Pubdate: Tue, 03 Jun 2008 Source: Peterborough Examiner, The (CN ON) Copyright: 2008 Osprey Media Group Inc. Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/4VLGnvUl Website: http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2616 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?143 (Hepatitis) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?142 (Safe Injecting Rooms) ADDICTS HAVE RIGHT TO SAFE, LEGAL INJECTION SITES Ottawa is wrong to appeal a British Columbia Supreme Court ruling that extended a government-funded safe-injection site for junkies. Instead, it should have done its duty and resolved the case once and for all. Sidestepping the thorny issue of federal-provincial jurisdiction, the court was right to deny Ottawa its request to shut down the Insite program, was right to support extending the pilot project's mandate and was right in saying that the long-term issue must be resolved with laws, not by the courts. Health Minister Tony Clement voiced reasonable objections, saying that Ottawa should not be in the business of injecting junkies with heroin, sending out wrong signals to kids. There is also the sensitive issue of our international commitments to combat drugs. But these questions have been amply answered by research, notably that of Thomas Kerr of the B. C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. In fairly exhaustive surveys, he has found that providing a relatively safe environment for longtime hard-drug users has neither increased the incidence of drug use nor promoted the use of ever-harder drugs. There is no contradiction or hypocrisy between helping junkies and combatting either the trade in illegal drugs or their use. No one can reasonably say that drug trafficking will disappear completely soon. That being the case, those who get hooked need treatment, and Vancouver's pilot program has, by all accounts, done an excellent job of containing the spread of communicable diseases associated with injections from dirty or shared needles, principally AIDS/HIV and Hepatitis C. The court argued that denying care to addicts violates their basic right to life and security. That's sensible. Hardcore addicts have no less right to the best health care than anyone else. Instead of fighting it obstinately every step of the way, Ottawa should amend its laws -and attitude -to enshrine that principle. - --- MAP posted-by: Steve Heath