Criminalise petrol sniffing, says community worker

A juvenile diversion officer at the Aboriginal community of Docker River in the Northern Territory's far south-west says until petrol sniffing is made illegal the problem will continue.

The Northern Territory Government introduced legislation to Parliament last year banning sniffing but not criminalising it.

That means sniffers will be open to a compulsory treatment order but not prosecution.

Docker River juvenile diversion officer Mark Swindells says traffickers of petrol must be open to prosecution.

"It's a huge problem and until it becomes illegal, until dealers who make huge amounts of money selling a bottle of petrol for $50 to $100 dollars are arrested and taken out of society, then the problem continues," he said.

A spokeswoman for Family and Community Services Minister Marion Scrymgour says anyone who supplies a volatile substance for the purposes of sniffing can already be prosecuted in the Northern Territory's courts.

The spokeswoman says that under the Government's new legislation penalties for such offences will be toughened.

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org
Pubdate: 3rd February 2005
Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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Copyright: 2005 Australian Broadcasting Corporation