review of the current drug control policy is therefore a matter of human rights and should be an unavoidable obligation for democratic States."

Among the many organisations who have so far endorsed the call are: