Announcement

[Courtesy of Denver 420 Coalition] 4/20 is International Cannabis Day, celebrated by millions of people throughout the world. Every year on 4/20 at 4:20 pm, citizens worldwide gather together to celebrate their favorite plant. The Denver 4/20 Rally will have special significance this year since it is the first 4/20 Rally to be held since the passage of a law that makes cannabis possession the "lowest priority" for law enforcement in the city of Denver. In addition, for the first time in history, the city of Denver has granted a permit for cannabis re-legalization activists to officially hold a the 4/20 Rally in Civic Center Park in Downtown Denver. In years past, the gatherings had been small and informal, because the City refused to grant permits. Perhaps the City is finally listening to the will of the voters and will make the Rally the "lowest priority" for police that day. On the other hand, rumors are swirling that the Denver Police Department is going to use the 4/20 Rally as a training exercise for the massive protests scheduled for the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Denver in August. Last year at 4/20, over 100 well-armed law enforcement officers patrolled a crowd of less than 2000 people, making 64 marijuana-related arrests. The estimated cost of the increased law enforcement presence was more than $12,000, making marijuana-related arrests cost taxpayers over $187.00 each! According to Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, the police presence at the 4/20 Rally in 2007 was an example of how they already treated cannabis as the "lowest priority". Click below to watch a video of Mayor Hickenlooper claiming the police were already treating cannabis as a low priority before the Nov. 2007 vote, juxtaposed against the video of over 100 police officers arresting dozens of people at the 4/20 Rally in 2007: http://www.vflog.com/vflogs/hickenlooper/hickenlooper01.html *** History of Denver Cannabis Reform *** Denver citizens have voted 3 times in the past 3 years to legalize small amounts of cannabis for adult possession. In 2005, Denver voters passed Initiative 100 by 53% of the vote. The Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative made it legal for adults over 21 years old to possess one ounce of cannabis or less in the City and County of Denver. In 2006, Denver voters passed the Amendment 44, a measure to implement the Denver initiative statewide. However, the amendment failed to get enough votes in the rest of the state and was not passed into law. But the measure was approved by 56% of Denver voters. Despite these two votes, the Mayor's did nothing to stop cannabis arrests. Instead, arrests and prosecution for marijuana offenses began increasing. In 2007, Safer Denver put a third initiative on the ballot: this time they would model their law after a successful law in Seattle, which made marijuana arrests the lowest priority for law enforcement officers. Denver voters passed the lowest priority law by 57% of the vote. See our website for details on these laws: http://www.denver420.com/legal/index.html *** Cannabis-related Tourism *** SAFER Denver modeled their "lowest priority" law after a law passed in Seattle in 2003. Since the law passed, Seattle has seen their marijuana-related arrests decrease dramatically, with no apparent negative consequences. In addition to the money saved on law enforcement and court costs, Seattle has been able to capitalize on "cannabis-related tourism" with the large and popular Seattle Hemp Fest. Over the 3-day festival, over 200,000 people attend, many from out-of-town, generating an estimated $6 million in revenue for the city and local businesses. Colorado Governor Ritter and his spokesperson Evan Dryer have been approached about how the "lowest priority" law would increase cannabis-related tourism in Colorado, and how that would benefit the economy. Watch the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rg6tu_T0I6Y *** Denver Marijuana Policy Review Panel *** As required by the "lowest priority" law, Mayor Hickenlooper appointed an 11-member Marijuana Policy Review Panel to "assess and report on the effects" of the law. According to Brian Vicente, chairperson of the Panel, they have had two meetings since the election and are trying to collect hard data on current marijuana arrests and prosecutions in the City. The next meeting is not scheduled until May 28, well after the 4/20 Rally is held. *** Upcoming Legal Trainings *** 4/20 participants are encouraged to attend a series of legal trainings next week about how to protect their rights when interacting with the police. The trainings are designed for protesters at the Democratic National Convention, but the information will be very valuable and 4/20 participants are being encouraged to attend. http://www.denver420.com/events/mslc.legal.trainings.html *** What Will the Mayor Do? *** On April 20, there will be a true test of whether or not Denver Mayor Hickenlooper will listen to the Denver voters. Will police make the 4/20 Rally their "lowest priority" that day? Or will it be treated the same as it was last year, with increased law enforcement presence and arrests? Will Denver Police use it as a training exercise for the Democratic National Convention, or will they use it as a training exercise on how to look the other way? The Mayor's office has refused repeated requests to comment for this article. Proponents think 3 votes in 3 years should be enough to get the City to change its cannabis law enforcement policies. *** Call to Action *** Please call the Denver Mayor and City Council and wish them a peaceful 4/20 this year. Tell them you hope the Mayor will order the police to honor the will of the voters and make cannabis enforcement the lowest priority that day, and every day. Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper Phone: 720-865-9000 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.denvergov.org/mayor Denver City Council Phone: 720.865.9534 Email: [email protected] Website: www.denvergov.org/CityCouncil Remind them, that just like the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, "The whole world is watching!" http://www.jofreeman.com/photos/convention68.html For more information, see: The Denver 420 Coalition, http://www.denver420.com

