STATE CHOOSES REALISM IN DRUGS FIGHT

A new, more realistic anti-drugs television and radio campaign by the
Bracks Government aimed at 15-to-18-year-olds and dealing with
marijuana, ecstasy and heroin use will begin in July.

The campaign will contrast sharply with the shock tactics of the
Howard Government in its "body bag" campaign. State Government
research has shown that teenagers do not identify with the Prime
Minister's $20 million drug message.

State Health Minister John Thwaites told The Agethat the new campaign
would use young people who had recovered from their addictions talking
about the negative impact drugs have had on their lives.

"We won't be using shock tactics because our research tells us that
teenagers simply switch off when you start showing them images of dead
drug users," Mr Thwaites said.

"They don't believe that it could be them. We've found they are more
concerned about the impact drugs could have on their friendships,
losing their looks, losing their girlfriends or boyfriends or
underperforming at school or in sport - things that affect them directly."

The Prime Minister's campaign focused on parents with its key message
being: "Our strongest defence against the drug problem - families."

The government will spend $2.5 million on its campaign, which will
have the slogan "It's our drug problem".

Mr Thwaites said young people had told researchers that the only part
of the Howard Government's television campaign that had struck a cord
was the scene where a young girl is fighting with her mother.

Meanwhile, as Victoria's heroin drought enters its sixth month,
desperate drug users are risking limb amputations and possible death
by injecting dangerous substances to support their habit.

Doctors and drug agencies are reporting a disturbing trend where users
are injecting the sleeping pill Normison to boost weak heroin.

Outreach drug and alcohol worker Helena Jedjug, of the Youth Substance
Abuse Service, said: "We've had a death and a couple of kids who've
lost testicles from injecting Normison into their groin." Other
agencies also reported the amputation of limbs because of gangrene
after the injection of unsafe substances.

Since the drought began last Christmas, the number of deaths from
overdose has dropped dramatically. Monthly figures supplied to The Age
by the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine show that between
January and the end of April last year there were 126 heroin-related
deaths. For the same period this year, there have been 17.

Drug agencies welcomed the drop but are concerned side effects of the
drought are being ignored.