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In the midst of an opiod crisis that claimed a record number of lives last year, the local NGO Help Not Handcuffs will host three events featuring discussions with Portuguese Drug Czar Dr. João Goulão on how his country’s drug decriminalization policy succeeded in greatly reducing overdose deaths and improving other health outcomes.

Among the three stops across the state will be an Advocate’s Round Table with Mayor John Moor from 6 to 8 pm Friday at Parlor Gallery, located at 717 Cookman Ave.

“We want to engage those who are advocates and those affected by the issue to try to overcome barriers to implement this paradigmatic shift of the drug war,” Help Not Handcuffs founder and CEO Randy Thompson said.

According to the State Attorney General’s office, overdoses across the state escalated from 1,223 in 2012 to an estimated 2,750 deaths in 2017.

“I will be going to listen and learn,” Mayor John Moor said. “I think it is  interesting to how a country that had similar issues we are currently facing seemed to reduce their problems by relaxing legislation.”

Goulão serves as the southern European nation’s Drugs and Alcohol Coordinator and Director General of its Intervention on Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies General Directorate [SICAD], a body within the Health Ministry responsible for the policy coordination. He was chairman of the European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction [EMCDDA] from 2009 to 2015 and has a long experience in the addiction field at the international level.

“Nearly twenty years ago while dealing with its own heroin epidemic, Portugal took the revolutionary action of decriminalizing all drugs in order to address drug use as a human rights and health issue,” Thompson said. “Since then Portugal has achieved a drug-induced death rate five times lower than the European Union average, a 95 percent reduction in drug-related HIV infections and lower adult drug use.”

A medical doctor by profession, Goulão has over 20 year’s experience regarding drug-related issues, working in this field since 1987 as general practitioner and since devoting his professional life to drug reduction and health. He was also a member of the Portuguese Committee, which in 1999, prepared the report the first Portuguese Drug Strategy was based and that included decriminalisation proposal.

“In 2016 New Jersey experienced 2,221 overdoses to Portugal’s 27 despite having similar sized populations,” Thompson said. “New Jersey is projected to break 3,000 fatal overdoses in 2018. If you care about reducing overdoses while improving health and human rights, not attending is not an option, because Portugal’s policy achieved these goals while New Jersey’s policies continually fail our communities.”

The visits are orchestrated with support from the Open Society Foundations and in collaboration with numerous partners, Thompson said.

Goulão’s scheduled appearances are as follows:

Drug Decriminalization: The Triumph of Health and Human Rights over the Drug War, 12:30 to 2 pm Wednesday at Rutgers Law School on the Newark Campus, located at 123 Washington St, Room 070. Lunch will be provided and RSVP is mandatory via sbouchouar@gmail.com.

Symposium on Opioid Addiction, 9 to 11 am Friday at the Rutgers School of Social Work, Alexander Library Pane Room, located at 169 College Ave, New Brunswick. RSVP is mandatory via kcrimmins@ssw.rutgers.edu.

Advocates Round Table with Mayor John Moor, 6 to 8 pm Friday at Parlor Gallery, located at  717 Cookman Ave, Asbury Park. Food and drink will be provided and RSVP is mandatory via info@HelpNotHandcuffs.org.  

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