'SAFER' CRACK KITS UNDER FIRE

Police point to surging 'drug crimes' as city lauds outreach program
as a way to help addicts

The distribution of safer crack use kits to addicts does not promote
drug use, the head of the city's needle exchange program said yesterday.

Shaun Hopkins, manager of The Works, which is run by Toronto Public
Health, said an estimated 12,000 kits, containing glass stems, brass
screens and rubber mouthpieces, are distributed every month at a cost
of about $1.50 each.

The kits prevent addicts from using broken bottles or car antennas,
which can cause cuts, burns or cracks to lips or fingers, she said.

Hardy Virus

It also prevents the sharing of pipes and the spread of disease, Hopkins said.

"It's possible HIV could be transmitted, but hepatitis C is a much
more hardy virus, very easy to get," Hopkins said. "We don't
encourage people to use drugs. People come to us who are already
using. We're trying to keep them healthy."

A report this week by the UN's International Narcotics Review Board
called on Canadian cities, including Toronto and Vancouver, to end
the distribution of safe crack kits, saying the programs violate
international drug control treaties.

The crack kits were born out of the city's 2005 drug strategy, which
also included measures for enforcement, treatment and prevention.

Hopkins said crack addicts are a vulnerable group -- many are
homeless -- and the distribution of the kits gives public health
inroads to offer them food, shelter, medical care and drug treatment.

"It starts to build a bridge," Hopkins said. "I think harm reduction
has been misunderstood."

Crack cocaine remains the No.1 drug problem on Toronto streets and
police say they're in favour of anything that cuts into the drug's
use. They just don't believe handing out crack user kits does that.

"My view is it doesn't appear to me to prevent or reduce the use of
drugs," Toronto Police Staff-Insp. Don Campbell said.

'Very Addicted'

"I see why they're doing it, don't get me wrong. But crack cocaine is
a dangerous drug and they're very addicted to it. I don't see how
this reduces it."

Besides the damage to the individual user, crack also damages entire
neighbourhoods as addicts scramble to pay for their next hit.

"That's the problem," Campbell said. "These are the people breaking
into your homes, breaking into your cars, breaking into your shops," he said.

"Any unit commander of any station in the city will tell you that's
their problem. It leads to other things, it leads to quality of life.

"People can't enjoy their neighbourhood because of the crack addicts
hanging out there."