Half a century after world leaders signed the UN drug convention and committed to the eradication of illicit drugs, it has become obvious that prohibition did not turn out as planned. Not only have the drug laws failed to deliver us from the problems associated with drug use, but as the consequences of the drug war have become more apparent, the problematic relationship to human rights law becomes more obvious.

This book spells out these problems. The author takes us through the thinking behind our human rights conventions and by means of principled reasoning details how the drug laws violate fundamental rights.

The book is a must for anyone who wants to understand the rights-oriented debate, and whether you are a drug user who want to know your rights, a public official who want to know your duties, or a concerned citizen who simply want to learn more, it will tell you what you need to know.

“Roar has done a great job exposing the normative deficiencies in our drug control policies. Of course they violate human rights law, as he demonstrates so persuasively.”

—Douglas Husak, Professor of Law, Rutgers University
Author: Drugs and Rights

“Roar has written a kind of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense pamphlet on the war on drugs for our time, which calls for peace and an end to the injustices of the drug war on the basis of principled opposition to unchecked government authority. It’s a must consider for anyone interested in what The Declaration of Independence calls, ‘natural justice.‘”
— Kenneth M. White, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice and Political Science, Kennesaw State University

“Not only do we face a prohibition on drugs, we also face a prohibition on a discussion about it. Roar Mikalsen’s book challenges both, and he makes strong points at every turn.”

—Judge James P. Gray (Ret.) Superior Court, Orange County, California
Author: Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed