- It's still time to think twice

The trials have not started yet. In Oslo, which is the most probable place to open such a trial, the police and the municipality have cooperated and succeeded in closing down the open drug scene around the Central Station this summer. For now the situation is calmer than for many years. "It's a paradox then, to open an injecting room here and thus attract drug addicts to gather in the same area. It's still time to think twice", said Ms Kenny, who fears that Norway is the next country to fall prey to the George Soros' global legalisation strategy.

EURAD (Europe Against Drugs)delegates, who met last weekend in Oslo, voiced their concerns at the growing influence of Hungarian born billionaire George Soros in his efforts to liberalise drug use. He attempts through his Open Society, and organisations such as ENCOD, Sensils council and others to persuade policy makers to introduce measures that will ultimately lead to full drug legalisation.

Harm reduction is high on the legalisers agenda said EURAD's President, Ms Grainne Kenny from Ireland. She criticised her own government for allowing a junior minister to visit Germany to inspect injecting rooms there. Injecting Rooms or Shooting Galleries as they are more widely known are contrary to the United Nations Conventions on Narcotics which is signed by almost 200 nations. Furthermore she pointed out, Pope John Paul intervened when an Australian Order of nuns attempted to open injecting rooms there."You cannot fight drugs with drugs" stated John Paul.
Mr Antonio Costa, Executive Director at INCB in Vienna, subsequently wrote to the Irish Minister advising him of his position. The matter was then closed and no injecting rooms have opened. She advised delegates to write to Mr
Costa as she had done in a similar situation. Civil society, she said had a responsibility to protect people from this dangerous path to self destruction. There can be no substitute for best practice in drug treatment. That is a civil right.

Delegates from the Netherlands spoke of their fears for the future of their youth as drug availability and the denial of the Dutch Authorities of the addictive and toxic nature of cannabis whose use is being encouraged in Coffee shops there. EURAD's Dutch members have several times proposed to abolish this specially Dutch invention, and are active in drug education in the country.

Swedish delegates reported that they had just returned from participating in a 24 hour marathon against drugs and in reminding the Swedish Government of its obligations to parents and young people in that country. No drug substitution in place of prevention and drug free treatment programmes said Mrs Katarina Cnattingius, Chairman of FMN Parents Group in Taby, Sweden. Mrs Cnattingius is Vice-Chair of EURAD.

Ms Renee Besseling,who is EURAD's International Secretary and author of "Parents - A Natural Preventive Against Drugs" (The Dutch Experience) introduced BELLA. A new project for EURAD aimed at drug prevention among teenagers in cooperation with WOCAD (Sweden). This project will be available to groups and schools who are engaged in promoting best health and lifestyle practices.

The delegates thanked the Board of the League Against Intoxicants who hosted this years European summit meeting on drug problems, and formally welcomed Mr Knut Reinås, head of the LAI board, and Ms Ane Hammerø, executive leader of Youth Against Drugs, to the EURAD Board. Both organisations have joined EURAD during last year, to contribute to a more active drug policy in Europe, concerning drug prevention as well as addiction treatment and law enforcement.

Please visit also the EURAD web site.