1. Community mobilization in Ukraine
Olena Kucheruk
International Harm Reduction Development Program, OSI
International Renaissance Foundation
XVII International AIDS Conference, 3-8 August 2008, Mexico City

2. Drug users community and substitution therapy (ST) clients are limited in their opportunities to be involved and to influence decision making processes in Ukraine.

3. In order
to build advocacy capacity of people personally affected by HIV/AIDS and drug use,
to promote harm reduction-oriented health and social policies
and the greater involvement of affected communities in government and civil society decision-making bodies
IRF and IHRD supported a lot of initiatives and provided TA for community mobilization in Ukraine:

4. 9 initiative groups were supported, 4 new community-based NGOs were registered during years

5. Creation of “Spilnota”—all-Ukrainian network of NGOs and initiative groups of people who use drugs

6. The goals of the Network are:
to strengthen the voice of drug users in Ukraine in order to promote their participation in the decision-making process;
To grow and develop the Network throughout Ukraine.
IHRD supported visits of “Spilnota’s” members to the regions where drug users’ communities are either underground or do not exist at all.

7. 1st Ukrainian drug users forum was held in 2007
Forum participants discussed their advocacy strategies and prepared an action which was held during the opening ceremony of the 2nd National Harm Reduction Conference next day

8. Drug user activists held a public action “Why you don’t listen to us
Drug user activists held a public action “Why you don’t listen to us?” during the 2nd National harm reduction conference in 2007
Around 20 DUs came up to the stage with their mouths banded.
They kept silence during a minute and then, one by one, they took their bands off and pronounced key messages.

9. Some of key messages:
“While you procrastinate with making a decision, many of us die in prisons without access to ART, ST and TB treatment”
“Police violates our rights and throws us to prisons while we need access to adequate treatment”

10. The advocacy summer schools for drug users, ST clients, LGBT community was held in 2006, 2007 and 2008

11. These summer schools helped to cultivate a new generation of community leaders who are able to conduct advocacy campaigns at the local and national levels

12. New NGO “Nadiya” of parents whose child are ST clients was created and started advocacy work promoting ST
General public and decision-makers trust much more to the parents, because they do not seem to have any political or business interests engaged

13. 5 local advocacy projects started their work focusing on drug policy reform, human rights protection, and promotion of equal access to medical services 2 advocacy projects of ST clients NGOs who are promoting ST and conducting public awareness campaign (NGO “Virtus” in Dnepropetrovsk developed booklets on ST and dissiminated them among potential clients) 5 community-based NGOs became a members of the local decision-making bodies (Local Coordination Councils on HIV/AIDS and TB)

14. 2nd national conference on ST Open dialogue between ST providers and clients in order to change existing procedures of ST in Ukraine
The recommendations on changing the existing procedures were adopted by ST clients and providers

15. Open letter to the President More than 300 ST clients put their signatures on the open letter

16. The open letter contained demands of ST clients such as: “To introduce a procedure on prescribing methadone or bup. –so the clients can get drugs at pharmacies”

17. National bill-board campaign to support ST scaling-up New web-site www
National bill-board campaign to support ST scaling-up New web-site on ST
Whether drug users can return to normal life?
ASK:
Return ticket to family, society, work

18. Street actions, press-conferences, media events, work with journalists
Street action and press-conference were dedicated to decriminalization of drug use in Ukraine
Participants wanted to attract attention of the public and decision-makers to the need in changing the official list of minimal drug doses approved in Ukraine

19. Next steps: The all-Ukrainian advocacy strategy was developed and will be used by community-based NGO in their consolidated advocacy efforts in future.