THE RUSSIAN DRUG CZAR VS. METHADONE Parcel of Lies
Viktor Ivanov, head oft he Federal Drug Control Service of Russia
It has become a kind of custom at the CND for us along with other journalists to ask the Russian Drug Czar Mr. Ivanov at his press conference why the Russian government still criminalizes and imprisons drug users instead of providing them with effective, science-based treatment; and why is OST illegal in a country with a very high rate of HIV infections among injecting drug users? Mr. Ivanov’s answer was again disappointing: he said there is no evidence that methadone
substitution is effective and to the contrary, there is evidence that it leads to an increase in overdose deaths among drug users. It is not surprising that Ivanov denies the scientific consensus on the effectiveness of OST. This is nothing new; Russian government officials always turn to lying when there is no other escape from inconvenient questions. The real question is why the international organizations, especially the UN agency on drugs (UNODC) is not more vocal
when it comes to Russia and methadone? Methadone is on the List of Essential Medicines of the WHO, and OST is supported by all relevant UN bodies as a crucial tool in preventing HIV and overdoses. Yet still, the outrageous statements of the Russian government on OST remain unchallenged and nobody speaks up for the rights of vulnerable people to have access to effective and humane treatment. In our film we asked Juri Fedotov, head of UNODC and international experts about the issue! 19