THE WAR ON DRUGS HAS FAILED

It has become clear that the war on drugs has failed to undercut the
violence and substance abuse tied to the illegal drug trade that
plagues our cities. While the World Health Organization (WHO) supports
harm reduction strategies, the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs meets
in Vienna to discuss adopting the approach and the U.S. appoints a
prevention-focused national drug policy chair, our government is
looking the other way and refusing to listen to science on the issue
of drug policy. The government has kept programs like Vancouver's
INsite and drug treatment courts across the country on a shoestring,
constantly threatening to cut funding, which would kill the programs.
Additionally, last summer, former health minister Tony Clement
embarrassed himself at an international WHO meeting where he spoke out
against WHO support for the strategy, calling harm reduction "a sham".
If we are serious about addressing gang violence and the illegal drug
trade here, we must make the connection between violence, the illegal
trade and the demand for these substances. The answer is to address
substance abuse as a medical problem and cut the link between users
and organized crime through harm reduction. The war on drugs has not
reduced crime, harm or drug use. Canada should be a leader at the
international meeting in Vienna and come out clearly in support of
harm reduction.

Dr. Keith Martin, MP

Esquimalt - Juan de Fuca

(Well obviously, yeah, but the feds just don't get it.)