Pubdate: Thu, 29 Apr 1999 Source: Illawarra Mercury (Australia) Copyright: Illawarra Newspapers Contact: http://mercury.illnews.com.au/ CORNER STORES A BETTER SPOT FOR DRUG SALES One of Australia's top prosecutors would rather see marijuana sold in corner shops than by criminals on the streets. South Australian Director of Public Prosecutions Paul Rofe said yesterday young people were exposed to criminals as a result of current cannabis laws, which also meant there was no price or quality control over the drug. "I'd much rather see cannabis sold in the corner shops with the usual restrictions as to sale to minors and health warnings that we have with tobacco than the way it's sold at the moment," he said. Speaking at the Australasian Conference on Drugs Strategy, he said people should consider government-controlled supply and distribution of drugs such as marijuana and heroin, as current attempts to combat the drugs crisis did not work. Questions needed to be asked about whether enough was known about the effects of cannabis and, if it was found to be no more harmful than tobacco and alcohol, government supply and distribution should be considered. "We don't appear to be winning the war," he said. "The most successful inroads we've made so far have been education in health with tobacco." Also yesterday, a former police officer said teenagers would be more likely to reject drugs at dance parties if they were better educated about why people used drugs. Gary Fliegner, who now heads a Melbourne-based security training company, said the "just say no" approach should be replaced by education about social and mental health issues such as depression, which may lead to drug use. "Teach people from an earlier age that going to a psychologist or psychiatrist is just as normal as going to the dentist and that there are alternatives when your brain is unhappy, rather than resorting to the swallowing of a pill," he said. "I really think if we want to get to the root of the problem we have to educate people about their minds at an earlier age. "My biggest point is we have not got a drug problem in this country ... we've got a social problem causing people to use drugs. "The problem is a distinct lack of education. People are going to take the drugs and the problem is if they're not educated as to the effects and how to look after themselves, then there's a problem." - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D