Rally to push for North Richmond safe injecting room

FAMILY and friends of heroin overdose victims will lead a community street rally next month in support of a trial for a safe injecting room in North Richmond.

FAMILY and friends of heroin overdose victims will lead a community street rally next month in support of a trial for a safe injecting room in North Richmond.

They will march along the notorious Victoria St drug strip on August 27 in response to the rising heroin death toll.

March To Save Lives organisers say it has been left to residents to tackle the issue of public drug taking and illicit dealing.

Rally spokeswoman Judy Ryan said it was like “living in a war zone”.

Victoria recorded 190 heroin-related deaths last year — 35 of those were in the two streets off Victoria St, many dying in public.

A heroin drug user injects in a carpark in Richmond. Picture: Jason Edwards

“People are literally dying in the streets. How is that OK?” ​Ms Ryan said.

“With no appetite evident from members of parliament, it has been left to residents to address the high levels of public drug taking; unacceptable rates of overdoses and fatalities; and the associated drug dealing, crime and risk to public health and safety.’’

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Judy Ryan is campaigning for a safe injecting room in North Richmond.

About 70,000 syringes are handed out every week and the City of Yarra has increased the street cleaning rates to sweep more discarded needles from streets, parks and carparks.

The state government has resisted calls for a medically supervised injection room, instead Premier Daniel Andrews has referred the issue

“Drug addiction is complex — with no single solution having the ability to protect our community from its debilitating impacts,’’ a government spokesman said.

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​But supporters of an injection room point to the 16-year success of the Kings Cross centre as a template for a Victorian trial.

Ms Ryan said the problem was a statewide issue.

“People travel daily to North Richmond and Abbotsford from all over Victoria. Regional and local families will be speaking about the losses they have experienced through overdoses at the rally,” she said.

“We are now daring to imagine a future where drug addiction will be treated as a health issue, not a ‘tough on crime’ approach that hasn’t worked.”

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@IanRoyall