Abstract Submission Deadline extended to April 22nd, 2008! Abstract Submission Guidelines Topics and areas to be discussed include: Pharmacology * Research * Trafficking * Treatment * Policy * Mental Health * Global Markets * HIV * Hepatitis * Community Education * Law Enforcement * Women *Trafficking * Production * Epidemiology * Demand Reduction * Harm Reduction * Public Health * MSM Sexual Risk * Youth * Environmental Issues * Commerce * Rapid Assessment* Replacement Therapy * Injection Drug Use * Asia * Prescribed Usage * Central Asia * Eastern Europe * Caribbean * Latin America * Oceania * North America * Western & Central Europe * Sub-Saharan Africa 1) Individual proposals for presentations are welcome. 2) Presentation formats may include individual papers, reports on research-in-progress, round-table discussions, topic-centred workshops, or a format more appropriate to your own work. - Please indicate your presentation format in your proposal. - Please make sure that your proposal identifies the language you wish to present in. 3) Please send a 250-word proposal - along with a short bio - to the email address below. - Your abstract should not contain more than 250 words. - No abstract will be accepted without a short bio. Please send your abstract to [email protected]. The Deadline for abstract submissions is April 22, 2008, 20:00 GMT. Speakers will be notified by May 2nd, 2008. Please email Luciano Colonna at [email protected] with any questions or concerns. Register now and benefit from the standard registration fee until June 1, 2008. Hotel and travel information can be found at www.globalmethconference.com

