Pill testing facilities should not be implemented or endorsed by music festivals and similar events. The concept of pill testing facilities was introduced to assist takers of illicit drugs, by offering a service where people can have their drugs analysed for dangerous substances or defects. However, the system of pill testing does not resonate at all with our current laws, and many extreme flaws are present which could result in it causing more harm than good. And one of the most important yet dismissed questions- who will fund the facilities; who will willingly subsidise the illegal acts of the minority? By swallowing the mantra that ‘kids are going to take drugs no matter what, so let’s just make it safe for them’, we are entirely surrendering our position in the war against drugs, a defeat that will continue to haunt us. The truth is, there is no safe way to take illicit drugs, and this truth is trampled in our stampede to answer the cries for harm minimisation.
When the topic of who will fund these pill testing facilities arises, arguably the biggest question, pill testing advocates are notably silent. And indeed; who will pay? It is argued, when taxpayers money is suggested, that investing in pill testing facilities is justified by the higher amount we are already paying to support the medical needs of drug takers. However, this is assuming that all injuries will be prevented.. how can that be guaranteed? Who believes that an individual intent on getting high at a music festival would have taken the time to test his drug before he indulged? Although one may intend on visiting the booths in a clear, focused state, while overwhelmed by the eccentric atmosphere of a festival, while most likely intoxicated or potentially already drugged, most will fail to make the correct decision to do so, or have simply forgotten about the booth’s existence. Peer pressure will also be a factor in one’s decision, as groups will have established a sign of ‘chicken-ness’ in association with getting one’s pills tested. On top that, results take upwards of half an hour; will people really have the patience for that wait? Pill testing has only been tested at single events, so none of these large-scale financial problems has been resolved. Even if we no longer need to fund the healthcare of illicit drug users, that is only a small portion of what we must pay for; other costs include crime, productivity losses, and family destruction (which will occur regardless of whether or not the drug is ‘pure’ enough to consume), costing the Australian economy an estimated $8.2 billion each year. With a rise in overall illicit drug users, this figure will only rise. And as a reminder, establishing and running the facilities will be anything but cheap; maintenance, manufacturing and employment costs must all be considered. While drug-related deaths are no less tragic than any others, placing the monetary burden of minimising the effects of the illegal acts of a minority on law-abiding citizens is neither a fair nor sustainable solution. When we pay our taxes, we expect that they will advantage us or at least go to a good cause; what benefit do we gain from assisting criminals? Another option places festival organisers in financial responsibility for the pill testing facilities. This raises very real moral questions, beginning with why the vast majority of festival attendees who do not consume illegal substances should subsidize the acts of the small minority through an increased ticket price; let alone while the acts being subsidized are illegal? It is absolutely unfair to expect anyone to fund another individual’s unlawful actions. Festival organisers are currently under significant financial pressure; many have already been discontinued due to their inability to financially sustain themselves. And finally, the concept of pill testing sends a message which diverts from our desired conceptualisation of illicit drugs, entirely opposing and contradicting what the government has spent millions of dollars to educate us about through schooling and campaigning; do we continue teaching that illegal drugs should never be taken, or do we begin teaching how to identify if your illegal drug should be taken. To link back to the war against drugs, we can continue treating the symptoms of illicit drug taking and absorb these enormous costs each year, or we can completely eradicate illegal drugs and never suffer another drug-related death, or never spend another cent on the issue.
