Osons parler de la drogue au Mali

Leading organisation: Osons Parler de la Drogue au Mali (OPDM)

Participating organisations: West African Drug Policy Network (WADPN), Regional Association of Drug Users, PAS / Mali, ORFED, Kénédougou Solidarity Association, Women’s Organization for Development, Association of Former Drug Users in Mali, Central Office for Drug Control, Police, National Youth Council of Mali , the association of students and students of Mali, the media, the radios.

Activities:

In the evening of the Global Day of Action, banners containing key messages were placed in the most visible areas of the city of Sikasso for the public to see. Like the previous activity, three to four days before the event, communications announcing the day and the program were widely broadcast on well-heard radio stations in the city of Sikasso.

A conference was organised for those who work in the criminal justice system on the meaning of the campaign “Support. Don’t Punish”, the contents of the advocacy document and that of the model law on drugs in West Africa including the appeal of Dakar.

During the conference, we heard the testimonials of some people who use drugs about their personal experiences and needs in terms of harm reduction, which we call in Bambara “ANW KA LAGNINIW” which means in French “our wishes”. This conference was open to the public and hosted by the Focal Point for Mali of the West African Network on Drug Policy and representatives of the Central Office of Narcotics.

In 2018, the OPDM Network with the support of the West African Drug Policy Network designed and published an advocacy document against repressive policy regarding drug use in Mali. This booklet was a great success in Bamako where it was broadcast. For the Global Day of Action 2019, this booklet was reproduced and distributed to those who work in the criminal justice system of Sikasso: magistrates, lawyers, personnel of the houses of arrest, police commissioners, agents of the Central Office of Narcotics.

The political decision-makers understood that the repressive approach towards people who use drugs is not a solution in the fight against drugs. They understood the need to set up appropriate services that consider the specific needs of people who use drugs.

Supporting statements:

Regional Coordinator of the Drugs Control Office MB: “Mali would win its fight against drugs if it took into account the concerns of drug victims.”

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