Washington, D.C.: Communities are bearing the cost of a massive explosion in the jail population which has nearly doubled in less than two decades, according to a new report released today by the Justice Policy Institute (JPI). The research found that jails are now warehousing more people--who have not been found guilty of any crime--for longer periods of time than ever before. The research shows that in part due to the rising costs of bail, people arrested today are much more likely to serve jail time before trial than they would have been twenty years ago, even though crime rates are nearly at the lowest levels in thirty years. "Crime rates are down, but you're more likely to serve time in jail today than you would have been twenty years ago," said the report's co-author Amanda Petteruti. "Jail bonds have skyrocketed, so that means if you're poor, you do time. People are being punished before they're found guilty-justice is undermined." The report, Jailing Communities: The Impact of Jail Expansion and Effective Public Safety Strategies, found jail population growth (22 percent), is having serious consequences for communities that are now paying tens of billions yearly to sustain jails. Jails are filled with people with drug addictions, the homeless and people charged with immigration offenses. The report concludes that jails have become the "new asylums," with six out of 10 people in jail living with a mental illness. The impact of increased jail imprisonment is not borne equally by all members of a community. New data reveal that Latinos are most likely to have to pay bail, have the highest bail amounts, are least likely to be able to pay and, by far, the least likely to be released prior to trial. African Americans are nearly five times as likely to be incarcerated in jails as whites and almost three times as likely as Latinos. Further exacerbating jail crowding problems is the increase in the number of people being held in jails for immigration violations-up 500 percent in the last decade. In 2004, local governments spent a staggering $97 billion on criminal justice, including police, the courts and jails. Over $19 billion of county money went to financing jails alone. By way of comparison, during the same time period, local governments spent just $8.7 billion on libraries and only $28 billion on higher education. "These counties just cannot afford to invest the bulk of their local public safety budget in jails, and we are beginning to see why--the more a community relies on jails, the less it has to invest in education, employment and proven public safety strategies," says Nastassia Walsh, co-author of the report. Research shows that places that increased their jail populations did not necessarily see a drop in violent crimes. Falling jail incarceration rates are associated with declining violent crime rates in some of the country's largest counties and cities, like New York City. "The investment in building more jail beds is not making communities safer," says Derrick Johnson, NAACP National Board member. "Instead these investments serve only to unfairly target communities of color and waste taxpayer dollars." The report recommends that communities take action to reduce their jail populations and increase public safety by: * Improving release procedures for pretrial and sentenced populations. Implementing pretrial release programs that release people from jail before trial can help alleviate jail populations. Reforming bail guidelines would allow a greater number of people to post bail, leaving space open in jails for people who may pose a greater threat to public safety. * Developing and implementing alternatives to incarceration. Alternatives such as community-based corrections would permit people to be removed from the jail, allowing them to continue to work, stay with their families, and be part of the community, while under supervision. * Re-examining policies that lock up individuals for nonviolent crimes. Reducing the number of people in jail for nonviolent offenses leaves resources and space available for people who may need to be detained for a public safety reason. * Diverting people with mental health and drug treatment needs to the public health system and community-based treatment. People who suffer from mental health or substance abuse problems are better served by receiving treatment in their community. Treatment is more cost-effective than incarceration and promotes a positive public safety agenda. * Diverting spending on jail construction to agencies that work on community supervision and make community supervision effective. Reallocating funding to probation services will allow people to be placed in appropriate treatment or other social services and is a less costly investment in public safety. * Providing more funding for front-end services such as education, employment, and housing. Research has shown that education, employment, drug treatment, health care, and the availability of affordable housing coincide with lower crime rates. For more information on Jailing Communities, contact LaWanda Johnson at 202-558-7974, ext. 308. ### The Justice Policy Institute is a Washington, D.C.-based think tank dedicated to ending society's reliance on incarceration and promoting effective and just solutions to social problems. For more information, visit www.justicepolicy.org.

HEMP PARTY-NOT DEAD YET The Nimbin based HELP END MARIJUANA PROHIBITION party is in limbo, undead, neither registered nor de-registered. We did not contest the 2007 Federal elections because we had not been re-registered in time. The Howard government had arbitrarily de-registered all political parties, without a current representative in Parliament in December 2006. Our application for re-registration, complying with all the requirements of the Electoral Act, was submitted early in April 2007. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) took until August, three weeks before the election was called, to advise us that we had failed their membership test. We replied asking that our application be accepted as is, or be reviewed by the commissioners. We intended to appeal any negative review. The calling of the election froze this process and nothing has happened since. Last month the AEC informed us that they would be reviewing their own test. Apparently they have taken our objections on board. So we wait for their new test before deciding whether to resubmit or continue with an appeal. If we do resubmit we will probably still need a membership whose addresses and phone numbers are current and contactable and who will not ignore an enquiry from the AEC. This has been the crux of the test. A random sample of members contacted by the AEC must all say – YES, I am a HEMP party member. (And try not to feel afraid of Big Brother!) To this end a membership drive will be conducted at MardiGrass. We want brave new members with established addresses. We want old members to update their contact details. Anyone who supports our campaign for cannabis law reform can join, or re-join, at the Information booth outside the Town Hall, or Dutchies Café in Peace Park during MardiGrass, or the HEMP Embassy anytime. Membership is free. With little chance of getting anyone elected why do we want a registered political party at all? Because the $1500 it costs to put our name on the Senate Ballot paper buys us more access to the corridors of power than any number of $10,000 a plate political fund raising dinners. See you at MardiGrass.

