Permanent Injecting Room Just The Tip of the Needle

Written by asp staff

Thursday, 16 September 2010 20:44

Making the Kings Cross injecting centre in Sydney a permanent fixture was only a tentative small step to take in modernising Australia’s drug laws. The Australian Sex Party laid out a 10 point plan to bring safety and human rights issues into line with modern European countries at a drug seminar at Macquarie University last night. The seminar was organised by Students for Responsible Drug Use.

Sex Party President Fiona Patten said that while NSW Premier Kristina Keneally should be congratulated on her moves on the Kings Cross injecting centre, she would still send in uniformed police with dogs to monitor possession of small amounts of drugs at Macquarie University’s Conception Day, this Friday. “This sends contradictory and confusing messages to young people and shows the schizophrenic nature of drug policy within the major parties”, she said. “The Prime Minister and a host of respectable public figures have all publicly admitted to smoking marihuana but the NSW Premier feels compelled to send in armed police and sniffer dogs to make sure university students don’t have a joint in their back pocket”.

She said that state and federal governments should immediately move to decriminalise personal possession and usage of all drugs including heroin, crack, cocaine and cannabis. “Suicide is no longer a crime in Australia and nor is attempted suicide. Yet the relatively minor harms to an individual from possessing drugs still see people going to jail”, she said. “I would advise anyone caught with small amounts of drugs to tell police they were contemplating suicide as a means of getting around the charges and also showing up the stupidity of current laws.”

She said that considering the sharp rise in HIV rates in Victoria recently, Premier John Brumby’s refusal to allow mobile injecting rooms was grossly irresponsible and that the Sex Party would campaign hard on this issue in the Victorian State election.

Ms Patten said the Sex Party also wanted to see:

· drug policy shifted from the criminal justice portfolio to the health one

· legalised cannabis for medical applications

· laboratory controlled drug testing available at rock concerts

· subsidised drug testing kits available through pharmacies

· legalised heroin for registered and habitual users

· drug trafficking to remain a criminal offence

· supply of illegal drugs to a minor to remain criminal offence

She said that current drug policy in Australia was predicated on Nancy Reagan and Fred Nile morality and was totally disconnected from Australian youth culture. “Australian politicians are frightened of dealing with drug problems because many of them struggle with prescription drug and alcohol problems themselves.”