Pubdate: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 Source: West Hawaii Today (HI) Contact: 2003 West Hawaii Today Website: http://westhawaiitoday.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/644 Author: Tiffany Edwards, West Hawaii Today Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) Note: To read about the "ice epidemic" in Hawaii, go to http://www.mapinc.org/areas/Hawaii . ICE WARS: DON'T FORGET THE NEIGHBOR ISLANDS HILO - Some East Hawaii residents are skeptical about the state administration's "Hawaii Drug Control Strategy: A New Beginning." Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona gave a presentation Tuesday evening on the administration's initiative before gathering input he said would be used at a September ice (crystal methamphetamine) summit on Oahu. Although about 200 people attended, only a handful offered testimony. Among them was Juvenile Probation Officer Melissa Moniz who stressed she was speaking on behalf of herself not the agency. Moniz spoke of "10 - 12 year olds prostituting for ice" in Hilo who are, in turn, sent to a youth correctional facility on Oahu for 90 days before being released back into the community only to be locked up again within months. Not only did she question the practice of sending Big Island youth offenders off island and away from their families, but also the motives for "everybody (has been) jumping on the bandwagon" since Mayor Harry Kim's declaration of a war on ice. She suggested it was for the state to have control over money handed down from the federal government, and that it would remain on Oahu. Moniz wasn't the only one to make that suggestion. Maxine Kahaulelio, who's leading "Power of Choice, a Community Response to Ice" asked Aiona whether Gov. Linda Lingle's administration will attempt to "take away" $4 million Sen. Daniel Inouye, D - Hawaii, has promised to Hawaii County. "He said we needed to share our money," Kahulelio said. "We're not sharing it. If he thinks that, he's crazy. That's why Honolulu's jumping on the wagon." Hilo Councilman Aaron Chung attended the meeting but did not testify. He said some in the audience - himself included - believe the administration should have left out Lingle's campaign slogan "A New Beginning" in its effort to combat drugs. "What I heard today confirms what I've been reading in the paper - all three groups are working independently from one another," said Chung, referring to the administration, Legislature and county governments. He said it is "crucial" the drug initiative "transcend party lines" in an effort to solve the problem. "If you're going to have a truly collaborative effort, take out the label, 'A New Beginning,' and don't exclude other interested parties," Chung said. "I'm worried about the direction this thing is taking," Chung said. "We run the risk of having the governor introduce a plan, push it through the Legislature, and have them disagree and start fingerpointing and, all the while, the people getting caught in the crossfire are the victims of the drug problem." Also in the audience were a couple of Chung's colleagues on the County Council, Fred Holschuh, of Hamakua, and Bob Jacobson, representing South Kona, Kau and Puna. Jerry Chang and Eric Hamakawa, both democratic state representatives for Hilo districts, and Andy Levin, the executive assistant to the mayor, were also in attendance. Among the politicans, only Holschuh testified at the two and one - half hour meeting. He stressed not only should officials view the ice problem as a public health matter, they also need to look at the economy. "You can't have healthy people come out of recovery and be successful if they don't have jobs," Holschuh said. Lillian Sarsfield said by labeling people "offenders," locking them up and then shipping them to a mainland, the community's labor force is being "fractured." She also questioned the effectiveness of such an initiative if there aren't people in government who are committed to following it through. Having quit as a police dispatch supervisor after 11 years for "ethical reasons," Sarsfield said many people with government jobs care more about retirement plans than the work. She suggested a law be passed requiring all negligent politicians to pay back to their communities a percentage of their retirement money for certain failed initiatives. - --- MAP posted-by: Doc-Hawk