Consider This: Why Gender Matters in Drug Policy

This International Women’s Day, we turn our focus to a group of women often left out of policy conversations—women who use drugs. Malaysia’s punitive drug laws disproportionately harm women, forcing many into cycles of incarceration, stigma, and violence. But advocates say there’s a better way: a gender-responsive approach to drug policy that prioritises public health over criminalisation. On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with advisors from Drug Policy Program Malaysia: Dr Nur Afiqah Mohd Salleh, Vice President of the Malaysian AIDS Council and Ivy Josiah, Gender Consultant & Committee Member of Women’s Aid Organisation.