Police worried at substance abuse increase

POLICE WORRIED AT SUBSTANCE ABUSE INCREASE

Alice Springs police are concerned at an increasing trend towards substance abuse among juveniles in the town.

Superintendent Trevor Bell says the level of substance abuse was previously seen in remote communities but not Alice Springs.

"It's probably getting to the stage where a lot of the juveniles in town, or I wouldn't say a lot but a number of them, are starting to get involved in substance abuse," he said.

"That is petrol, paints, glue and marijuana and those sorts of things.

"They're starting to get involved in things they shouldn't be and as a result of that they're committing some offences and doing some things they shouldn't be doing."

Meanwhile, the Northern Territory Parliament has heard a debate on the damage petrol sniffing is doing to remote Indigenous communities.

One Labor member of the Select Committee on Substance Abuse says sniffing can only be confronted by making it a crime.

Debating the committee's interim report, the Member for Sanderson, Len Kiely, told Parliament police find they can not intervene when young people are sniffing petrol and can only charge them with offences relating to stealing the fuel or their behaviour while affected by the fumes.

He says the act of sniffing itself must be made an offence.

Mr Kiely says bringing petrol onto communities that have banned it and switched to alternative fuels should also be made a crime.

His speech was applauded by the CLP Member for Araluen, Jodeen Carney, who called it his best in two-and-a-half-years in Parliament.

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org
Pubdate: Wed, 31 Mar 2004
Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Australia Web)
Copyright: 2004 Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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