In April, CEACG’s doctoral researcher Paula Rautoja and post-doc researcher Veera Kankainen attended the Nordic Mobilization on Human Rights and Drug Policy conference in Oslo. A wide range of civil society actors, researchers, and people with lived and living experience came together for two intensive days to examine drug policy through the lenses of human rights, democratic participation, and the role of civil society.
While the policy positions represented at the conference varied, many discussions addressed a shared concern: despite strong welfare institutions and high levels of public trust, Nordic countries continue to treat drug use as an exception to broader human‑rights and social‑policy principles. This tension, described as a Nordic paradox, framed both the plenary sessions and panel discussions. In one of the opening speeches, mayor of Amsterdam Femke Halsema challenged a familiar misconception: legal regulation does not mean surrender or unchecked markets. On the contrary, she stated, regulation is about assuming responsibility, setting standards, and actively shaping society. Today’s unregulated illegal markets lack these safeguards.
Human rights must come before policy
Human rights featured throughout the conference not primarily as legal abstractions, but as a practical framework for action. Speakers from national human rights institutes, academia, and civil society highlighted how punitive approaches to drug use can affect access to healthcare, legal protection, and social inclusion. A central theme was that rights formally recognised in law are not always realised in practice, particularly for people who use drugs and for those with overlapping social or health needs.
Rights formally recognised in law are not always realised in practice.
Across different national contexts, participants discussed how criminalisation and administrative sanctions shape everyday interactions with welfare systems, law enforcement, and healthcare providers. These discussions did not assume a single policy solution, but rather raised questions about proportionality, effectiveness, and consistency with existing human rights commitments at national and international levels.
Damon Barrett from the University of Gothenburg articulated the central principle clearly: human rights must come before policy. When they do, the outcome almost inevitably shifts toward non‑punitive, non‑stigmatising approaches.
From control to care
Panels comparing Nordic models illustrated both variation and convergence. Youth drug policy emerged as a particularly sensitive area. Discussions highlighted concerns about how punitive approaches affect young people in vulnerable situations, including those exposed to violence, exploitation, or social exclusion.
The harsher the penalties, the more organised and violent criminal networks become.
The “Swedish situation” was mentioned by several speakers during the conference. In Sweden, punitive policies coexist with rising gang violence and the systematic recruitment of very young boys into drug markets. Speakers argued that this is not a failure of enforcement, but a predictable consequence of prohibition. The harsher the penalties, the more organised and violent criminal networks become. Participants across political divides emphasised the importance of trust, early support, and social inclusion. What is needed, they suggested, is a shift from criminal policy to social policy; from control to care.
"Nothing about us without us"
The second day of the conference placed greater emphasis on civil society, with particular attention to organisations led by or representing people who use drugs. Contributions from international and European networks of people who use drugs described how such organisations have historically emerged in response to marginalisation and exclusion from formal decision‑making. A recurring reference point was the principle “Nothing about us without us”, which was discussed not only as a slogan, but as a demand for power, voice, and recognition.
Several presentations addressed the changing conditions under which civil society operates. Reduced funding and increased political pressure affect both service provision and advocacy work. A powerful case example from Hungary was presented by activist and journalist Peter Sarosi, who described how organisations have resisted shrinking civic space, legal harassment, and propaganda through creativity and solidarity.
User organisations play a key role in translating policy decisions into lived realities and in conveying experiential knowledge back into policy debates.
User organisations were discussed as occupying a particular position within civil society: they often combine peer‑led support, service delivery, and political advocacy, while operating with limited resources and institutional recognition. At the same time, they play a key role in translating policy decisions into lived realities and in conveying experiential knowledge back into policy debates. Nationwide postal distribution of safe injecting kits and street-level legal counselling were inspiring Danish examples of civil society innovations in the drug field.
Research also has a role to play here. At the conference, CEACG post‑doctoral researcher Veera Kankainen together with Tuukka Tammi from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare presented their new project on the possibilities and barriers of participation among Nordic organisations of people who use drugs.
Despite their importance, user organisations remain under‑researched, under‑funded, and structurally vulnerable.
Their comparative work addresses a persistent blind spot: despite their importance, user organisations remain under‑researched, under‑funded, and structurally vulnerable. Such research highlights a broader issue raised at the conference: while evidence on the harms associated with drug use and drug policy has expanded over time, the organisational and political conditions shaping policy change are still unevenly understood.
The work continues
The conference concluded with a collective commitment from Nordic organisations to continue working together and to develop shared recommendations for a more humane drug policy. As part of this mobilisation, a Finnish association of people who use drugs is being established.
Dignity, health, and rights must remain non‑negotiable.
The so‑called Nordic paradox remains: welfare states that are characterised by high trust, universalism, and commitments to equality still maintain punitive drug laws. But the discussions in Oslo also showed that this paradox is increasingly being challenged by international human rights bodies, researchers, practitioners, and above all by civil society organisations insisting that dignity, health, and rights must remain non‑negotiable.