COPS CAN'T CURE SEX TRADE

Government Should Step in to Help, Say Nanaimo Police

While B.C.'s Auditor General is calling for more officers to deal
with open drug use and the sex trade in Victoria, even police say
such problems are well beyond being solved by law enforcement.

In February, Arn van Ierse sent a letter to Victoria police and city
council about people doing drugs and having sex in Victoria's Bastion
Square area, where his office is located. He wants more police.

But the Nanaimo RCMP officer who heads this city's police bicycle
squad said the solution does not lie with more police.

"I'm too busy, I can't go down (to Victoria)," joked Cpl. Dave Laberge.

While he may be joking, Laberge and other officers patrolling
downtown Nanaimo are forced to confront an enormous problem arising
from overwhelmed medical, housing and social support systems. Police,
said Laberge, are left to deal with those with no access to help.

"Our ability to deal with addiction is amplified by a glaring lack of
support for these people," he said.

Rick Hyne, a downtown Nanaimo landlord also seeking a solution, said
the Auditor General appears to have a specific point of view.

"Perhaps his attitude represents that of our provincial government --
'it's not my problem, it's someone else's,'" said Hyne.

He echoed Laberge's comment, that the problem is well beyond law enforcement.

"That's true in every community," he said. "Until the community gets
on board it's not going to work."

Laberge said the enforcement approach may have worked elsewhere, but
is unrealistic in cities like Nanaimo and Victoria.

"We don't have the resources to put a policeman on every corner," he said.

Hyne said the message has to go to government, not street cops.

"People need to start screaming and hollering, but they're hollering
at the wrong people."