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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Canada: Drug Users Are the Same: Liberal MP
ccguide Tuesday 10 Dec 2002 Pubdate: Tue, 10 Dec 2002 Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON) Copyright: 2002 The Ottawa Citizen Contact: Website: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326 Author: Kate Jaimet, The Ottawa Citizen Note: A report on cannabis will be issued Thursday. Here is a link to the Tabl e of Contents of the report discussed below http://www.parl.gc.ca/InfoComDoc/37 /2/SNUD/Studies/Reports/snudrp01/08-toc-e.htm Bookmarks: http://www.mapinc.org/find?142 (Safe Injecting Rooms) http://www.mapinc.org/hr.htm (Harm Reduction) http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Commons+committee (Commons committee) DRUG USERS ARE THE SAME: LIBERAL MP Criminal drug users should be treated no differently from legal drug users, says the Liberal MP who chaired the House of Commons special committee on non-medicinal drug use. Paddy Torsney says Canadians have a moral obligation to help people addicted to illegal drugs, even though the law makes them criminals. "The moral issue occurs when people are in need of treatment and are unable to find treatment. It occurs when we discriminate between people who use legal substances versus those who use illegal substances, and somehow don't get them the help that they need. And it occurs when we allow people to get other diseases by virtue of the choice of drugs that they're using and we don't do anything to stop that," Ms. Torsney said at a press conference, where she released the committee's report, yesterday. However, Ms. Torsney said it is not possible to legalize possession of drugs such as cocaine, heroin and LSD, because international treaties prohibit it, and Canadian society isn't ready. "We're dealing in realities here," Ms. Torsney said. In perhaps its most contentious recommendation, the report proposes establishing sites where addicts can inject illegal drugs under the supervision of medical professionals. A supervised-injection site would be a sort of clinic where addicts, who buy their drugs illegally from street dealers, could go to inject. The federal government has already approved pilot projects for such sites, which proponents advocate as a means to prevent fatal overdoses and to bring people living on society's margins into contact with professionals who can help them. Bloc Quebecois committee member Real Menard said injection sites are part of the philosophy of harm reduction. "What we have to ask ourselves is: How do we rearrange all of this so that, in an ideal world, people use less, but if they do use, there is the smallest possible amount of damage," he said. NDP committee member Libby Davies, whose riding includes Vancouver's drug-ridden Downtown Eastside, agreed "the establishment of safe-consumption sites are urgently needed." But Canadian Alliance committee member Kevin Sorenson argued harm reduction is essentially capitulation, and the only stance to take on illegal drug use is to promote abstinence. "If we're going to start breaking the Criminal Code to allow substances that every police organization in this country wants to prevent, then I think we're making the wrong movement," he said. Establishing supervised-injection sites could pose some legal difficulties, the committee report admitted. Some provisions in Canada's drug laws might have to be changed to make sure nurses or social workers who work in such facilities would not be breaking any laws. However, since the addicts would still be breaking the laws by possessing illegal narcotics, it was unclear how police could be persuaded, or required, not to enforce the law in or around the sanctioned injection sites. Ms. Torsney did not appear baffled by the apparent contradiction of the state declaring an activity illegal, yet providing a facility for it to take place. "Substance use, whether legal or illegal, needs to be addressed in the same manner," she said. However, Mike Boyd, deputy chief of the Toronto Police and chair of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police drug abuse committee, said police at this point can't guarantee they won't enforce possession laws in and around supervised-injection sites. "Not presently, no," Mr. Boyd said, when posed the question. "There are different ways the local police could deal with it ... That's the concern around the legal framework." He pointed out drug addicts frequently rob other people to get the money to feed their addictions, and police must also protect those innocent victims. The report also recommends that the federal government should start an anti-drug media campaign and should spend more money on education, treatment and rehabilitation, though it does not say how much money would be needed. It proposes Parliament appoint a commissioner to monitor government anti-drug programs and report on their success or failure. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake
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