By succumbing to the pleas for pill testing to be endorsed, we have lost the war on drugs. The shade and negativity surrounding illicit drug taking, which we have spent decades creating, all crumbles to the ground the moment we make exceptions. How can we be inconsistent; stating outside that ‘your life will be ruined and you will be arrested if you take this drug’, then stating inside the booth: ‘sure, this drug is safe, feel free to take it.’ As a parent, would you be comforted knowing that the illicit drugs your child are taking will not kill them? Not really. The knowledge that illegal drugs are terrible has been drilled into our minds from the moment we were young. However many do not appreciate this, and still decide to use drugs anyway. For current and future drug users, these tragedies are only harsh reminders of the reality of illicit drugs. That knowledge that the pill in their hand has the potential to kill them is the only barrier preventing them from placing that pill in their mouth. Pill testing forms the assumption that there is a way to take drugs without this underlying threat, therefore breaking down that final barrier and encouraging that final decision of taking the drug to be made. In this war against drugs, drug dealers are the dictators, and pill testing is just what they want. As soon as the common conception of illicit drugs shifts from ‘completely unacceptable’ and ‘extremely dangerous’, to ‘endorsed’ and ‘protected’ in our society, drug dealers are able to more easily influence the buying of their drugs. As deputy premier Troy Grant stated: “What you’re proposing there is a government regime that is asking for taxpayers money to support a drug dealer’s business empire. Pill testing facilities are merely a method of treating the symptoms of drugs in our society, while the disease - the underlying issue - continues to grow. We are compromising our intention; to prevent the consumption of illicit drugs, or to minimise the deaths caused by them. The longer the war wages on, the less chance we have to win it. We cannot surrender in the war against drugs. We must not simply ignore the fact that illicit drug taking will persist, because the fact is; it will.
The nature of pill testing dances between the strings of our legal systems and our perception of what is wrong or right. It’s [pill testing’s] abstraction and obscurity, in combination with loose evaluation, does not conform well with the integrity, age, reliability or familiarity of currently established laws surrounding drugs, and presents many flaws and loopholes. For example, what happens in the scenario in which a substance is tested and assessed to be okay, however once taken, results in adverse effects or even death? Although pill testing is able to be completed in a laboratory setting, what is the guarantee that portable pop-up facilities will provide equally efficacious and reliable results? Who takes the blame- you can bet grieving parents will be out to blame anyone or anything they can, rather than accepting that it was their child who put the pill in their mouth. Another example of where pill testing’s lawfully unsure nature is exposed is when regarding the safety of facilitators. Paul Edmonders stated that “People conducting Canberra’s pill testing trial may face criminal charges.” This is due to the fact that those facilitating the booths could be found guilty of a criminal offence, as pill testing is seen as ‘aiding and abetting’ pill use by encouraging drug use. Mr Edmonds said to protect facilitators from possible prosecution, drug possession for personal use needed to be decriminalised. This is one of many cases where laws and codes must be amended, removed or added in order to compensate for the flaws in pill testing. It will compromise the legal system itself, immediately and inherently supporting illegal activity; and causing instability within our laws. An instance where an aspect of pill testing has been rushed in order to quickly rebut common arguments, is the establishment of the ‘tolerance zone’, a marked area where police will not arrest people for drug crimes. Really? First of all, how is it equitable to suffer arrest and punishment for illegal drug use in all other locations, but be completely ignored in this ‘safe zone’ despite having committed a serious crime? Secondly, how do know that this zone will not be utilised by drug dealers or takers as a way of selling or consuming drugs? For dealers, this area would attract the perfect customers, as you would expect everyone attending the booths to be either current or future drug-users. And since it is stated that police cannot arrest people for drug crimes within the tolerance-zone, it would become the ideal place for the consumption of illicit pills. Numerous flaws and loopholes will surface in court due to the definition of the zone; although it may seem ridiculous what is the judgement if someone is arrested for drug-related reasons, but was standing on the border of the zone? Hypothetical but completely possible and realistic scenarios like these only further demonstrate the way we have trampled over formalities and failed to analyze the harm that pill-testing will cause, in a hastened effort to accomplish ‘harm minimisation’.
Ultimately, although pill testing will initially reduce drug-related injuries, in the long term and through inherit side-effects, it will do more harm to our society than good. It is a flawed concept which does not resonate with our current legal systems, and never will unless drastic measures are taken. That is if pill testing will even be able to withstand the financial pressure and future barriers it will be under on a large scale. The moral behind who and what we are supporting is incorrect, as we are only guaranteeing our defeat in the war against drugs. If we tell our children that illicit drugs should be taken under no circumstances, we must adhere to this; not create circumstances in which they are allowed. Yes, pill testing may minimise the physical harm caused to the one who consumes the drug, but what about their life? What about the lives of their friends and family? There is no safe way to take illicit drugs, because no matter the type, or the purity, or the quantity, harm will be caused, and the only way to stop that is to stop drugs. Full stop.
