British Columbia decriminalizes carrying 2.5 gram of hard drugs
One of Canada’s largest provinces is pressing forward with a plan to decriminalise many dangerous narcotics.
The BBC stated that British Columbians over 18 can carry 2.5 grammes of substances like cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and morphine starting Tuesday.
The government allowed British Columbia to test the proposal for three years, during which anyone carrying less than 2.5 grammes of illicit substances will not be detained, prosecuted, or seized.
Instead, drug carriers will receive health and social assistance information.
“Decriminalizing people who use drugs breaks down the fear and shame associated with substance use and ensures they feel safer reaching out for life-saving supports,” said British Columbia minister for mental health and addictions Jennifer Whiteside.
The federal minister of mental health and addictions, Carolyn Bennett, called it “a monumental shift in drug policy that favours fostering trusting and supportive relationships in health and social services over further criminalization”.
CBC said that advocates for the idea think it would address a surge in overdose fatalities that has killed 10,000 people in British Columbia since 2016, when the nation designated drug-related deaths a public health emergency.
The plan’s critics in Canada argue 2.5 grams is too low and won’t affect heavy drug users.
“Decriminalization, to my mind, would be if you have a substance for personal use, then it’s for personal use, and the police should not have a role to play in that. … What you decide to use for your personal needs is your choice,” CBC quoted British Columbia chief coroner Lisa Lapointe.
“Making drug use easier for them is kind of like palliative care,” said Chuck Doucette, president of the Drug Prevention Network of Canada, who opposes decriminalisation.
Others have noted that a similar proposal in Oregon introduced two years ago has failed and that most overdose deaths in British Columbia occur in city centres where drugs have already been decriminalised, National Post said.