Amy WinehouseAmy Winehouse and Kate Moss are amongst the celebrities criticised by the head of United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crime for glamourising drug use.

In an opinion piece in The Observer yesterday, UNODC executive director Antonio Maria Costa wrote: “Coke-snorting fashionistas are not only damaging their noses and brains - they are contributing to state failure on the other side of the world.”

“In the 19th century, Europe’s hunger for slaves devastated west Africa. Two hundred years later, its growing appetite for cocaine could do the same.”

“The former Gold Coast is becoming the Coke Coast. So severe is the problem that it is now threatening to bring about the collapse of some west African nations where weak and corrupt governments are vulnerable to the corrosive influence of drugs money.”

“While some well-meaning pop idols and film stars might rage against suffering in Africa, their work is being undermined by the drug habits of careless peers such as Kate Moss. For every rebel with a cause, there are 10 others without a clue.”

“Amy Winehouse might adopt a defiant pose and slur her way through ‘Rehab’ but does she realize the message she sends to others who are vulnerable to addiction and who cannot afford expensive treatment?”

“Are such stars who flaunt their drug use aware of the damage caused by the trafficking of cocaine from South America via Africa to Europe? One song, one picture, one quote that makes cocaine look cool can undo millions of pounds’ worth of anti-drug education and prevention.”

“Why is this behaviour socially acceptable? If Ms Winehouse advertised fur coats or blood diamonds, there would be a backlash, yet when she is the poster girl for drug abuse, nobody seems to care.”

However, Costa has been accused of picking the wrong example in the case of Amy. A spokesperson for Transform, a UK drugs policy foundation, told the newspaper: “With Amy Winehouse her drug use is the least cool thing about her. She’s actually a walking advert against drug use. When she cleaned herself up for the Grammys she was amazing.”

Amy’s spokesperson also called the criticism “a ludicrous statement”, adding that “Amy has never given a quote about drugs or flaunted it in any way. She’s had some problems and is trying to get better. The UN should get its own house in order.”