WAR ON DRUGS SHOULD INCLUDE TREATMENT

The Harper government has introduced legislation that, if passed,
will impose mandatory minimum prison sentences for serious drug
crimes committed in west central Alberta and everywhere else in Canada.

By putting more drug offenders in jail and keeping them there longer,
the government hopes to make communities safer while deterring young
people from getting involved with illegal drugs in the first place.

"These measures are a proportionate and measured response designed to
disrupt criminal enterprise; drug producers and dealers who threaten
the safety of our communities must face tougher penalties," said
federal justice minister Rob Nicholson.

"Mandatory prison sentences are appropriate for those who commit
serious drug offences threatening our society."

While no one can argue with efforts to help combat the widespread and
growing problem of drug-profit fueled organized crime, any long term
improvements must include more than just tougher penalties. They must
also include efforts to treat the drug addictions that drive much of
the crime in the first place.

The proposed amendments to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
(CDSA) call for special penalties to be imposed when offences are
carried out for organized crime purposes or if they target youth.

Other amendments to the CDSA include the following:

- - A one-year mandatory prison sentence for dealing drugs such as
marijuana, when carried out for organized crime purposes or when a
weapon or violence is involved.

- - A two-year mandatory prison sentence for dealing drugs such as
cocaine, heroin or methamphetamines to youth, or for dealing those
drugs near a school or in an area normally frequented by youth.

- - A two-year mandatory prison sentence for the offence of running a
large marijuana grow operation involving at least 500 plants.

- - Increased maximum penalties for cannabis production from 7 years to
14 years imprisonment.

- - Tougher penalties for trafficking GHB and flunitrazepam, most
commonly known as date-rape drugs.

If this new legislation helps stem the rampant drug violence now
becoming commonplace in Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and in smaller
rural communities then it certainly is welcome news.

Who can argue that anyone who commits "serious drug offences
threatening our society," as Minister Nicholson puts it, should be
severely punished?

However, judging from many recent cases in Red Deer and Didsbury
provincial courts where drugs have been both the root cause and the
immediate driver of offences, it's clear that any workable solutions
will have to take into account both punishment and treatment.

Hopefully, MPs - including area Conservative MPs Blake Richards and
Earl Dreeshen - realize that once these new tougher drug amendments
are passed, there will still be work to be done.