HIV INFECTION RATE WILL RISE UNDER NEW ANTI-DRUG PLAN, CRITICS SAY

Harm Reduction / Tories Take Heavy-Handed Approach To Fighting Drugs

The Tories have declared an American-style war on drugs and are
trying to ditch harm-reduction programs that reduce the spread of HIV
and hepatitis C, said NDP House leader Libby Davies in the Commons on
Mon, Jun 4.

In the 2007 federal budget released in March, the Tories quietly
outlined their new national anti-drug strategy, which includes $22
million to target gangs and illicit drug producers. Although the
full plan has not yet been released, the outline did not mention harm
reduction.

Davies accused the Tories of abandoning harm reduction policy, and
she claimed the Health Minister and RCMP are trying to shut down
Vancouver's safe injection site. The Vancouver program has been
credited for reducing HIV and hepatitis C transmission by reducing
needle-sharing among injection drug users.

"[The anti-drug plan] now reads like a carbon copy of George Bush's
war on drugs -- which has seen drug use rise, along with skyrocketing
social and economic costs of incarceration," she said.

Anti-drug plan is a queer issue

Gay and bisexual youth are at greater risk than straight youth to try
all types of drugs, found a recent study by Vancouver Coastal Health.
Among all adult male AIDS cases reported as of Dec 2005, about 4.7
per cent can be attributed to gay injection drug users, reports the
Public Health Agency Of Canada.

Injection drug related infections have declined since 2003, the same
year that Canada's only safe injection site opened in Vancouver.

The federal government granted the Vancouver injection site a
three-year exemption to federal drug laws. The Tories extended the
exemption until the end of this year, but Davies and others claim
that they will not grant any further extensions.

Money spent to fight drug production a 'waste', critics say

While the budget outlined new money for prevention and treatment,
that amount is small compared to the estimated costs of
injection-drug on the medical system.

A report released by the federal government in 2001 said "the direct
and indirect costs of HIV/AIDS attributed to injection drug use would
be $8.7 billion over a six-year period if trends continued." That
number does not include the costs of treating those with hepatitis C,
which the report says were expected to exceed the HIV/AIDS medical costs.

Meanwhile, the Tories continue to spend more on enforcing Canada's
drug laws -- despite criticism that the heavy-handed approach does not work.

Earlier this year, the BC Centre For Excellence In HIV/AIDS blasted
the federal government for spending millions on enforcing drug laws,
with little to show for it. The group called on the government to put
more money into harm reduction, but the Tories have done just the opposite.

Joanne Csete, the executive director of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal
Network, says the heavy-handed approach "has been proven time and
again to be counter-productive and a tragic waste of public funds."

"The price will be paid for in increased risk of HIV and hepatitis
transmission," she said.