COUNTERDRUG: ONDCP DIRECTOR WALTERS IN LONDON

UNCLAS LONDON 006159

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

WHITE HOUSE FOR ONDCP SISSON

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SNAR UK
SUBJECT: COUNTERDRUG: ONDCP DIRECTOR WALTERS IN LONDON
AUGUST 8-9 DISCUSSING U.S. NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICIES


1. Summary. The Director of the Office of National Drug
Control Policy John Walters was in London August 8-9 to
present at an international demand reduction conference
entitled: "The Future of Drug Policies Globally - UNGASS 2008
and Beyond: Reconciling Research with Reality, Rights with
Responsibilities." In addition to his remarks on U.S. efforts
to meet UNGASS drug demand and supply goals for 2008 he also
met with UK representatives and exchanged U.S.-UK experiences
with student drug testing and drug courts. Director Walters
and Minister of State for Schools Jim Knight discussed drug
testing in schools, its benefits to serve as a deterrent and
to identify and get help for those early in dependency, as
well as the challenges encountered in implementing these
programs. Knight broached the idea of a visit to the U.S. to
learn about these programs and U.S. programs to reduce
weapons in schools. During his conference remarks Director
Walters highlighted U.S. achieved goals to reduce drug use.
He also echoed UNODC's concern for rising potency of
marijuana and commended Colombia and Afghanistan for the work
that they have done to reduce illicit drug production in
their countries. In a meeting with several officials from
the West London District Court Officials on their Pilot Drug
Court Initiatives Director Walters explained how the U.S.
uses the criminal justice system as a tool in achieving
treatment referral and recovery by enlisting the power of the
courts to effect supervised treatment rather than jail. As a
result of the meeting ONDCP has arranged for Senior Judge
Justin Philips who will be in Washington the week of
September 4 to visit a drug court. End Summary.

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Student Drug Testing
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2. The Director of the Office of National Drug Control
Policy John Walters and Minister of State for Schools Jim
Knight met on August 8 in London. Joining Knight from the
Department of State for Education and Skills were Charles
Deighton-Fox, Knight's Private Secretary; Helen Bird, policy
official from the Personal, Social and Health Education Team;
Tania Rawle, policy official from the Substance Misuse Team;
and Colin Willis, International Visits Team. Joining Walters
were Brian Blake, ONDCP Senior Advisor; Charlotte Sisson,
ONDCP Policy Analyst; Rafael Lemaitre, ONDCP Deputy Press
Secretary, and Emboff as notetaker.

SIPDIS


3. Random drug testing in schools is not widespread in the
UK according to Knight. The success though of a voluntary
testing program at a Kent school prompted HMG to launch a
scientific study of that school's program to document drug
testing's benefits in improving school performance. While
Knight does not envision HMG requiring schools to begin
random drug testing of students he does want schools to have
the information they need to make informed decisions on
testing.


4. Director Walters reviewed the Administration's support of
Student Drug Testing as a key tool in addressing drug use and
the federal grants that have been awarded over the past few
years. He further explained that the disease of addiction
spreads through non-addicted users, from peer to peer and
disrupts the learning environment for all students. Schools
test for tuberculosis and other communicable diseases because
of the public health threat and that testing for drug use
extends those same protective factors. Parents, school
administrators, and educators are not powerless against the
drug problem. Random drug testing of high school students
gives students who are under peer pressure from drug-using
peers an excuse to say 'no' and provides parents with help in
keeping their children drug-free. Walters stressed that the
testing is non-punitive and that positive test results are
never provided to police. The goal is to both serve as a

deterrent and to identify and get help for those early in
dependency.


5. Knight outlined the obstacles to widespread drug testing
of students in the UK. Knight noted the UK's human rights
legislation would preclude a school from requiring testing.
He also stated that British confidentiality and data-sharing
regulations made it difficult to share information among the
different agencies which assist children. Knight also
described the concerns of some who feel that searching
students for weapons and then testing them for drugs gives
children sense they are being "locked-up" when they go to
school.


