Insite opens the door
North America’s only sanctioned safe injection facility was the big news story of 2011. The September 30, 2011 Canadian supreme court decision in favor of the safe injection facility is a crucial victory for evidence-based science and policy over ideology. It is a historic decision for harm reduction advocates that has seemingly opened the door to similar services throughout Canada and possibly into the United States. It took the tenacity of the PHS Community Services Society to make it happen along with the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users.
The court ruling is explained on the PIVOT Legal Society’s blog “The historic Insite decision in a nutshell.” On May 17, 2011 the Director of the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, Donald MacPherson, moderated a packed evening of discussion with legal professionals, medical experts, community activists and supervised injection site users. The evening focused on demystifying the legal battle and making the case for evidence-based drug policy.
Check out the video here. Quebec seems like the next province set to open similar facilities.
A recent report from the Montreal public health department has recommended opening three supervised injection sites and a mobile one in city neighbourhoods where intravenous drug use is rampant.We recently spoke with Cactus Montreal representative Jean-Francois Mary about the impact of the ruling and future of supervised injection facillities in Montreal. You can watch the interview here.
The Omnibus Crime Bill
The Safe Streets and Communities Act passed in parliament with a majority vote of 157 to 127. It now sits in the senate. The conservative government has promised to push it into law by March 16, 2012, the 100th sitting day of the 41st Parliament.
This Crime Bill moves Canada in the wrong direction. If passed, the bill will introduce mandatory minimum sentences for low-level drug crimes, further criminalizing individuals who use drugs and creating an enormous additional financial burden on society. This kind of sentencing practice has been a complete failure in the last 20 years in the United States as part of their “war on drugs.” It has deeply marginalized vulnerable citizens and done nothing to deter organized drug-related crime.
Bill C-10 flies in the face of all of the evidence. The CDPC is not against legislation that attempts to address crime in our communities, but it must be based on a body of evidence that proves it can achieve its goals. Bill C-10 fails this test. Quebec’s justice minister has called the crime bill an inappropriate tough on democracy measure. Newfoundland’s Justice Minister has spoken out as well, saying the new crime bill will be completely unaffordable and has not been properly researched. Grand Chief Derik Nepinak of Manitoba’s Assembly of Chiefs, called a national press conference to say that the bill’s mandatory sentences would continue the legacy of residential schools, and must be opposed. Join us in 2012 as we work together withcoalition members and LeadNow and Avaaz to write next chapter.
Canadian Medical Cannabis Regulation
In April 2011 the Ontario Superior Court Justice Donald Taliano struck down the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations, ruling that ailing people are often unable to access medical marijuana through appropriate means and must find alternative illegal sources, risking arrest and criminal charges. He concluded that unless the government addresses the legislative flaws within three months, the criminal law would be struck down.
The Conservative government is appealing the ruling. In June 2011 the Government of Canada announced it is considering improvements to the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations program to reduce the risk of abuse and exploitation by criminal elements.
The proposed changes include:
- Eliminating personal production licenses, ending legal personal home marijuana cultivation altogether
- Eliminating patient identification cards, putting patients at risk of police action
- Building a system of private for-profit marijuana growers and sellers who would provide to all patients in Canada, severely limiting the range of quality strains of medicine
- Continuing the unconstitutional “doctors as gatekeepers” system
- Failing to address the many compassion clubs and medical marijuana dispensaries currently open across Canada
“The government proposes to remove Health Canada as the ultimate arbiter in approving or rejecting applications to possess marijuana for medical use, and instead leave it up to doctors to decide whether their patients should be licensed to do so. While this might appear to be a liberalization, it is widely being rejected by doctors, who rightly assert that a responsibility that should pertain to Health Canada is being off-loaded on them without appropriate research having been conducted on the medicinal properties of marijuana.”
Many members of the CDPC are calling for alternative approaches to medical and broader cannabis related policies. The Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries is a coalition partner working towards a regulated community-based approach to medical cannabis access and supporting medical cannabis dispensaries to provide the highest quality of patient care. Check out their campaign.
Stop the Violence BC is a coalition of academics, past/present members of law enforcement, and the general public concerned about the links between cannabis prohibition in BC and the growth of organized crime and related violence in the province. Calling for a regulated approach Stop the Violence makes a strong case for policy reform in BC and provides a solid foundation of public support and evidence for implementing change.
Also in 2012-Keep an eye out for the first CDPC policy paper out soon!
Right now, get involved in spreading the Health Officers Council of BC (HOC) recently released discussion paper, Public Health Perspectives for Regulating Psychoactive Substances – What we can do about alcohol, tobacco and other drugs.
Together with the HOC we hope to stimulate public and governmental discussions, development of policy proposals, and action on public health oriented regulation of psychoactive substances. Subsequent to receipt of letters of support and feedback over the next few months the HOC will be submitting this paper, with necessary addenda or changes, to governments for their response and action. Send us your message of support, sign up to the coalition, and write to the HOC directly.
Dr. Paul Hasselback, Chair
3rd Floor, 6475 Metral Drive
Nanaimo, BC V9T 2L9
Fax: 250-755-3372
