Vancouver hits back at ills of drug use

Coalition commits cash, police to fight problem

VANCOUVER Frustrated by federal indifference and provincial
footdragging, Vancouver has designed its own strategy for dealing with the
city's drug addicts, rapid spread of HIV and recent crime wave.

One of the first projects taken on by a coalition of local government,
business and volunteer groups is a drug treatment centre to replace a
Salvation Army facility in the east side of downtown that was closed a few
years ago, Mayor Philip Owen has announced. The city has committed
$2million to assemble land for the new centre.

Also, up to 100 city police will be moved from desk jobs to the streets in
an effort to stem a wave of property crimes in some of the city's tonier
neighbourhoods. And a $9million residence for homeless people will be built.

However, community workers who are most familiar with the problems said the
coalition's plans fall far short of what could be done right away.

The city has created "a drugoriented ambience" by giving out business
licences to numerous 24hour fastfood outlets and secondhand stores in the
downtown neighbourhood, said John Turvey, executive director of the
Downtown Eastside Youth Activities Society.

Narcotics are sold openly over the counter at the fastfood outlets, and
property stolen to buy the drugs is bought and sold in the nearby
secondhand stores, he said yesterday in an interview. The city has shut
down a few businesses but must take a much stronger stand in refusing
licences, Mr. Turvey said.

The mayor made his announcement three weeks after the regional health board
declared a publichealth emergency in Vancouver over the rapid spread of
the human immunodeficiency virus among intravenous drug addicts. The number
of people with the AIDS virus is increasing faster in Vancouver than in
Bangkok, New York or anywhere else in the developed world.

As many as 5,000 addicts, living in older downtown hotels, are believed to
be infected with HIV. Although more than two million needles are exchanged
annually at Vancouver's needleexchange program, the infection rate among
intravenous drug users climbed from between 1 and 2 per cent in 1990 to 25
per cent in 1995 and is now reported to be approaching 50 per cent.

The huge increase is attributed to a change in habits among drug users.
Researchers have said that addicts switched from heroin, which they inject
two or three times a day, to cocaine, which they inject up to 20 times a
day. An increase in injections has led to more sharing and reusing of dirty
needles.

Mr. Owen began to focus on the city's drug problem in response to pressure
to deal with an increase in breakins and thefts in the city's middleclass
neighbourhoods. Property crime has increased by 66 per cent since last
year, according to police statistics.

Drug or alcohol abuse play a role in most crimes, Mr. Owen has said.
"Family violence, sexual abuse, AIDS and the alienation of youth these
are all linked to substance abuse," he stated in a news release announcing
the new measures.

"Child abuse and elderly abuse such as home invasions and other property
crimes are also directly connected to drug abuse and trafficking," he added.

In an interview yesterday, Mr. Owen said Vancouver's crime rate has grown
rapidly as a result of lax immigration laws, soft penalties for drug
dealers imposed by the courts and ineffective laws to deal with prostitution.

He criticized the provincial government for forcing the city to close its
health department to make way for a regional health board and for
discharging mentally ill patients from a local hospital without providing
adequate housing for them in the city.

In the past, Mr. Owen has advocated changes to the Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms to enable police to deal more aggressively with
suspected drug dealers. He has also suggested that the provincial
government should invoke the "notwithstanding clause" to limit the
application of Charter rights to people accused of crimes.

Yesterday, Mr. Owen was bothered by the failure of immigration officials to
deport a Chinese man who is now facing a seconddegreemurder charge in
connection with the recent death of a 5 monthold baby.

The deportation order was issued in April of 1996, but Canadian officials
have not yet obtained travel documents from China. "What we're doing is
just not good enough," Mr. Owen said.

And Vancouver citizens are tired of waiting for Ottawa and the provincial
government to make changes, he added. "We have been talking to the federal
and provincial governments for 2 years and no one is reacting," he said.
"Just nothing is happening, and we're tired of it."

As a result, City Hall plans to work with police, the Vancouver school
board, the city's two universities and several business and volunteer
organizations to implement their own measures.

More groups are welcome to join, he added.

The coalition will push for stiffer, longer sentences and larger fines for
convicted drug dealers and for comprehensive drug treatment services. Also,
the police and school board are planning new drugawareness programs, and
the Rotary Club of Vancouver is working with other groups to build a
282unit facility for homeless people.

Community activists welcomed the projects to help addicts and the homeless,
but were less enthusiastic about the shift in policing, which they called a
lawandorder approach to a medical problem.

Mr. Turvey, of the youthactivities group, criticized the coalition for not
including health and social agencies that are currently dealing with the
issues.

Deb Mearns, coordinator of the Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood Safety
Office, questioned the coalition's ability to plan effectively without
those working in the community. "It's a good idea to bring in the private
sector and the city government, but they should have included the
community, too," she said.

Dr. John Blatherwick, the region's medical health officer, said in an
interview the regional board will report on its approach to the city's drug
problems next week. Health board officials were not involved with the
mayor's plans.

But it all helps, he added. "I'm pleased to hear the city is involved in
longterm solutions on the health side."

Copyright (c) 1997, The Globe and Mail Company