الإسلام وسياسة المخدرات

Palani Narayanan is a specialist in harm reduction, drug policy and the health of marginalized populations, with more than 35 years of experience in public health advocacy, programme implementation and policy reform. As an activist, he co-founded Malaysia’s first harm reduction initiative for people who use drugs and sex workers in 1992.

In 1998, he was elected the first Chairperson of the Asian Harm Reduction Network, marking the beginning of an international career spanning advocacy, programme management, technical assistance and grant making across four continents. Throughout his career, he has worked with and advised major international agencies and donors, including the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, USAID, UNAIDS, UNODC and most recently, the Global Fund in Geneva, Switzerland, where he served as Senior Advisor on Harm Reduction from 2018 to 2022.

Palani was the lead consultant for Malaysia’s National Harm Reduction Pilot Program from 2005 to 2007, which contributed significantly to the country’s reduction in HIV acquisitions among people who use drugs. He has also supported the establishment, expansion and quality improvement of harm reduction services in more than 25 countries worldwide.

He is the Founder of the Asia Chemsex Platform and continues to work closely with governments, civil society organizations and affected communities to develop evidence-based responses to chemsex-related health issues.

Palani currently serves on the Board of Directors of Harm Reduction International and contributes to several international bodies, including the Elton John AIDS Foundation. He is currently the Director of the Drug Policy Program Malaysia, a civil society movement advocating for the removal of criminal penalties for people who use drugs, which he co-founded with Adeeba Kamarulzaman at the Malaysian AIDS Foundation.

Professor Dato’ Adeeba Kamarulzaman is the Chief Executive Officer of Monash University Malaysia and Pro Vice-Chancellor and President (Malaysia), Monash University Australia.

Adeeba leads Monash University Malaysia, the first foreign university established in the country in 1998. She is responsible for driving the university’s initiatives to promote excellence in education and research in Malaysia and the region.

DS and infectious diseases, Adeeba has vigorously pursued and applied her research interests to focus on adopting a pragmatic and effective approach to HIV prevention in key populations, including people who use drugs and people in prisons. Her work has a strong focus on the links between disadvantage and the transmission and severity of infectious diseases.

In April 2021, she was appointed an inaugural member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Science Council with a remit to advise on high-priority scientific issues that could have a direct impact on global health. She is Chair of the Malaysian AIDS Foundation and the ROSE Foundation, which aims to eliminate cervical cancer in Malaysia and globally. She is also a Commissioner for the Global Commission on Drug Policy and a member of the Global Council on Inequality, AIDS and Pandemics.

Other career highlights include her appointment as President of the IAS in 2020, becoming the first Asian to assume the role. She also established the Centre of Excellence for Research in AIDS (CERiA) at Universiti Malaya and was a driving force behind the Malaysian Government’s decision to implement a needle syringe and methadone maintenance programme. She currently leads a multi-sectoral effort towards an evidence-informed, public health approach to substance use and drug dependence.

Before joining Monash, Adeeba was Dean of University Malaya’s Faculty of Medicine. She has published more than 300 journal articles and has been the recipient of several awards, including the Advance Global Award and the Australian Global Achievement Awards, the Merdeka Award and the Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) from her alma mater, Monash University.

Sarah Belal is the Founder and Executive Director of Justice Project Pakistan (JPP), a Lahore-based legal action non-profit dedicated to defending the most vulnerable Pakistani prisoners at home and abroad. Under her leadership, JPP has pioneered strategic litigation, policy advocacy and public awareness campaigns to challenge unjust laws, protect prisoners’ rights and limit the application of the death penalty.

JPP’s work has resulted in landmark victories, including the release of 42 Pakistani detainees from Bagram Prison, the first repatriation of prisoners from Sri Lanka in seven years, and the 2021 Supreme Court judgment prohibiting the execution of severely mentally ill prisoners. Sarah has also played a pivotal role in advancing Pakistan’s compliance with international human rights standards, contributing to the passage of Pakistan’s first anti-torture law in 2022.

Appointed amicus curiae by Pakistan’s High Courts and Supreme Court, Sarah has provided expert legal opinions in seminal cases on police torture, rights of people in prisons, mentally ill people in prisons on death row and protections for foreign nationals in detention. She also served on the Advisory Council for drafting the Mendez Principles on Effective Interviewing and has trained government stakeholders on legal and human rights reforms.

Sarah is a regular speaker at international human rights forums and was invited as an independent expert to speak at the UN Human Rights Council’s biannual high-level panel on the death penalty.

Sarah Belal was conferred the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, one of the country’s highest civilian honours, in recognition of her contributions to justice and human rights (2025). She has received the Smith College Medal (2024), the Franco-German Human Rights Prize (2016) and Pakistan’s National Human Rights Prize (2016). She is also an Echoing Green Global Fellow (2013), making JPP the first Pakistani organization to receive this honour.

Sarah holds a history degree from Smith College and a law degree from Oxford University. She qualified as a barrister in 2007, obtained her license to practice in Pakistan in 2008 and gained rights of audience in the High Court the same year. Since 2009, she has been leading the team at Justice Project Pakistan.