EX-MAYORS BACK SAFE SITE

Three former Vancouver mayors have set aside political differences to
support the Downtown Eastside's safe-injection site, North America's
only such facility.

Mike Harcourt, Philip Owen and Larry Campbell plan to appear at a
news conference tomorrow to urge the federal Conservative government
not to close the operation.

"We don't agree on all issues. Certainly on this one, we do," said
Campbell, now a Liberal senator. "This is something we want to continue."

Harcourt, who became an NDP premier after his stint as mayor, agreed.

"[Our unity] shows support right across the political spectrum of
people who have dealt with this issue as mayor and chair of the
police board," he said.

And Owen says he's eager for the team to make their case, suggesting
it will be impassioned and impromptu.

"There's no plan for us to meet and have a script or anything, and I
was a little worried about that," he said. "I'm not quite sure what
those two guys are going to say."

The trio, recruited by the Insite for Community Safety coalition that
supports the operation, plan to sign a letter urging Tories to renew
Insite's operating exemption.

A three-year Health Canada exemption for Insite expires

Sept. 12, and there are fears the Tories won't renew it.

That would mean the end of the operation, which allows addicts to
take drugs safely, averting overdoses and the spread of disease.

Owen said the facts support Insite.

"Talk to Vancouver Coastal Health. Talk to the 50 mayors in the world
that have these. They all tell you it works. I can't find one that's
closed up because it hasn't worked. It confirms Vancouver because
Vancouver has worked."

Owen, who described himself as a Liberal inclined to accept good NDP
and Conservative ideas, slammed the Tories for being skittish about
harm reduction.

"I hear this old rhetoric of bigoted moral judgment on others coming
out of Ottawa now and it just scares me," Owen said.

The Tories have said a decision is pending but have been vague about
where they are leaning.

In Whitehorse this week, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said his
government will focus on "enforcement, prevention and treatment" in
the war on drugs.

Current Mayor Sam Sullivan said he welcomes the backing of his
predecessors, suggesting "it's important for everyone to do their
part" and that their united position "would be very useful."

"Everybody who feels strongly about this proposal should be
communicating that to the federal government," Sullivan told The Province.

He said he has advocated for Insite in meetings he has held in Ottawa
during three visits to the capital since he became mayor.