Pubdate: Tue, 08 Mar 2005 Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON) Copyright: 2005 The Ottawa Citizen Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326 Author: Tom Blackwell, National Post Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Rochfort+Bridge (Rochfort Bridge) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/opinion.htm (Opinion) LAX DRUG LAWS CREATE MEXICO OF NORTH U.S.: Canada's Marijuana Policy a Growing Irritant to American Neighbours WASHINGTON - The killings of four RCMP officers in Alberta last week may or may not end up having much to do with the marijuana grow operation the killer maintained. But the incident has still managed to generate fresh American irritation and fear over the growing flood of potent Canadian marijuana into the U.S. As if the two countries needed another irritant, the deaths have only underlined concern among U.S. officials and politicians that Canada's relatively lax treatment of grow-op criminals is fuelling the influx of drugs. There are calls for more agents at the northern frontier, and parallels drawn between Canada and what has traditionally been considered a much more lawless neighbour -- Mexico. The fears were embodied in the headline for a recent front-page New York Times article: Violent New Front in Drug War opens on the Canadian Border. The problem is especially bad in British Columbia, which is showing early signs of becoming a "narco-province" along the lines of some South American countries, charged Representative Mark Soude of Indiana, chair of the congressional sub-committee on criminal justice, drug policy and human resources. "In British Columbia, one of the things they seem to be in a state of denial about is that they have become a huge exporter of this really lethal form of marijuana," he said in an interview. "It's close to getting out of hand ... I feel sorry if four police officers died because of the mistakes of politicians." He acknowledged the marijuana is being traded for cocaine and guns from the U.S., but said the marijuana business is fuelling that exchange. Just a day after the killings in Mayerthorpe, Alta., the State Department coincidentally released its annual report on the illegal drug business around the world. It concluded that Thailand is no longer a major drug-producing country, praised Haiti for the anti-narcotics strides it has made -- and warned that lack of judicial sanctions is leading to a "burgeoning" marijuana sector in Canada, managed by organized crime. "We've tended to view Canada as our front door. And we've certainly come to the point where we don't feel that we can leave the front door unlocked any more," said Chris Sands, an expert on Canada at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "Stories like the one about the officers being murdered and increasing violence associated with this trade are going to only make the Americans think what we usually think about these things -- that we're right and maybe you'll finally realize it." He called the issue another example of the culture clashes that have been erupting between the two nations as their trading relationship draws ever closer, he said. While American police pursue crime aggressively and almost competitively, they perceive Canadian law enforcement as more reactive, or at least hampered by a lack of resources, said Mr. Sands. The Canadian approach to drug enforcement is seen as similar to its more lenient handling of immigration and the terrorism threat, he said. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has taken the Canadian marijuana exports very seriously for some time; now it hopes the message will sink in elsewhere, too, spokesman Marc Raimondi said yesterday. "We do sympathize and mourn the loss of our fellow law-enforcement counterparts up there. But I think that if anything comes out of this, it is the fact that growing and smuggling of marijuana is not a minor offence, it is not a victimless offence. Look at this," he said. "We should hope that all law enforcement and all governments would take drug laws very seriously." Starting with the development of the legendary B.C. bud in British Columbia, the number of marijuana grow operations has exploded in the last decade. Much of that product has flowed across the border into the United States, a fact highlighted in last week's State Department report on world narcotics trends. "We are now working intensively with Canadian authorities to address the increase in the smuggling of Canadian-produced marijuana into the United States," President George W. Bush said in a statement issued with the report. "However, we are concerned the lack of significant judicial sanctions against marijuana producers is resulting in greater involvement in the burgeoning marijuana industry by organized criminal groups." The expanding cross-border marijuana problem has the potential to become the newest policy logjam between the new countries, Mr. Sands said, especially as the federal government moves toward de-criminalizing marijuana. "Here you have a lot of states, a lot of levels of government that are concerned about marijuana, that have passed laws, etc. etc.," he said. "And they're finding that what they're doing is being undermined by the border." The best chance for defusing the tension may come from provinces like Alberta and B.C. taking tougher action against the drug trade, perhaps by replacing the RCMP with new provincial forces, said Mr. Sands. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake