DISTRICT LOBBIES FOR DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAMS

BETTER funding for detox and rehab programs rather than
decriminalizing illegal drugs is the way to fight the war against
narcotics, district council decided on March 13.

Coun. Doug MacKay-Dunn suggested sending a resolution to the Union of
B.C. Municipalities in support of programs for drug addicts. He
described a four-point approach to the drug problem, including: law
enforcement against traffickers; harm reduction programs including
needle exchanges; prevention and education efforts; and opportunities
for detoxification and rehabilitation.

His resolution, which will be sent to the UBCM for consideration at
the 2000 convention and also to the Federation of Canadian
Municipalities at its 2000 convention, emphasized medical attention,
psychological help, and job training for drug addicts.

"We have to send the message to the province to stop talking about it
and do something," he said. "If someone's on the street and they want
to get off drugs, they should get the proverbial green door and
they're in detox. And I'm talking two years because that's what it
takes."

Coun. Ernie Crist was pushing for council to support decriminalizing
the possession of illegal drugs for personal use. He argued that
decriminalization is the first step in treating addiction as a medical
problem.

"Once you agree a drug user is not a criminal, then you can ask the
government to pay for their treatment," he said, adding that the
expensive "war" the police are fighting against drug dealers is
expensive and futile. If you decriminalize drugs, he argued, the
prices will diminish and the dealers will go out of business.

Crist's motion was not supported.

Supt. Jamie Graham and Sgt. Rick Winslow of the North Vancouver RCMP
were at the meeting, and responded to the two motions being discussed.

Decriminalizing drugs, they said, would make the province a "magnet"
for users from other places. Graham also explained that
decriminalizing drugs does not affect the supply or demand.

"Organized crime is into anything, legal or not, that makes money --
cigarettes, washing machines, lumber. I'd just like to dispel that one
myth."

He also said that the justice system currently does not put anyone in
jail for possession of drugs, but relies on fines or other sentences.
A more comprehensive approach, including enforcement, education, and
treatment, is required, and none of these on its own would work.

A rehabilitation program, described in MacKay-Dunn's motion, should
also encourage companies through tax breaks to provide the
participants with training and a job upon graduation. Getting
businesses to help out, Graham said, is a "tough sell but worth trying."

Crist argued that MacKay-Dunn's motion was "old hat," as countless
similar motions have been forwarded to the UBCM in the past. He was
the only one not to support the motion, as he left the room before the
vote.