International action to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly

The General Assembly,

Deeply concerned that the illicit demand for, production of, traffic in and use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances has become one of the most serious dangers to the health and welfare of populations, adversely affecting the political, economic, social and cultural structure of all societies,

Recognizing that the criminal activities of drug trafficking and its marketing network destabilize economies, adversely affect the development of many countries and pose a threat to the stability, national security and sovereignty of States,

Alarmed by the growing connection between drug trafficking and terrorism,

Reaffirming the principle of collective responsibility of the international community in combating drug abuse and illicit trafficking,

Recognizing the serious efforts being made by the Governments of some countries in their programmes for crop substitution, integrated rural development and interdiction, and that international economic and technical co-operation has so far proved inadequate to the task at hand and therefore should be substantially stepped up,

Considering that the necessary steps must be taken to preclude the illicit cultivation of plants containing narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, such as the opium poppy, coca bush and cannabis plant, together with the manufacture of psychotropic substances not used for industrial, scientific or traditional purposes,

Recalling that the International Conference on Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking adopted unanimously the Declaration and the Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Outline of Future Activities in Drug Abuse Control, which represent the proper framework for international co-operation in drug control,

Welcoming the efforts made by those countries that produce narcotic drugs for scientific, medicinal and therapeutic uses, to prevent the channelling of such substances to illicit markets and to maintain production at a level consistent with licit demand,

Reiterating that the transit routes used by drug traffickers change constantly and that an ever-growing number of countries in all regions of the world, and even entire regions, are particularly vulnerable to illicit transit traffic on account, inter alia, of their geographical location,

Recognizing the need for greater international co-operation which would facilitate the marketing of crop substitution products and the control of chemical substances used to process illicit drugs and psychotropic substances, as well as the impact of the social and economic consequences of drug-money transfers and conversion, which have an adverse effect on national economic systems,

Recognizing also the commendable work carried out by the United Nations in controlling narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, which is being seriously impeded by a lack of human and financial resources,

Recalling its resolution 43/122 of 8 December 1988 and resolution 3 of the United Nations Conference for the Adoption of a Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, held at Vienna from 25 November to 20 December 1988, which, inter alia, recognized the urgent need for additional resources, both human and financial, for the Division of Narcotic Drugs of the Secretariat and the secretariat of the International Narcotics Control Board,

Recalling also its resolution 43/121 of 8 December 1988 in which, inter alia, it strongly condemned the criminal activities that involved children in the use, production and illicit sale of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and appealed to the competent international agencies and the United Nations Fund for Drug Abuse Control to assign high priority to the study of proposals designed to tackle the problem,

Having regard to its resolution 44/16 of 1 November 1989, by which it decided to convene a special session to consider the question of closer international co-operation to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking,

1.         Strongly condemns the crime of drug trafficking in all its forms and urges all States to remain steadfast in their political commitment to the concerted international struggle to put an end to it;

2.         Endorses Economic and Social Council resolution 1989/20 of 22 May 1989 and urges Governments and organizations to adhere to the principles set forth in the Declaration of the International Conference on Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking and to apply, as appropriate, the recommendations of the Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Outline of Future Activities in Drug Abuse Control;

3.         Emphasizes that the international struggle against drug trafficking and the abuse and sale of, and illicit traffic in, narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances is a collective responsibility and that the eradication of the problem requires efficient and co-ordinated international co-operation, in keeping with the principle of respect for national sovereignty and the cultural identity of States;

4.         Emphasizes the connection between the illicit production and supply of, demand for, sale of and traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, and the economic, social and cultural conditions of the countries affected;

5.         Recognizes that the international community, in seeking solutions to the problem of illicit production of, demand for and trade, transit or traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, must take into account the differences and diversity of the problem in each country;

6.         Calls upon the international community to provide increased international economic and technical co-operation to Governments, at their request, in support of programmes for the substitution of illicit crops by means of integrated rural development programmes that respect fully the jurisdiction and sovereignty of countries and the cultural traditions of peoples;

7.         Recognizes the importance of international co-operation in facilitating trade flows in support of integrated rural development programmes leading to economically viable alternatives to illicit cultivation, taking into account factors such as access to markets for crop substitution products;

8.         Requests countries that produce the chemical substances necessary for the manufacture of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances to take the initiative in adopting measures which ensure effective control of the export of such substances;

9.         Requests the Secretary-General to undertake as soon as possible, with the assistance of a group of intergovernmental experts, a study on the economic and social consequences of illicit traffic in drugs, with a view to analysing, inter alia, the following elements:

(a)        The magnitude and characteristics of economic transactions related to drug trafficking in all its stages, including production of, traffic in and distribution of illicit drugs, in order to determine the impact of drug-related money transfers and conversion on national economic systems;

(b)        Mechanisms which would prevent the use of the banking system and the international financial system in this activity;

10.       Also requests the Secretary-General to ask Member States for their views on the scope and context of such a study, taking into account the elements set forth in paragraph 9 of the present resolution, and to transmit such views to the group of experts;

11.       Considers that a system should be established to identify the methods and routes used for the illicit transit traffic of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, to enhance the interdiction capability of those States along such routes;

12.       Strongly condemns the illicit arms trade that is arming drug traffickers, causing political destabilization and loss of human lives;

13.       Calls upon all States, particularly those with high rates of use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, to take prevention and rehabilitation measures and also increasingly stringent political and legal measures to eliminate the demand for narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, and calls upon the United Nations and other relevant international organizations to devote greater attention to this aspect of the problem;

14.       Takes note with satisfaction of the proposal by the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to convene an international conference on drug demand reduction;

15.       Recognizes that the publication and dissemination of materials which encourage or stimulate the production of and demand for narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances do not contribute positively to the international action to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking;

16.       Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session on the implementation of its resolution 43/121 and of Economic and Social Council decision 1989/123 of 22 May 1989;

17.       Calls upon Member States substantially to increase their contributions to the United Nations Fund for Drug Abuse Control, so that it can expand its programmes;

18.       Endorses Economic and Social Council resolution 1989/18 of 22 May 1989;

19.       Expresses its serious concern at the considerable reduction in the budget and staff of the Division of Narcotic Drugs of the Secretariat and the secretariat of the International Narcotics Control Board, which threatens their ability to carry out adequately any additional responsibilities deriving from the activities which the United Nations must undertake to tackle the new dimension of the problem of drug abuse and illicit trafficking;

20.       Recommends that the Secretary-General take urgent steps to ensure the increase of allocations to the Division of Narcotic Drugs and the secretariat of the International Narcotics Control Board;

21.       Takes note with satisfaction of the results of the Second Interregional Meeting of Heads of National Drug Law Enforcement Agencies;

22.       Takes note of the reports of the Secretary-General and requests him to report to the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session on the implementation of the present resolution and also to prepare on a yearly basis a detailed report on international drug-control activities reflecting the work done by the United Nations system to implement the recommendations of the Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Outline of Future Activities in Drug Abuse Control;

23.       Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its forty-fifth session an item entitled "International action to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking".