PETTER REFUSES TO ENDORSE SAFE-FIX SITES FOR ADDICTS

Attorney-General Andrew Petter says the B.C. government is interested in
"harm reduction strategies" for Vancouver's drug problem, but he does not
endorse safe injection sites for addicts.

The Harm Reduction Action Society announced this week that it has already
rented property to set up a facility where addicts can inject drugs in the
presence of medical personnel.

But Petter said Wednesday safe injection sites are not being considered by
the B.C. government and they won't be unless they win blanket support from
communities.

"I don't think there is universal support for that in the community. Unless
there were, I don't see us moving ahead on it. If there were [universal
support], that is something we would have to consider," Petter said.

The safe drug injection site is the first initiative undertaken by HRAS, a
recently formed non-profit organization of health care workers and drug
users frustrated by the lack of assistance available for IV drug users.

"This year again we're going to have a record number of overdoses," said
HRAS president Dean Wilson. "Typically it's not from the drugs being too
powerful, it's because people are alone when they do drugs and they go down."

Wilson explained the safe injection site's main purpose is to save lives,
help users modify their drug use and get information and counselling. But
it will also help to get drug users off the streets, a nuisance that is
polarizing the community.

Wilson says he has not talked to police about the facility but hopes they
would welcome it.

Vancouver police could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

John Blatherwick, chief health officer of the Vancouver Richmond Health
Board, said safe injection sites have been shown to make a difference in
overdose deaths in other countries such as Germany and Holland. But he said
he would like to see it done here within the law. He cautioned that if the
HRAS experiment fails, it could set back efforts already under way to solve
the city's drug problem.

"They'd better be sure they don't fail," Blatherwick said.

"The thing that would cause trouble in the long run would be to set this
thing up, underfunded, cause trouble in the local neighbourhood and end up
with a major failure that people then point to and say, see, we told you it
wouldn't work."

He added that, despite the group's good intentions, "you can't bring drug
addicts together and then promise to keep the drug dealers away. They'll be
there."

John Turvey, the executive director of the Downtown East Side Youth
Activities Society, which runs initiatives like the needle exchange
program, said he's alarmed that HRAS wants to set up the site separately
from programs already in the community. He also questions whether it can
succeed without complementary services like a resource centre, detox
centres and more affordable housing.

"There's a multitude of concerns around injection sites," Turvey said.
"They're only part of a continuum of care. And one thing we're really aware
of in this community is that we do not have a continuum of care."

Turvey said he understands the frustration levels of both drug users and
health-care workers who deal with its related problems -- HIV, hepatitis C,
crime, poverty, homelessness -- but says a safe injection site needs other
support.

"If you don't run them properly they can just facilitate drug use and can
facilitate increased risk in the community," Turvey said.

Wilson dismissed criticisms that the site would increase crime in the area
and cause more problems than solutions.

"This is a very straight-forward medical application, this is not some
shooting gallery. This is a consumer room built on a safety protocol,"
Wilson said.

Wilson said details on staffing, hours of operation, and budget are still
in the works but he estimates the group needs to raise up to $600,000 a
year to run the facility.

Wilson, a former drug addict now on methadone, says HRAS realizes safe
injection sites are only one solution to the problem of drug use but he'd
like to see more than one of these facilities in the Downtown Eastside, as
well as on Commercial Drive and in Surrey.

The first site, which Wilson said will open in two months, will operate on
a trial basis for six to 12 months. After that he will follow the
recommendations of two professional researchers who be be evaluating the
site's results.

"I would shut this down in a minute if I did not think it was doing what it
was supposed to be doing. I want to to save lives," Wilson said.