MINISTER ADMITS ADDICTION

'70S Drug Use 'Could Have Ruined My Life,' Purves Says

Education Minister Jane Purves admitted Wednesday she was an
intravenous-drug addict more than 20 years ago and contracted hepatitis C as
a result.

"Initially, I experimented with so-called soft drugs. However, this
progressed to hard drugs, and I became addicted," a teary-eyed Ms. Purves
read from a prepared statement at a news conference Wednesday.

"I sought professional help and, with the support of my family and friends,
was able to recover."

Ms. Purves, 50, said she was addicted for six or seven years, but has been
free of the drug problem for more than two decades.

And she said addiction took a big toll on her life.

"I have a criminal record for possession of marijuana. I lost custody of my
only child for a number of years. And I learned that I had contracted
hepatitis C as a result of drug use."

Premier John Hamm said he respected Ms. Purves for being able to overcome
such troubles.

"I look with admiration at anyone who can overcome those kinds of
difficulties so successfully," Mr. Hamm said.

"There's a message in all of that. The message is, there's always an
opportunity for those who get in serious difficulty to come back and
rehabilitate themselves."

Ms. Purves had been managing editor of The Chronicle-Herald and The
Mail-Star for eight years when she took a buyout in March. Before that, she
had been a reporter and news editor.

Ms. Purves said she acknowledged her past drug use verbally and in writing
to Mr. Hamm before the July 27 election. And she said she disclosed the fact
she has hepatitis C before becoming a cabinet minister.

"I made the decision then, that if and when this situation arose, I would
confront it openly and honestly," she said.

"Drug use could have ruined my life. It didn't."

During the news conference, Ms. Purves grew more emotional when talking
about the effect her addiction had on her family.

She lost custody of her son, now 29, when he was four. He lived with his
father until she regained custody when he was 15 or 16.

Ms. Purves said she realized before entering politics that her past could,
and probably would, become public.

She revealed having a criminal record for marijuana possession in the early
1970s when asked by this newspaper during the election campaign.

NDP Leader Robert Chisholm said she should be judged by her actions as
education minister, not her history of drug use.

"It's something that happened some time ago in her life," he said. "Clearly,
it was a tough time for her."

Liberal education critic Wayne Gaudet said Nova Scotians will have to
determine for themselves "what the standards are for a minister of education."

Ms. Purves wouldn't reveal what kind of drug she was addicted to because
"going into detail makes me like a guest on the Phil Donahue show."

"I mean, I feel if I were an alcoholic, it would be irrelevant if it were
scotch or rum," she said.

She said the hepatitis, which was diagnosed last year, has not affected her
health and she isn't on any medication for the disease.

Hepatitis C is a degenerative and unpredictable liver ailment that can
remain dormant for years before its effects are noticed. It can be fatal in
about 20 per cent of cases.

Ms. Purves said she doubts she'll have to exclude herself if cabinet
discusses compensation for hepatitis C victims who contracted the disease
from tainted blood.

"Hep C victims who are getting compensation were the victims of someone
else's mistakes. That was not the case with me. I did it to myself."

She said she went public with her illness and past drug addiction after an
interview Wednesday with a reporter from the Halifax Daily News.

"I was asked about my past and, specifically, about past drug use," she said.

"While I consider this matter to be private, given my current position of
public trust, I felt an obligation to answer the questions honestly and to
share this information with Nova Scotians."

Political scientist Agar Adamson said Ms. Purves appears be to a victim of
"gotcha journalism."

He said her history probably won't affect her career in the long run.

"She's been open. She's been honest," he said.

Ms. Purves said she actually appreciates the chance to clear up some rumours
that have been circulating about her past.

"Some of them have been utterly preposterous and in a way, it's better to
just tell the truth."

She said she does consider her past a private matter and something that
doesn't affect her abilities to be MLA for Halifax Citadel or a cabinet
minister.

"But I did not want to be destroyed by innuendo, so once asked, I decided it
was better to tell the truth," she said.

"You can't pretend to be a paragon of virtue if you are just a human being."

She said she hopes voters will judge her by her present actions and not the
past.

Asked whether her candour will influence other politicians to come clean
about their pasts, Ms. Purves replied with a wry smile: "I don't know if
(U.S. presidential candidate) George W. Bush is going to pay attention to me."