6. Knight was interested in learning of any U.S. studies
which showed the absence rate in schools where drug testing
takes place and the rate of participation in extra-curricular
activities in schools with drug testing. Walters gave the
example of Polk County School in Florida that started testing
student athletes in 1997 and saw marijuana use drop by 24%.
In Polk County, random drug testing has not discouraged
extracurricular participation - 448 more students tried out
for sports in 2005 than in 2004, and 319 more students tried
out for sports in 2004 than in 2003. In the U.S., 46% of
schools with Random Student Drug Testing programs reported
increases in student participation in athletic activities and
45% reported increases in extracurricular activities.


7. Knight remarked that he is interested in visiting the
U.S. to examine American procedures for dealing with weapons
in schools and the use of random drug testing in
U.S. schools.

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Demand Reduction Conference
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8. ONDCP Director Walters spoke at the August 9 international
conference "The Future of Drug Policies
Globally - UNGASS 2008 and Beyond: Reconciling Research with
Reality, Rights with Responsibilities" organized by MOTGIFT
International, the European Cities Against Drugs (ECAD),
London Drug Policy Forum, Institute on Global Drug Policy and
others. The purpose of the day long conference was to support
the UN conventions on drugs and examine how harm reduction
policies undermine the conventions. Other speakers included
representatives from anti-legalization NGOs, UNODC, UK
government, U.S. Department of State, as well as Habibullah
Qaderi, Afghanistan's Minister of Counter Narcotics and
Raymond Yans, Director, Drug Unit (MFA/Belgium),former
Chair, Dublin Group Member, and new to the International
Narcotics Control Board.


9. UNODC Policy Analysis and Research Branch Chief, Sandeep
Chawla, spoke before Director Walters at the conference on
UNODC Policies and the upcoming UNGASS review in 2008. He
pointed out one of the strengths of UN Drug Conventions is
the responsibility that member states share in tackling the
drug problem. More importantly, he noted that one of the
weaknesses of the conventions is the liberalization of drug
policies towards cannabis due to changing public and
political perceptions since the '80s and '90s. Noting the
recent release of the World Drug Report in June, Chawla
highlighted the section on cannabis and reminded the group
that cannabis is much stronger drug and therefore a higher
risk to public health. Chawla also presented on the
challenging review process that will begin for UNGASS 2008.
He noted that the Biennial Reports Questionnaire completed by
countries will be the main tool to evaluate how countries
have done to significantly reduce the demand and supply of
drugs from 1998-2008. In particular, he noted that the
prevalence of drug use, national policies and documented


successes such as the Golden Triangle's significant decrease
in opium poppy would be the key areas of evaluation.


10. Director Walters presented U.S. drug policy successes
noting that the key is to have a balanced drug control
strategy. Walters stated that in the U.S., we have set goals
to reduce teen drug use by 10% in two years, and 25% in five
years. We exceeded the two-year goal, with an 11% reduction,
and over the past three years there has been an historic 19%
decrease in teenage drug use. Globally, we have all learned
that international cooperation is key and the problem of drug
trafficking and drug use threatens not only our society, but
also those of our neighbors across the globe. Walters also
noted that addiction is a fundamental disease of the brain
and that science and extensive experience tell us that drug
use is both a preventable behavior and one that we can
intervene against and stop. Walters highlighted U.S. efforts
to conduct random drug testing of high school students as not
only as a powerful public health tool but also as a way to
identify those who may need help or drug treatment early and
in a confidential way. He also agreed with UNODC Chawla's
presentation that marijuana's potency has dramatically
increased over the last 15 years. Walters also noted the
efforts of Colombia and Afghanistan to control illicit
production in their countries. In particular he praised
President Uribe's leadership and the eradication of potential
cocaine production by one-third since August of 2002. He
also pointed out that the Karzai government in Afghanistan
has made remarkable progress to reduce opium cultivation
through much sacrifice and courage. Walters thanked the INCB
and others for the emphasis that has been placed on
controlling precursor chemicals globally. He added that the
reductions in the number of methamphetamine labs in the U.S.
and reduced methamphetamine use in the workplace is evidence
that international chemical control efforts can attack
illicit drug production.

