The panel was sponsored by UN Member States Senegal, Switzerland, and Uruguay, and chaired by former Swiss President, Mme. Ruth Dreifuss. Mr Lohman spoke about the experiences of people suffering from severe pain without access to treatment, an avoidable situation exacerbated by drug policies which block or hinder access to morphine and other pain relieving medications.
The topic of access to controlled medicines was on the agenda at HRC as well as the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), where WHO participated in a side event organised by Norway and Australia.
Writing for Pallium India, Katherine Pettus, International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care Advocacy Officer, said: “I literally cannot count how many member states at both CND and the HRC have now said that improving access to controlled medicines is a human rights priority and must be addressed at UNGASS2016.
“Congratulations to Diederik for his very moving presentation, which brought the voices of patients and families to the Human Rights Council.”
The report will be available to download this month from the Global Commission on Drug Policy website.
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