Members of the Waterloo Region Drug Action Team (WR DAT) blame political fear mongering for regional council's reluctance to send a letter to the Ford government asking the province to fund and support the Kitchener consumption and treatment services site while a provincial court decides its fate.
Council voted 13-to-1 against a motion from councillor Pam Wolf asking the province to keep the safe consumption site open during an injunction period granted late last month by Ontario Superior Court.
The court-issued injunction allows nine of 10 of the province's supervised consumption sites to remain open until a full court challenge can be heard sometime this summer. All but one of those CTS sites were shuttered April 1 on orders issued last fall through the Community Care and Recovery Act.
Following the court's ruling last month, the province said it will not support the court injunction by funding CTS sites as it transitions to a Homeless and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hub model.
Wolf presented her original motion at the committee level in early April during which it was suggested by councillors and staff the province could look unfavourably on the region if the request is made.
Some feared the province could pull funding to its HART hub, which is already operating in Kitchener.
Wolf said much has changed in the two weeks since that motion was discussed and is adamant a request to fund the CTS shouldn't reflect poorly on the region.
"I'm very angry at the thought that the province would ever try to punish the region and through it some of the most vulnerable citizens because we stand up for what we believe is right for our community," she said. "We are in the middle of a drug poisoning crisis and we require every tool available to control it."
Wolf said her amended motion was drafted in consultation with chief medical officer of health Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang to make it clear the region isn't contravening the province's Community Care and Recovery Act.
She said it also makes clear the region appreciates funding for the HART hub.
Her appeal failed to move fellow councillors, however, and a motion to even consider the amended motion was defeated.
In a letter responding to the decision, members of WR DAT say they strongly suspect regional councillors feared a provincial government, which includes area Progressive Conservative MPPs Michael Harris Jr., Brian Riddell, and Jess Dixon, "would pull funding going to the two area charities implementing
the HART hub if Wolf's motion passed."
“This motion would have been a slam dunk in normal circumstances," wrote the group members, who prefer to remain anonymous. Many have received threats from the community over their support for harm reduction.
"It remains a dark period of time for the rule of law in Ontario, leaving many WR DAT members to wonder if governments can be trusted to respect the judiciary. Or if the judiciary is paying attention to compliance with the court injunction.
"It remains a dismal day for democracy...when dozens and dozens of local delegations - all in support of consumption services - and hundreds of letters and related conversations, all backed by solid evidence, mean so little, even in the face of the certainty of deaths. We are mortified. We are disgusted by a callous and uncaring provincial government who were elected to serve and protect all constituents, not undermine democracy and the rule of law at the expense, literally, of people’s lives."
