OTTAWA ADVISED AGAINST WAGING U.S.-STYLE WAR ON DRUGS

Vancouver On The Right Track, He Says

OTTAWA -- Employing a U.S.-style "war on drugs" will drive up the
prison population and HIV infection rates without curbing drug abuse,
warns UN special envoy Stephen Lewis.

Canada should instead concentrate on the harm-reduction approach
exemplified by Vancouver's safe-injection site, says Lewis.

"I feel that the entire harm-reduction emphasis is a matter of public
health. That's what we should be focused on and that's what the UN is
focused on. Criminalization is often punitive and self-defeating."

Lewis said it is too early to say where the Conservative government
is headed in drug policy, but he hopes it will not follow the example
of the United States.

"The [U.S.] war on drugs has resulted in mandatory minimum sentencing
and that has proven to be unsuccessful," Lewis said.

"The effect of the policy is to make life more difficult for people
who are poor and who are marginalized and who are in minority groups.
You never get the kingpins, you never get the drug lords, you never
get the major pushers."

"What we need is more of what we have in Vancouver, the safer
injecting facility," he said. "I watched it on-site and I've seen the
initial research. The findings are all laudatory.

"It is helpful for drug users and helpful for society at large
because it reduces rates of HIV transmission. It's been on balance a
first-rate undertaking."

The United States is increasingly isolated on the issue of harm
reduction, Lewis said.