Drug Control and Human Rights in International Law

Human rights violations occurring as a consequence of drug control and enforcement are a growing concern, and raise questions of treaty interpretation and of the appropriate balancing of concomitant obligations within the drug control and human rights treaty regimes. Tracing the evolution of international drug control law since 1909, this book explores the tensions between the regime's self-described humanitarian aspirations and its suppression of a common human behaviour as a form of 'evil'. Drawing on domestic, regional and international examples and case law, it posits the development of a dynamic, human rights-based interpretative approach to resolve tensions and conflicts between the regimes in a manner that safeguards human rights. Highlighting an important and emerging area of human rights inquiry from an international legal perspective, this book is a key resource for those working and studying in this field.

1. Drug control, human rights and 'parallel universes'; 2. The four stages of drug control: development, structure and law; 3. The contradictory paradigms of international drug control; 4. Drug control and human rights: tensions and conflicts between regimes; 5. The object and purpose of the international drug control regime; 6. The case for dynamic interpretation of the international drug control conventions; 7. Moving the 'thumb on the scales' - towards a dynamic human rights-based interpretation of international drug control law; 8. The future for a 'fifth stage' of drug control?

Richard Lines is a key figure in the emerging field of human rights and drug policy. His work explores areas including international drug control law, prisoners' rights, harm reduction and the death penalty for drug offences. He is Chair of the International Centre on Human Rights and Drug Policy at the Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, where he is a Visiting Fellow.
William A. Schabas OC MRIA is Professor of International Law at Middlesex University, London, and Professor of International Criminal Law and Human Rights at Universiteit Leiden. His numerous publications include Genocide in International Law: The Crime of Crimes, 2nd edition (Cambridge, 2009), The Abolition of the Death Penalty in International Law, 3rd edition (Cambridge, 2002), The UN International Criminal Tribunals: The Former Yugoslavia, Rwanda and Sierra Leone (Cambridge, 2006), The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute (2010), Unimaginable Atrocities: Justice, Politics, and Rights at the War Crimes Tribunals (2012), The Universal Declaration of Human Rights: The Travaux Préparatoires (Cambridge, 2013), The European Convention on Human Rights: A Commentary (2015) and The Cambridge Companion to International Criminal Law (Cambridge, 2016).