Abstract Book - International Academy of Law and Mental Health

introduce by-laws to prevent rough sleeping and soup runs in certain parts of the borough and thecampaign against this (see Inside Housing, March 25, 2011). In the City of London, an operationto “wet down” doorways and other places where the homeless sleep was met with a “RightsGuide for Rough Sleepers” (see The Guardian, Wednesday December 9, 2009). We will look athealth and safety concerns, the fear of contamination, the touching of bodies and thetechnologies associated with this and consider bio-power and risk in the justification of thesepractices. We will look at what prompts exercises of power (for instance, commercial needs,political pressures, sporting events, disease, etc.) and also consider resistance to these controlsfrom religious and charitable organisations, deployment of human rights, and other forms ofprotest.Smoking: Are the Legal Responses Justified?Kynan Rogers, Flinders University (kynan.rogers@flinders.edu.au)Smoking is deeply related to mental health, and smokers face restrictive regulation on theirbehaviour, including support for measures to deny smokers non-emergency treatment. Smokingis a public and private health problem. However, the legal response to smoking is, comparedwith drinking or being obese, disproportionate. In Australia, for example, smokers are over-taxedand increasing prohibitions on smoking are, rather than being scrutinized, criticized for notcoming into operation more quickly. Tobacco is regulated like no other product. The discourse ofsmoking is increasingly normative, yet our legal systems fail to recognize this and continues torely on inappropriate rationales. As a minority, smokers are different, but are they differentenough and in the right way? Upon what bases do we truly regulate smokers? Are these basesconsistent with modern and postmodern theories of justice? Is tobacco control anything morethan an institutional expression of the dominant social order?Addressing Hoarding: A Principled Approach from Public Health?Michele Slatter, Adelaide University (michele.slatter@adelaide.edu.au)Until quite recently cases of problem hoarding were treated as isolated oddities. They mightinconvenience neighbours, worry local authorities and risk the safety of family, but they wereaddressed (or ignored) case by case. However, the last two decades have seen major shifts inboth professional and public awareness. The incidence of problem hoarding is much morefrequent than was earlier believed. Hoarders fit no stereotype. There is no “standard appropriateresponse,” no “one size fits all,” and no professional monopoly in these cases; best practicerecognises the need for multidisciplinary engagement and support. Although the “causes” ofhoarding are diverse, the lead-up to DSM-5 saw an explosion of research seeking to establishHoarding Disorder. Discussion of hoarding cases is now informed by this broader and moresophisticated understanding. Nevertheless, such cases remain challenging especially for localauthorities, driven by conflicting responsibilities, limited resources, and uncertain powers.16