DON'T 'GIVE UP' ON DRUG FIGHT: DEPUTY MINISTER

Whether Liberals Decriminalize Cannabis Or Not, It Harms Lives, Says
Bureaucrat Named To Global Drug Panel

Canada must continue to discourage the use of cannabis and other illegal
drugs to ensure a healthy society, a senior federal official says in spite
of recent government rumblings about softening penalties for marijuana
possession.

While drug consumption will never be eliminated, governments cannot abandon
efforts to control the cultivation, movement and sale of narcotics, says
the Solicitor General Department's Paul Kennedy, who is helping lead
hemispheric actions on the issue.

"I don't view this as something that you give up on," he said in an interview.

Mr. Kennedy, a senior assistant deputy minister, was recently elected
vice-chairman of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission, an
agency of the Organization of American States that helps co-ordinate the
anti-drug efforts of the 34 member countries, including Canada.

He will be at the head of the table when OAS representatives gather this
fall in Canada -- the city has not yet been chosen -- for an annual meeting.

Canada's national drug strategy focuses on education aimed at prevention,
treatment for drug users, measures to assist communities and efforts to
restrict the availability of illicit substances. The Liberal government has
hinted at relaxing laws against possession of small amounts of marijuana
for personal use by removing them from the Criminal Code. Infractions
essentially would become ticketable offences.

Some argue the government should go further and legalize marijuana use,
regulating it much like the sale of alcohol.

Whatever the legal penalties, illicit drugs -- even marijuana -- can harm
lives, Mr. Kennedy insists.

"For the life of me, I can't see how a citizen, if you're a young student
in a school, let's say, and you're high on marijuana, how you're going to
function," he said. "You're going to miss the best, formative years of your
life.

"Whether or not the drug would be legally available to you, it is clearly
going to negatively impact on your ability to function in society," he added.

Through the Canadian Community Health Survey and other data-collection
initiatives, Canada is trying to assemble a picture of drug consumption.

However, there is limited information available on the average age at which
individuals begin to inject drugs, says the Drug Abuse Control Commission's
latest report on Canada. In addition, there has been an increase in use of
speed and rave-type drugs such as ecstasy.

"As Canada intensifies its efforts to develop the full picture of the drug
situation, it appears there has been a weakening perception of risk of harm
in drug use among the nation's youth," the report says. "This perception
correlates with increasing rates of use among the youth population."

In Ontario between 1997 and 1999, the percentage of students reporting that
cannabis was easy to obtain increased to 53 per cent from 41 per cent.

Despite his commitment to reducing use of illegal substances, Mr. Kennedy
objects to the oft-used phrase "war on drugs" because it suggests the
battle will some day end.

"If you look at the human condition, we've always had anti-social behaviour
of some kind. And that's a fact of life. We'll always have within society
people who, for instance, steal. Are we going to have a war on theft?" he
asked.

"There will be substance abuse problems. Our challenge is to look at that
and try to reduce it to the point where societies can function successfully.

"The commission is a drug control commission. It's not a drug elimination
commission."

The commission's detailed annual reports on OAS countries have helped each
nation focus on individual weaknesses and, in some cases, work together to
devise regional solutions to stem drug cultivation, Mr. Kennedy said. "I'm
very optimistic as to where we can go."