Pubdate: Fri, 05 May 2000
Source: Toronto Sun (CN ON)
Copyright: 2000, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact:  333 King St. E., Toronto, Ontario M5A 3X5 Canada
Fax: (416) 947-3228
Website: http://www.canoe.ca/TorontoSun/
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Author: Jonathan Kingstone

FANTINO INVITES PM TO T.O. RAVE

Asks Chretien To See 'Kids ... High On Drugs'

Toronto Police Chief Julian Fantino has invited Prime Minister Jean 
Chretien to a rave to show him how the drug-filled dances are "threatening 
the very fabric of Canadian life."

Fantino said in his letter he will personally escort Chretien to a rave so 
he can "see kids, most of them under 16, high on drugs, dancing, and quite 
willing to tell the prime minister how safe it is."

Drugs like Ecstasy are putting "Canadian youths at risk and creating a 
health and safety emergency that could easily become an epidemic," Fantino 
said he wrote in his letter.

"There is a national ignorance on the subject of raves," Toronto's top cop 
said. "The government of Canada needs to address the problem and rectify 
this frightening situation."

The chief said he took the "unusual step" of writing Chretien the 
three-page invitation Tuesday to show the prime minister first-hand that a 
national strategy is needed to fight the war on drugs and proliferation of 
guns.

"I think this is a reasonable request and it's a request that comes from 
the heart," Fantino told reporters yesterday.

"The response I'm expecting is that the prime minister himself take this 
issue seriously and attend personally," Fantino said. "I know he is very a 
busy person -- as I am -- but I'm willing to adjust my schedule to 
accommodate his."

The chief said he will travel to Ottawa to hand-deliver another invitation 
if he doesn't get a reply.

"No disrespect to his high office, but any person in a leadership position 
needs to be connected with reality ... the kinds of realities we as a 
community have to deal with," Fantino said yesterday.

ONE GOAL IN MIND

In his letter, Fantino said he explained to Chretien that rave promoters 
have one goal in mind when they post glossy, professionally produced 
pamphlets in schools and malls -- to convince kids that drugs are "cool, 
safe and a must-do."

Last year, there were nine Ecstasy-related deaths in Ontario.

Bringing together thousands of young people under one roof -- with 80% of 
them using drugs -- raves have become a source of huge profits for drug 
dealers, who have "an open-field of impressionable minds," Fantino wrote.

He explained that Ecstasy is easily produced from "recipes" on the Internet 
for pennies a pill, and sold for up to $45. And the partiers will often buy 
two Ecstasy tablets to make it through the 12-hour "marathon of dancing," 
Fantino said.

"With millions of dollars of profits available from our kids, it's easy to 
see why organized criminals have gotten involved in raves."

Two raves held recently on the city-owned Exhibition grounds attracted 
21,000 young partiers. The two all-nighters ended in 47 arrests, 95 
drug-related charges and seizures of Ecstasy, Special K, cocaine, crack, 
hashish and marijuana.

Fantino successfully lobbied to have a third rave planned for Halloween 
night cancelled.
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