1996 SOTIROFF AWARD PRESENTED TO FORMER INCB PRESIDENT BETTY GOUGH

Press Release
SOC/NAR/723

1996 SOTIROFF AWARD PRESENTED TO FORMER INCB PRESIDENT BETTY GOUGH

VIENNA, 16 April -- Betty Gough, a former President of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), has been chosen to receive the Serge Sotiroff Memorial Award for outstanding contributions to international drug control efforts. A certificate and medallion will be presented to Ms. Gough at a ceremony in Vienna later this year.

Ms. Gough, a former diplomat and specialist in international organizations, was a member of the INCB from 1977 to 1990 and served as President of that body in 1985, 1986 and 1990.

A United States national, she began her international career in 1943 when she joined the Department of State as an International Organizations Affairs Officer and, until her retirement from the Foreign Service in 1977, held posts in Paris, Vienna, Geneva and Washington, D.C. In Geneva, she served as Counsellor for Narcotics Affairs at the United States Mission to the United Nations from 1972 to 1977.

At the international level, Ms. Gough has played an important role in intergovernmental meetings on drug-control issues, including the United Nations Conference to Consider Amendments to the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs as well as sessions of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs.

The Award commemorates the contribution of United Nations staff member Serge P. Sotiroff in the field of international drug control, particularly his role in preparatory conferences leading to the 1961 Convention as well as the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances and the 1972 Protocol amending the Single Convention.

A memorial fund was set up by Mr. Sotiroff's friends and colleagues after his death in 1976 and was re-activated following the establishment of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP). The Award is presented annually.

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