GIVE INMATES CLEAN SYRINGES, SAYS HIV/AIDS ADVOCACY
GROUP

The rate of HIV/AIDS infection among prison inmates is anywhere from
10 to 20 times higher than the general population - a problem that
could be easily curbed, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network says.

The answer lies in giving inmates access to clean syringes and medical
supplies - something that is a basic medical necessity, the Network
said in a report released Feb. 2.

The report follows another from last year which attempted to showcase
a legal framework for clean needle programs in prison. Distributing
clean needles could be accomplished through several methods, including
a peer-to-peer system amongst prisoners.

Such systems would help combat the current common practices of sharing
a single syringe amongst multiple inmates, or using homemade needles
made out of ear swabs and ballpoint pens.

Though the problem is concentrated in prisons, it is not isolated
there, said Gilles Marchildon, director of communications for the
Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network.

"Many of these prisoners go back to their families and communities
eventually," he said. "So this isn't just a prison health issue, but a
public health issue as well."

Marchildon criticized the federal government for delaying the
implementation of needle programs at prisons.

"We have a government now which prefers to take a 'tough on crime'
stance. But you have to stop and think about what's the best
investment for our money." According to Marchildon, and the report,
similar programs already exist in over 60 prisons in 10 countries,
where "the reports have been very positive."

Public Safety Canada said that providing needles would go against its
stance on drug use in prison. "The government of Canada has a
zero-tolerance policy for drugs in our institutions," the agency said.
"Providing needles for illicit drug use runs counter to that policy.
Illicit drugs in federal prisons compromise the safety and security of
correctional staff as well as our communities."

Correctional Services Canada has published literature in the past
arguing that its policies of increased infectious disease monitoring
and providing free, confidential tests to inmates are helping to
stabilize rates of HIV infection amongst prisoners, which it estimates
between two and eight per cent amongst inmates. Past CSC newsletters
have argued that the CSC already has "one of the most progressive
approaches in the world" to combating infectious diseases.

But Craig Jones, the executive director of the John Howard Society of
Canada, which advocates on behalf on inmates, said current policies
weren't enough.

"When I walk through a prison, I see a lot of informative posters,
but it's a passive, low-level information campaign," he said. "Does it
work? No."

Both Jones and Marchildon suggest that the recommendations are not
likely to be implemented under the current federal government.

"If you look at this through a punitive cast of mind, it's a bad
idea," Jones said. "But if you look at it through the lens of a public
health issue, then you see a really easy, humane and effective way to
arrest the spread of infectious diseases."