Lunze Karsten, Lunze Fatima I, Raj Anita, Samet Jeffrey H
Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States of America.
Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2015 Aug 25;10(8):e0136030. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0136030. eCollection 2015.
Drug policing practices in the Russian Federation (Russia) are often punitive and have been shown to be associated with HIV risk behaviors among people who inject drugs (PWID). Less is known about strategies to address the problem in that setting, where substance use stigma is highly persistent. A better understanding of forms, causes and consequences of drug policing in Russia could inform drug policy in a context of substantial policy resistance. This qualitative study's goal is to characterize the phenomenon of police involvement with Russian PWID and to explore strategies for drug policing in the Russian country context.
Using a semi-structured interview guide, we collected data from a purposive sample of 23 key informants including PWID, police officers, and experts from civil society and international organizations in Russia. We used a thematic analysis approach to inductively generate new insight into the phenomenon of police involvement and potential strategies to address it.
Policing practices involving PWID include unjustified arrests, planting of false evidence and extrajudicial syringe confiscations, and often constitute human rights violations. Russian PWID personally experienced police violence as ubiquitous, taking on various forms such as beating, unjustified arrests, verbal harassment, and coercion. The persistent societal stigma dehumanizes PWID, and such stigmatization facilitates police abuse. To address stigma and overcome the PWID-police adversity, study participants suggested fostering a mutual understanding between the police and public health sectors.
Participants describe substantial human rights violations as part of policing illicit drug use in Russia. Police should include principles of effective prevention of substance use and HIV risk reduction in their trainings. Alignment of public safety and public health goals could address drug use-related risks and HIV prevention among key populations in Russia.
俄罗斯联邦（俄罗斯）的毒品管制做法往往具有惩罚性，并且已被证明与注射吸毒者（PWID）中的艾滋病毒风险行为有关。在物质使用污名化高度持久的情况下，对于解决该问题的策略了解较少。更好地理解俄罗斯毒品管制的形式、原因和后果，可以为在存在重大政策阻力的背景下制定毒品政策提供参考。这项定性研究的目标是描述警察与俄罗斯注射吸毒者接触的现象，并探索俄罗斯国情下的毒品管制策略。
我们使用半结构化访谈指南，从23名关键信息提供者的目的性样本中收集数据，这些信息提供者包括俄罗斯的注射吸毒者、警察以及民间社会和国际组织的专家。我们采用主题分析方法，归纳性地对警察参与这一现象以及解决该问题的潜在策略产生新的见解。
涉及注射吸毒者的警务做法包括不合理逮捕、栽赃虚假证据和法外没收注射器，并且常常构成侵犯人权行为。俄罗斯注射吸毒者个人普遍经历过警察暴力，其形式多样，如殴打、不合理逮捕、言语骚扰和胁迫。持续存在的社会污名将注射吸毒者非人化，而这种污名化助长了警察的虐待行为。为了解决污名化问题并克服注射吸毒者与警察之间的对立，研究参与者建议促进警察与公共卫生部门之间的相互理解。
参与者将大量侵犯人权行为描述为俄罗斯非法药物使用管制的一部分。警察应在培训中纳入有效预防物质使用和降低艾滋病毒风险的原则。使公共安全和公共卫生目标保持一致，可以解决俄罗斯关键人群中与药物使用相关的风险和艾滋病毒预防问题。
