Victoria police and the sa国际传媒 Border Services Agency are to be commended for a major drug bust that prevented 6,000 potentially lethal doses of fentanyl from reaching the streets. But law enforcement, no matter how diligent, is not enough to stem the deadly toll from this powerful drug.
In October, border officials told Victoria police that a large shipment of fentanyl was being sent from China to an address in Victoria. Border officials intercepted the package and found it contained 1.45 kilograms of fentanyl with an estimated value of $400,000.
The Victoria police strike-force unit went to the Victoria address listed on the package, and further investigation led them to raid a Saanich apartment where they found a large quantity of drugs, including fentanyl.
That鈥檚 a lot of drugs police kept off the street, and lives were likely saved.
Unfortunately, it鈥檚 a drop in the bucket.
Most illegal fentanyl comes from China, and while the RCMP are working with Chinese officials to crack down on fentanyl and other opioids, lax enforcement there means the flow is not likely to diminish.
Law-enforcement agencies should not give up on the effort to bring traffickers to justice, and we believe those dealers should be regarded as accessories to murder, but it鈥檚 a game of whack-a-mole 鈥� get rid of one and another one will pop up. As long as there are buyers, there will be sellers.
The key is to get rid of the market, and that won鈥檛 be easy. It鈥檚 not enough to say people shouldn鈥檛 take the drug, that to do so is dancing with death. More treatment beds are needed in sa国际传媒, but that, too, is not enough.
Addiction has many roots, including poverty, abuse and mental illness. More support is needed for those who are addicted, as well as those in danger of becoming addicted.
Meanwhile, supervised consumption sites, while they might seem counterintuitive, can help prevent overdose deaths. They can also provide opportunities to assist people in overcoming addictions.
Keep pursuing the drug dealers, but let鈥檚 also look for ways to deprive them of a market.
