TORIES' 'NEW' STRATEGY TO FIGHT DRUGS JUST POURS MORE MONEY INTO SAME
OLD FAILED APPROACHES

Canada's worst kept secret was revealed by Prime Minister Stephen
Harper in Winnipeg on Thursday, and not surprisingly, the National
Anti-Drug Strategy offers few surprises.

As the Conservatives had previously announced, in the federal
government's annual budget, there would be an additional $64 million
to fight illicit drug use, the only question concerned how that money
would be spent. To no one's surprise, the Conservatives divided the
money between prevention and treatment on the one hand, and law
enforcement on the other.

In fact, despite all the rhetoric surrounding the strategy, it can
really be described as more of the same -- the same failed,
enforcement-heavy approach toward illicit drugs that the Liberals
took when they were in power.

Enforcement Is the Priority

Of the $64 million, $22 million will be directed toward enforcement,
$10 million toward prevention programs and $32 million will be
earmarked for treatment. The extra money for treatment and prevention
are welcome, but it's clear that enforcement will continue to get the
lion's share of funds, just as it did under the Liberals.

That's because the $64 million is only a small addition to the money
already invested in the drug war. For example, in the 2004-2005
fiscal year, Canada devoted $271 million toward enforcement, compared
with $51 million for treatment and $10 million for prevention.

The additional funds will therefore do little to tilt the emphasis
away from the failed war-on-drugs approach. And while the
Conservatives have painted the Liberals as having been soft on drug
crime, it's clear that they were anything but. As just one example,
the City of Vancouver noted that between 1992 and 2002, the marijuana
offence rate rose nearly 80 per cent, due mainly to an increase in
possession offences.

But while the Liberals were enthusiastic foot soldiers in the war on
drugs, the Conservatives clearly want to lead the charge. Making good
on a previous promise, Harper said the Conservatives will introduce
legislation with mandatory sentences for those convicted of
trafficking in drugs like methamphetamine and cocaine.

After the 1996 cocaine-related death of basketball star Len Bias, the
United States introduced mandatory sentences, which have proved
disastrous. In addition to failing to reduce drug use, the sentences
have swelled the prison population, and non-violent drug offenders
now comprise 25 per cent of the American prison population. As a
result, many U.S. jurisdictions have now begun dismantling mandatory
sentencing regimes.

But not content to learn from U.S. failures, the Conservatives forge
ahead. Their entire strategy is based on the myth that there is a
sharp distinction between drug dealers and drug users. Yet many
addicts become (low-level) dealers because it provides them with a
steady source of income and a steady supply of drugs. The most
severely addicted are the ones most likely to take up dealing.

It is these people who are most likely to be subject to mandatory
sentences since high level dealers are good at insulating themselves
from the police. Also, when large-scale traffickers are caught, they
are often able to provide valuable information to prosecutors in
exchange for lighter sentences.

That the Conservatives are interested in ramping up the war on drugs
is also evident in that the $64 million includes not a cent for
proven, life-saving harm reduction programs. The feds did grant
another six-month extension to Vancouver's supervised injection site,
Insite, this week, but that was likely a political move to avoid
controversy in advance of the announcement of the drug strategy.

Little Aid for Addicts

The failure to include harm reduction will also likely work against
any efforts to treat drug addicts. After all, the most seriously
addicted people tend to be highly marginalized and do not seek
treatment. But initiatives like the supervised injection facility are
proven to act as a point of first contact where marginalized users
are introduced to the system in a non-threatening way. As a
consequence, many eventually seek treatment.

In introducing the new strategy, Harper said, "Breaking Canada's drug
habit will require a huge effort. But as of today our country is on
the road to recovery."

In reality, though, we're on the same road that we've been on for
decades. We're merely going a little faster, which is unfortunate
since it's a dead end.