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Zero tolerance to drugs not working: People ‘pre-
load’ pills to avoid police at festivals, SA MP says
Leah Maclennan,
ABC News
(9/12/15)
zero-tolerance approach to
drugs is not working and harm
minimisation techniques are
needed, according to a South
Australian Labor MP.
Following the deaths of two young
people at Stereosonic music festivals in
Australia recently, including one in
Adelaide, Labor Member for Fisher
Nat Cook has called for changes in the
state’s approach to drug policing. She
said having police sniffer dogs and
police outside music festivals was
forcing young people to make
dangerous decisions.
Ms Cook has a focus on youth and
substance abuse issues, after her son
Sam Davis was killed in a one-punch
attack. ‘I have been on the ground and I
have talked to young people and the
young people I’ve spoken to have told
me that they pre-load multiple pills
because they don’t want to get caught
by drug dogs,’ Ms Cook said.
‘I think evidence from the weekend
shows that only a few dozen pills were
detected outside of the festival and then
evidence from within the festival tells
us that hundreds, even thousands, of
pills made it into that festival.’
Opposition Liberal Leader Steven
Marshall said Ms Cook’s comments
were a massive departure from Labor
Party policy. ‘Extraordinary comments
from the Member for Fisher who is
essentially having a go at the way that
police go about tackling drugs in South
Australia,’ Mr Marshall said.
‘I think the Government needs to come
out today and rebuke her comments.’
Health Minister Jack Snelling said he
supported Ms Cook, but when
questioned would not repeat her views.
‘I don’t think there’s any doubt Nat
Cook has worked incredibly hard with
our young people and trying to protect
our young people,’ Mr Snelling said.
‘All I’d say is I think the police are
doing a very difficult job in very
difficult circumstances.’
Ms Cook said she did not believe she
was departing from Labor Party policy.
‘I believe what I’m doing is I’m
bringing a message to the party room
from the community that young people
are telling me they’re still taking drugs,
they’re still getting drugs into
festivals,’ she said.
Despite advocating a harm
minimisation approach, Ms Cook said
she did not support pill testing at
festivals. ‘I’d like to see good evidence
to say that it actually does prevent
death but what I will say is that I’m
nervous about it from a personal point
of view, my opinion is that we can’t
guarantee that everything is going to
get detected at that point,’ she said.
That is a position the Health Minister
does agree with. ‘These kind of pills
are very hard to detect and I think it’s a
very, very important that our message
to young people,’ Mr Snelling said.
‘Our message to society is very clear
and unambiguous: illicit drug taking is
inherently dangerous.’
A