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Drug Courts
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11. On August 9, ONDCP Director Walters met with West London
District Court Officials on their Pilot Drug Court
Initiatives. Court representatives included Justin Philips,
Senior District Judge West London Magistrates; Tracey
Goodhew, Criminal Justice Manager West London; Adam
Frankland, Manager of Drugs Interventions Programme West
London; Jonathan Joels, Senior Probation Officer; Sandra Fox,
Chair of the West London Magistrates Bench; Simon Thacker,
Policy Advisor on the Drug Court Project at HMCS HQ;
Catherine Elkington, Head of the Courts innovations Branch at
HMCS HQ; Sharon Harambee, Probation Officer; Dr Gul Dhanani,
Clinical addiction psychologist; and Raj Boyjoonavth, Deputy
Director (NHS) Central NW London, Mental Health Trust and
Substance Misuse Unit. Joining Walters were Brian Blake,
ONDCP Senior Advisor; Charlotte Sisson, ONDCP Policy Analyst;
and Rafael Lemaitre, ONDCP Deputy Press Secretary.


12. The dedicated drug court (DDC) pilot in West London
contributes to the UK Government's drugs strategy and builds
upon the Home Office's Drug Interventions Program.
Specifically, the DDC targets drug-addicted offenders, who
currently pass through the Criminal Justice System, are sent
to prison and come back out and re-offend. The motivation
behind the DDC is to remove the catalyst for the offending
behavior and to rehabilitate individuals. The rehabilitation
and treatment service for the DDC is
provided by the National Treatment Agency. Drug court
officials were interested to learn more about U.S. Drug
Courts, other U.S. programs focused on reducing drug use, and
U.S. experiences with methamphetamine as crystal
methamphetamine has been reported in West London on a few

occasions.


13. Director Walters explained how the U.S. uses the
criminal justice system as a tool in achieving treatment
referral and recovery by enlisting the power of the courts to
effect supervised treatment rather than jail. There are
1,621 courts currently in operation in all 50 states - an
increase of more than 400 courts just in the past year. A
National Institute of Justice study compared re-arrest rates
for drug court graduates with individuals who were imprisoned
for drug offenses, and found significant differences. The
likelihood that a drug court graduate would be rearrested and
charged for a serious offense in the first year after
graduation was 16.4%, compared with 43.5% for non-drug court
graduates. By the two-year mark, the recidivism rate had
grown to 27.5%, compared to 58.6% for non-graduates.


14. Walters reviewed how the U.S. spends $3.5 billion a year
on drug abuse treatment and research. This does not include
the additional funds spent by state and local governments and
private individuals. He also answered their questions on the
use of a voucher program that empowers individuals by
allowing them to choose among various drug-treatment
programs, including Faith-Based programs. Drug Court
officials were very interested to learn of other ways to
limit the spread of drug use by individuals who are in the
early stages of use, before the negative effects of continued
use and addiction are compounded. Walters explained the cost
effectiveness of U.S. drug screening and intervention
programs when used as part of the nation's existing network
of health, education, law enforcement, and counseling
providers.


15. Walters shared U.S. experiences in dealing with
Methamphetamine, highlighting controlling precursor chemicals
as essential. In 2003, there were 17,448 clandestine meth lab
incidents across the country. 2004 numbers are still being
formulated, but early evidence indicates that the increase in
meth lab numbers may have been halted. The vast majority of
labs (over 95% in 2002) are seized and investigated by state
and local law enforcement, with cleanup costs that run in the
millions of dollars for these jurisdictions every year.
Nationally, drug treatment admissions for
methamphetamine/amphetamine dependencies have been
increasing: In 2003, more than six percent of treatment
admissions nationwide were for methamphetamine/amphetamine,
up from 1.3% in 1993. The greatest myth we need to debunk is
that methamphetamine addicts cannot be treated that is simply
not true. However, methamphetamine addicts do sometimes
require longer treatment and/or inpatient treatment.
Regulations in 35 U.S. states on retail sales has shrunk the
number of small methamphetamine labs. Congress has also
created the Meth Act which goes into effect Sep 30 to combat
the methamphetamine epidemic through limiting the individual
to purchase 3.6 grams; eliminating the blister pack loophole;
and requiring importers of pseudoephedrine to get approval if
there is a change to the shipment's original purchaser in
order to prevent the diversion of the product.


16. As a follow on to this meeting, Senior Judge Justin
Philips will be in Washington the week of September 4 and is
interested in visiting a U.S. drug court. ONDCP is in the
process of arranging a meeting for him with the Judge(s) of a
local Washington D.C. drug court, attending a drug court
proceeding, and visiting with one of the treatment facilities
affiliated with the court.


17. This cable was cleared by ONDCP Director Walters.

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Johnson