On October 4, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, gave an intervention at the Third Committee of the Seventy-Second Session of the United Nations General Assembly on Agenda Item 107, dedicated to “Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice” and on Agenda Item 108, dedicated to "International Drug Control."

In his statement, Archbishop Auza stressed the urgent need to combat the production and trade of illicit drugs, which threaten society on every level,  in the family, locally and  internationally. He called for substance abuse to be fought at the root causes, through promoting justice, the rule of law and education, and warned against the danger of easing restrictions on drug use. He noted that the production, trade and use of illicit drugs pose great harm to human dignity, especially through their connection with trafficking in persons, poverty increases, breakdown of families, money laundering, government corruption, threats to the rule of law, loss of employment and educational opportunities, risks to health and personal safety, increases in the use of weapons, harm to children, domestic violence, and economic insecurity.

The statement can be found here.