Pubdate: Thu, 09 Apr 2015
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Mark Kennedy
Page: B3

Summit of Americas

HARPER'S HARD LINE ON DRUGS DISMISSED BY OTHER LEADERS

OTTAWA - Prime Minister Stephen Harper may find himself at odds with 
some other western hemisphere leaders who want to relax drug laws for 
offences such as marijuana use and provide alternatives to jail time.

Harper flies Friday to Panama for the two-day Summit of the Americas, 
where more than 30 leaders from the Organization of American States 
(OAS) will gather.

There has been a growing movement among some of those nations - 
particularly those in South America devastated by violence from drug 
cartels - to find new ways to tackle the drug problem.

At the past summit, in Colombia in 2012, Harper resisted calls to 
consider decriminalization of some drugs.

"We are opposed to decriminalization because dangerous and addictive 
drugs tear families apart, promote criminal behaviour and destroy 
lives," Rob Nicol, the prime minister's director of communications, 
said in a written statement Wednesday.

He said the Conservative government's "comprehensive strategy" to 
fight drug use in Canada is "working" - pointing to a reduction of 30 
per cent in self-reported marijuana use by youths since 2008.

Nicol said Canada has made a solid contribution to combating drug 
trafficking in the Americas, noting that since 2009 the country has 
invested $28 million to Caribbean security programs.

But the OAS is seized with the issue. It says there is "consensus" on 
four points: the drug problem needs to be attacked from a "public 
health perspective"; reforms must be enacted to "provide alternatives 
to incarceration"; organized crime is a "major player" in the 
problem; and it's essential to strengthen judicial and law-and-order 
institutions in some countries.

OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza says the "war on drugs" 
hasn't worked and that it is time to have a debate about solutions 
"without fear of breaking taboos."

In a recent report, he urged OAS countries to work collectively, and 
should "review the severity of sentences" for drug users.

"The quest for alternatives to incarceration for drug-dependent 
offenders or for individuals who commit minor offences in the drug 
trafficking chain is another pressing need today," he wrote.

"Clearly, it takes time to change laws and policies and we never 
expected change overnight. Forty years of the ' war on drugs' have 
spawned a host of provisions, entrenched bureaucracies, and 
convictions that do not just go away. For that reason, it is 
unreasonable to expect that the changes needed will come about at the 
same time, in all countries, and promptly."

With a federal election set for Oct. 19, Harper is aware drug policy 
will be an issue on the campaign trail.

The government has been considering a plan to let police issue 
tickets to people caught with small amounts of marijuana, instead of 
laying criminal charges. The Tories say if they move ahead with these 
changes, it would not decriminalize or legalize marijuana possession 
in Canada, but rather, give police a new tool to enforce drug laws.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom