| A Clarification of Sorts |
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By: Kelti Boissonneault Last week an article ran on Bill S-10, a controversial new legislation that is working its way through the House of Commons on minimum sentencing for drug use in Canada. For this original article I was contacted by Sean Desrochers, a representative for the Canadian Students for Drug Policy organization on campus to get their response to Bill S-10 and the hardliner government approach. The article, which focused mainly on the bill in the House of Commons, did not really adequately state what the CSSDP does for students, and for those interested in drug policy in general, so I'd like to take this opportunity to apologize to the CSSDP, Mr. Desrochers (whose name was also misspelt) for inadequately representing them in the article. Below is their clarification of their position on Bill S-10, drug policy in general, and how they help students understand how irresponsible drug policy will affect them. The CSSDP position While CSSDP does not advocate the use of drugs and is not exclusively a pro-cannabis organisation we do believe that prohibition is a failed policy (See my letter to the editor "Sensible Drug Policy?"). Because of the problems which prohibition causes in society, legalisation, taxation and regulation of substances with a relatively small negative impact on society - like cannabis - would be a very sensible policy and one which CSSDP supports. We already have models for this kind of legalisation in both the alcohol and tobacco industries. The prohibition model places drug use within a criminal justice context instead of a public health context. This means that even in the case of drugs with greater negative social impact the policy of prohibition causes more harm than it is intended to mediate. This occurs through drug and gang related violence which stem from the black market created by prohibition, as well as the spread of debilitating diseases like HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C, while preventing addicts from receiving adequate help and heaping stigma on their heads. Therefore the position of CSSDP is to say no to bad drug policy, to "just say no" to drug prohibition. My further apologies to my readers, and I hope to afford my work more attention in the future. -KB. Original article at: http://themeliorist.ca/2011/02/a-clarification-of-sorts/
Jumpsuits and Cuffs For many students, university culture involves dabbling into things they would not otherwise do. We are taught, through our peers and through the stories of the previous generations, that University is a time of experimentation. We are young, in the prime of our lives, and we can take on the world with only our best buds at our back and emerge totally fine. With some of this experimentation comes certain stigmas about the student body. Other generations either look up to us as the "coolest cats" on the planet, or down on us as the irresponsible youth who haven't learned what the real world is quite yet. Some students, more than others, have a good idea about what this world is truly about. We are typically the percentage of the population that keeps an eye on things we are interested in: academia, politics, and world events. We study aspects of the world in hopes that we might one day be the experts of our fields. So when students who keep an eye on politics and the Canadian Government flag something that may be of interest to a wider student population, it's probably time to pay attention. Earlier this year this section published a few articles on Canadian drug policy, and the Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy organization. Now, the CSSDP is in the spotlight again, turning our attention to the Canadian House of Commons, where government MPs are debating and voting on a new law. This law is known as Bill S-10 and was passed by the Senate on December 13, 2010. So what does this bill mean for the drug-experimenting population of the University? Big changes are in the forecast if this bill makes it through the House of Commons, which it may do any day now. Different political parties have been flip-flopping on this matter, trying to determine if such a bill will turn potential voters away. The bill took it's sweet time in the Senate, after all, but it's in the House that it will be made law. Particulars of S-10 The bill itself concerns amendments to the Criminal Code surrounding the production, distribution, and usage of controlled substances. What it means for the public is simply that the courts will now impose mandatory minimum sentencing for crimes involving any illegal or controlled drugs or substances. For those arrested in connection with drug use, already convicted of a previous offense, a subsequent conviction will result in a minimum one year jail term. There are different minimum penalties dependent upon the type of drug, amounts, and particulars of the offense. If minors are involved, there are generally far more consequences to the sentencing. This bill allows the court system to remove the judge's discretion from the sentencing, something representative Sean Desroches from the CSSDP is concerned about. The CSSDP position The Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy organization is a nation-wide organization of students who are concerned with the direction the Canadian Government has taken regarding drug policy, and the stiff penalties that the government is imposing on the populace. Studies have shown that young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 are the largest demographic that experiments with these kinds of substances, meaning that this bill potentially targets our demographic as university and college students. The CSSDP does not advocate (much to popular surprise) the legalization of drugs in our society. Though some members may divulge their personal beliefs that marijuana should be legalized and regulated, the organization focuses instead on prevention, and education in drug culture. Studies have shown that stiffer punishments for drug use, such as Bill S-10 proposes, do more harm than good when it comes to preventing drug usage. The government's approach is a deterrent-based system, where the CSSDP advocates sensible policies to lessen the impact of drugs on our society and culture. What it boils down to If the government ends up passing this Bill, the bill will run for two years before an assessment, including a cost-benefit analysis, is performed in 2013. Opposition to the bill is concerned that in two years, with the amount of minimum sentences imposed for such apparently minor crimes, that the cost of jailing these users will far outweigh the benefits of jail-enforced rehabilitation. Most who oppose the bill reason that other preventative measures such as education about drugs, safe-injection sites, and regulated controls of narcotics are more effective than punitive measures like jail time and permanent criminal records. Keep in mind that a criminal record will restrict your ability to travel internationally, prevent you from getting certain jobs, and ruin your chances for adoption later in life. Is that a risk the average university student wants to take, all for experimenting a little in university with some drugs? Of course, students could avoid the entire situation all together if they just refused to do any drugs in the first place, but for many students already involved in the culture, quitting may be harder than you think. Certainly drug use is illegal in Canada, and there are punishments designed to combat the extended use of illegal substances, but those punishments are currently at the discretion of the judges in our court system. Imposing minimum sentences will take the guess-work out of the courts, and make the system more fair and stable: harder for lawyers to reason around. However, minimum sentences of a year for smoking a joint can be viewed as excessive. Essentially, there are two ways the students of Canada can take this new bill: they can stay silent and allow the bill to pass, or they can talk to their local MPs about their opinions of minimum sentencing for minor crimes such as recreational drug use. In no way does this reporter support drug use in our society, but there have to be better ways to minimize the effect of drug culture on our society without resorting to jail terms, which are more expensive than the average Canadian tax payer really wants to think about. |