The International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking is celebrated on June 26 each year. It was declared by United Nations as International Day against Drug Abuse and the illegal drug trade and is being observed annually since 1988. This date was chosen to commemorate Lin Zexu’s dismantling of the opium trade in Humen, Guangdong, just before the First Opium War in China. The observance was instituted by General Assembly Resolution 42/112 of December 7, 1987.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has, over the years, been actively involved in launching campaigns to mobilize support for drug control. The UNODC, on this day teams up with other organizations and encourages people in society to actively take part in these campaigns.
Governments, organizations and individuals in many countries, including Vietnam, Borneo and Thailand, have also actively participated in promotional events and larger scale activities, such as public rallies and mass media involvement, to promote the awareness of dangers associated with illicit drugs.
The theme for the 2016 celebration was ‘Listen First’. It is an initiative to increase support for prevention of drug use that is based on science and is thus an effective investment in the well-being of children and youth, their families and their communities.
The UN General Assembly held a Special Session (UNGASS) on drugs in April 2016. This Special Session marked an important milestone in achieving the goals set in the policy document of 2009 “Political Declaration and Plan of Action on International Cooperation towards an Integrated and Balanced Strategy to Counter the World Drug Problem”, which defined action to be taken by Member States as well as goals to be achieved by 2019.