MICHAEL MAGNUSSON
PENTICTON – As a leading advocate for local businesses and after observing a record-setting year of overdose deaths in 2023 in the same year that British Columbia implemented the decriminalization of public drug use, the Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce strongly supports the recriminalization of public drug use as announced by the provincial government.
“We are encouraged to see that Police will once again have the tools to ask people to move along if they’re consuming narcotics in public spaces,” announces Jordan Knox, President of the Chamber of Commerce. “And should they choose not to cooperate with that request, Police will once again be able to seize those drugs and take appropriate measures to keep our sidewalks, parks, commercial properties, and beaches free from illicit drug use and discarded paraphernalia.”
The intent of decriminalization was to decrease the number of overdose deaths and reduce the stigma associated with addiction, however, the reality was much different than what advocates and some politicians predicted. Residents and business owners and managers alike grew more-and-more concerned with the threats posed by open drug use to the general public, including abandoned or broken paraphernalia, unpredictable and sometimes alarming behaviour, as well as second-hand exposure to illicit substances.
With Premier Eby now asking the Federal Government to amend the pilot project that would remove the ability to consume illicit substances in public places, the Chamber has heard opposing concerns raised by harm reduction groups who state that those living on the street and suffering from addiction will automatically be considered a criminal, but the Chamber does not believe that to be the case.
“We know that arrests stemming from simple possession were almost non-existent even before this pilot project,” states Michael Magnusson, the Chamber’s Executive Director. “We also know that the RCMP are not evaluated or compensated on the number of arrests they make, so it is highly doubtful that an individual who is in possession of a small amount of drugs for personal use or is caught actively consuming them outdoors would be arrested if they are cooperative with Police.” In fact, through regular dialogue with local RCMP leaders and not-for-profit housing providers, the Chamber knows that our RCMP Members have worked hard on establishing rapport with many of those experiencing homelessness and/or addiction in Penticton, and their goal has always been to steer these individuals towards treatment and support, not incarceration and punishment.
With the public consumption aspect of decriminalization all but rescinded, the Penticton Chamber is to renew its call for the provincial government to adopt and adequately fund each of the four pillars approach, which includes a focus not only on harm reduction, but also prevention, treatment, and enforcement. This model has seen significant success in places like Sydney Australia whose population is larger than B.C’s, as well as many other cities throughout the world.
“Embracing and investing in all four pillars is the only way our communities are going to get through this toxic drug crisis,” concludes Magnusson, “because making anyone wait months to get into treatment, or sending someone who just completed a treatment program back into low-barrier (wet) housing because no other spaces are available, is not and will never be a recipe for success.”
Michael Magnusson is the Chamber’s Executive Director of the Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce