No plans to reintroduce Bill 22 in upcoming legislative session says Minister of Mental Health and Addictions

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Malcolmson to focus on building up systems of care

The Minister of Mental Health and Addictions says she has no intention of reintroducing a controversial bill that would allow young people to be involuntarily admitted to hospital for treatment after a drug overdose. Bill 22 drew criticism from civil liberties groups, BC's Representative for Children and Youth and the provincial coroner. They feared young people would not seek medical help if they thought they would be forced into rehab. The province withdrew the bill, and the Premier said one reason he called the election was because the Green Party would not support it. However, Sheila Malcolmson says she will not re-introduce Bill 22 in the upcoming session of the legislature, which begins on March the 1st.

"I've got a lot of work to do with indigenous leadership, with all kinds of partners and stakeholders across the province on what we learned from the Bill 22 discussions that happened last summer, but honestly, my priority is on building up the system of care and particularly getting at the interventions we can do outside of hospital, to prevent things from building to a crisis."

However, Malcolmson is not ruling out reintroducing a revised Bill 22 during her government's 4-year term.

Filmmaker hopes film will give youths tools to recognize exploitation

A Cowichan Valley production company is hoping to shine a light on Victoria's dirty little secret. Empress Avenue Media is in the midst of filming “Tug of War” which explores in disturbing detail the impact sexual exploitation of youth has on victims and their families in the region and beyond. The documentary's director, Mia Golden is also a counsellor with the Mobile Youth Services Team in Victoria.

"People don't really know how extensive the youth exploitation situation is within our communities. They didn't realize to what extent and that it is happening in all our backyards and that there are children that they know that are being exploited without their knowledge."—Mia Golden, Counsellor with Mobile Youth Services.

Golden says the internet has made that exploitation so much easier for pedophiles, who she says spend their days online, grooming and exploiting hundreds of kids at once. She says others are exploited through escort agencies and sex trafficking rings. And she says the dysfunctional nature of internet porn teaches kids that violent sex is normal. Golden says no family and no community is immune. Her documentary is set to debut at middle schools in Victoria this spring. She's hoping it will give young people the tools to recognize what's not normal and to recognize when they're being exploited. She also hopes it will help parents to prevent their children from becoming victims and to know how to seek help if they do.

Bilingual signs in Duncan

The city of Duncan is going bilingual. Its council has approved a plan by the local Business Improvement Association to erect street signs in English and Hul'q'umi'num the traditional language of the Cowichan Tribes. Some of the names are translations while others hold significance in Cowichan Tribes' culture. For example, Third Street is named Smuyuqw’a which means ladybug and was chosen for its significance in Cowichan storytelling. Seven streets will include names in the Hul'q'umi'num language.