DRUG SUMMIT

As Mayor Bryan Baptiste and Roy Nishida, the head of the county
administration's anti-drug abuse effort, are in Honolulu attending Lt. Gov.
Duke Aiona's statewide drug summit, the "ice" problem continues to plague
Kaua'i.

A report in today's issue of The Garden Island shows how easy it is to buy drug
paraphernalia at convenience stores on Kaua'i, and word of mouth reports has
the use of "ice" continuing apace on the South Shore and other locations on
Kaua'i.

The statewide drug summit being held at Waikiki follows a round of meetings
called by Aiona in all of Hawai'i's counties. Strong statements are being made
by Gov. Linda Lingle and others at the Honolulu drug summit. However, they will
just be rhetoric if stronger action isn't taken on busting dealers,
interdicting inter-island transport of "ice" to dealers on Kaua'i and other
islands, and a long, hard look is taken into the root causes of why so many are
becoming addicted to this dangerous drug.

The long-term effect of "ice" use is being reflected in what some call an
"under class" that's growing in size in Hawai'i. This group is mired in
hopelessness, and while not all its members are drug users, it is common to
find its members down on life and looking for a way to escape reality.

Watch for reports on what our Mayor and "drug czar" plan to do following the
summit in their fight against Kaua'i's ice problem.