Joint submission to OHCHR on the promotion and protection of the human rights of people of African descent against excessive use of force and other human rights violations by law enforcement

• HRI Release submission on transformative agenda for racial justice

Submission by HRI and Release on the discriminatory application of drug law enforcement on Africans and people of African descent. This submission provides evidence of its negative and discriminatory impacts, with a focus on the United Kingdom, and reviews some of the flaws, failures and prospects of reliable data collection, disaggregation, evaluation, and dissemination on national and global drug policies, as well as their implementation and impacts. Finally, it provides a brief examination of possible ways to address the inherently racist nature of punitive drug policies, including full decriminalisation, decarceration, and divestment and redirection of resources. Other useful measures explored, and which can be implemented immediately, are diversion schemes and training and sensitisation campaigns for judges and law enforcement officials.