Swedish Drug Users Union

Organization
Name Swedish Drug Users Union
Type Non-profit
Location Stockholm Sweden
Founded 2002
Members ca 1500 (2010)
Chairman Berne Stålenkrantz
Website http://www.svenskabrukarforeningen.se

The Swedish Drug Users Union (acronym: SDUU) or Swedish: Svenska Brukarföreningen (acronym: SBF) is an no-profit NGO and was founded [1] in October 2002 by users associated to the Swedish OST (Opiate Substitution Treatment) programs.

”Nothing about us without us” is the most important issue in their philosophy, which means that all groups must be represented by themselves and speak on their own behalf. For example - the board of directors should only include the target group. It is stated in their statues that only users can be on the board.

SDUU organizes Swedish drug users of both legal- and illicit drugs, opioid/opiate users who have or wants OST/MMT (opioid substitution treatment or methadone maintenance treatment). They also support the idea of maintenance treatment for amphetamine users and other drugs.

The work includes appeals, complaints, support users with different matters such as: apply for maintenance treatment, advocate for patient rights and to convince the healthcare and social workers to see and understand things from the users perspective. They also write op-eds and carry out lobbying.

SDUU:s ideology consists of:

  • make a clear distinctions between prevention, organized crime, and harm reduction;
  • combat any care ideology;
  • combat the stigmatization that drug users encounter every day;
  • a change of focus from preservation of dogma to preservation of the right to life and health;
  • legislative evaluations and steps for change, including the law that says it is illegal to use and to have drugs in your body;
  • create an ombudsman for drug users;
  • create a harm reduction coordinator.

They cooperate with several European and international organizations that support a drug policy based upon the ideas of harm reduction and human rights. SDUU is a member of the steering committee of the EuroHRN (European Harm Reduction Network) and are the Swedish representatives for INPUD (International Network for People who Use Drugs) and NAMA (National Alliance for Medication Assisted Recovery), they are also associated partner with the Correlation network.

In 2007 and 2008 SDUU gave speeches to UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights [2][3]

SDUU arranges a yearly seminar with focus on HR. One part of the seminar is an award ceremony for ”Brukarvänspriset” (the user friendly award). Earlier winners include Professor Lars Gunne - the founding father of one of the worlds oldest OST (Ulleråker hospital Uppsala founded 1967), Björn Fries - former drug policy coordinator to the government, the needle exchange program in Malmö & Lund, Professor Henrik Tham, Professor Ted Goldberg, The National Board of Health and Welfare and four MPs from the Left wing Party for their stance on decriminalization of personal use.

SDUU currently has local branches in Stockholm, Göteborg, Halmstad, Kalmar, Skåne, Örebro, Umeå, Skellefteå and Piteå.

Sources

  1. ↑ "About SDUU", SDUU, Stockholm, 21 October 2010. Retrieved on 2005-10-25.
  2. ↑ Pre-Sessional Working Group, OHCHR 26–30 November 2007.
  3. ↑ Non Governmental Organizations Address Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, UNOG 3 November 2008.
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