There are only around six weeks remaining until the start of Harm Reduction 2008: IHRA's 19th International Conference in Barcelona, Spain. There is a packed conference programme confirmed, with over 50 sessions, over 200 speakers, numerous satellite meetings and a high-profile line-up of keynote speakers - including: Paul Hunt (the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health) Michel Sidibe (the UNAIDS Director of Country and Regional Support) Antonio Maria Costa (the UNODC Executive Director) Michel Kazatchkine (Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis & Malaria) If you have not already done so, please visit www.ihraconferences.net for more information - including information about delegate fees, registration, accommodation and travel. The main conference language is English, but translation will be available for some sessions in Spanish, French and Russian - making this a truly inclusive and global event. Over the past two decades, the IHRA conferences have become a unique opportunity for more than 1,200 harm reduction advocates, government and UN officials, people who use drugs, and frontline workers to come together and share their experiences and ideas. This is the must attend harm reduction event.

[Courtesy of Prison Art Gallery] You are cordially invited to attend a free reception at the Prison Art Gallery, 1600 K St NW, Washington, DC (three blocks from the White House) on Sunday, March 30, 2pm, for a talk by Paul Wright, Editor of Prison Legal News, and Alex Friedmann, Associate Editor. Both are accomplished legal writers, researchers and justice advocates who are recognized experts in the fields of prisoner rights, sentencing reform, and related justice topics. There will be a question and answer period following their presentation. This is a rare opportunity to get your legal questions answered by knowledgeable professionals who closely follow the latest trends and court decisions...a must if you care about anyone in prison. Paul spent more than a decade in prison where he began publishing Prison Legal News. A monthly news journal, it is now the pre-eminent source of information about criminal justice and prison developments. It is circulated and used by men and women in virtually every jail and prison in America. Get the latest issue FREE at the reception. Paul will also be bringing and signing copies of his new book, Prison Profiteers, a critical look at over-incarceration in America and who profits from it. Don't miss this rare opportunity to gain important knowledge and understanding from two professionals in the know. Free refreshments will be served. Also at the reception, the Prison Art Gallery will unveil its new media blitz marketing campaign featuring DC Mayor Adrian Fenty. You'll be astounded at what the mayor (his childhood friend was in prison with our director) is willing to do (in addition to the grant money the city has provided us). For further information, please email [email protected] or call 202-393-1511.

The International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) is a global network of NGOs and professional networks that specialise in issues related to illegal drug production and use. The Consortium aims to promote objective and open debate on the effectiveness, direction and content of drug policies at national and international level, and supports evidence-based policies that are effective in reducing drug-related harm. It disseminates the reports of its member organisations about particular drug-related matters, and offers expert consultancy services to policymakers and officials around the world. IDPC RESPONSE TO THE 2007 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL BOARD The latest INCB Annual Report was published on 4th March 2008. This brief response explains the contents of the report, and comments on the positions taken by the Board on proportionality in drug law enforcement, the scheduling of coca leaf, and harm reduction. http://idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_Response2INCB_AnnRpt07_EN.pdf

2008 Global Conference on Methamphetamine: Science, Strategy, and Response Prague, September 15 - 16 Abstract Submission Guidelines Topics and areas to be discussed include: Pharmacology * Research * Trafficking * Treatment * Policy * Mental Health * Global Markets * HIV * Hepatitis * Community Education * Law Enforcement * Women * Trafficking * Production * Epidemiology* Demand Reduction * Harm Reduction * Public Health * MSM Sexual Risk * Youth * Environmental Issue * Commerce * Rapid Assessment * Replacement Therapy * Injection Drug Use * Asia * Prescribed Usage * Central Asia * Eastern Europe * Caribbean * Latin America * Oceania * North America * Western & Central Europe * Sub-Saharan Africa 1) Individual proposals for presentations are welcome. 2) Presentation formats may include: a) Individual papers b) Reports on research-in-progress c) Round-table discussions d) Topic-centred workshops e) Or a format more appropriate to your own work. - Please indicate your presentation format in your proposal. - Please make sure that your proposal identifies the language you wish to present in. 3) Please send a 250-word proposal - along with a short bio - to the email address below. - Your abstract should not contain more than 250 words. - No abstract will be accepted without a short bio. Please send your abstract to [email protected] Deadline for submissions is April 2, 2008. Speakers will be notified by April 30, 2008 Do you have a question or concern? Please email Luciano Colonna at [email protected] ~ 1st Global Conference on Methamphetamine ~ September 15 -16, 2008 - Prague, Czech Republic Please visit www.globalmethconference.com for information