Skabar lobbying for remand centre

AMHERST – Brian Skabar is well aware of how people in this part of Nova Scotia feel about the loss of the area’s lone correctional centre and he’s working to try to minimize the impact.

The Cumberland North MLA said he is as disappointed as everyone about his government’s decision to build one new correctional centre to replace aging jails in Amherst and Antigonish, and he’s working with Justice Minister Ross Landry to put something in place that will handle the immediate demands of the system.
“I have spoken to the minister about concerns with the maintenance of the justice system in the Amherst area after the jail is gone and have been given every assurance that arrangements will be in place,” Skabar said Wednesday.
“There should be a press release from the minister’s office soon on that.”
Skabar said a remand centre is something he is hoping the province will commit to so that offenders don’t have to be shuttled across northern Nova Scotia between court appearances.
Soon after the province announced its plan to build a new jail somewhere between Truro and Antigonish, the local legal community and law enforcement agencies expressed concern with the administration of justice if offenders had to be shipped back and forth to another part of the province.
Skabar has made those concerns known to the justice minister and feels a remand centre in the area would alleviate those problems.
Since Landry’s decision, Skabar has taken a lot of heat from his constituents. Skabar understands the frustration, adding that as much as he understands the decision, it hasn’t made it easier to accept.
The MLA said that during the spring election campaign, he advocated making the jail decision on the best business case. At that time, he figured the plan was to build two jails and that Amherst would probably be an economical choice over the previous government’s proposed jail in Springhill.
But now that the province’s financial picture was clarified, he understands the decision to build one jail instead of two. That doesn’t mean he has to like it.
“Do I support the government's position on this matter? I do. Do I like it? No,” Skabar said.
“As someone from Amherst and the Cumberland North MLA, I don’t like the decision, but as a Nova Scotian I have to support saving over $5 million to build it and saving over $1 million a year in operating it.”
Skabar, who has yet to see the business plan on which the decision was based, said he has had several discussions with Amherst Mayor Robert Small, but could not attend a news conference held last week by area municipal leaders because he was not notified about it until the night before.
dcole@amherstdaily.com

Source:amherstdaily.com/i

Shot in the arm for the consumer lobby

It was Monday afternoon and Jiraporn Limpananont was enjoying every minute of it as she and other activists packed a Bangkok hotel room to discuss the aftermath of their campaign work against a trade conference of the tobacco industry.




A good thing about my life after retirement is that now I have free time to work during the day," said the 62-year-old former lecturer on pharmacy at Chulalongkorn University.

During her academic years, she sacrificed her evenings and weekends to pursue her other passion - campaigning for consumer rights.

"I didn't want to be an academic or researcher who stands aloof from the people,"she said.

"It would be such a waste if I was to produce several research papers, without also using them to drive for social changes," she said.

Her realisation about the importance of advocating for consumers started about three decades ago when she was part of the Drug Study Group, a group of lecturers and college students who worked in rural areas to protect people against misleading advertisements and other forms of exploitation by drug companies.

In the late 1980s, the drug industry pushed the United States government to pressure Thailand into amending its Drug Patent Act 1979.

It wanted the period of patent protection for essential drugs extended from 15 years to 20 years. "At the time, I didn't understand the technical aspects of this issue, so I started to research and study it," she said.

Since then, she has turned her research on intellectual property rights and drug patents into a campaign tool against the drug industry, to improve and protect access to drugs by consumers.

The legal amendment made some drugs, especially those taken by people living with HIV/Aids, more expensive because it prohibited local production, she said.

The US effort was successful in 1992 but Ms Jiraporn has never wavered in her determination to stand up for consumers.

She and the civil group celebrated a groundbreaking victory in 2007 when the coup-appointed government decided to use compulsory licensing to overrule patents on four drugs, for treating cancer, heart disease and Aids. Ms Jiraporn is now chairwoman of the Foundation for Consumers, a non-profit organisation.

"I would not do other types of campaigning such as lobbying politicians for policy change because I know that they wouldn't spend more than 15 minutes listening to me," she said.

"They wouldn't allow me to go into detail about issues. So I believe my other colleagues can do this better than me," she added.

Ms Jiraporn was among activists and academics who protested at the international tobacco industry conference in Bangkok two weeks ago.

"We were successful to a certain extent.

"Our pressure resulted in them failing to fullfil their sales targets. They were forced to reduce their trade booths," she said.

An advertiser who organised the tobacco exhibition was also fined 20,000 baht for allowing banners carrying images of cigarette brands and logos at the event.

A 1992 law prohibits displays of brands of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Health Ministry staff spotted the violation on an inspection of the exhibition.

The unnamed company pleaded guilty in court.

Ms Jiraporn said industries take advantage of consumers by failing to provide them with important information.

She keeps an eye on the drugs, telecom and tobacco industries, because they are powerful and influential.

"Products offered by these industries usually involve technologies that laymen find hard to understand, which paves ways for exploitation by the companies," she said.

Ms Jiraporn is also chairwoman of the Southeast Asian Consumer Council.

"It's important to work with consumer networks and academics in other countries to share lessons learned," she said.

"This will help make our campaign stronger at the regional level as industries become more multi-national."

But consumers must also learn to stand up for their rights, she said.

Jiraporn Limpananont vows to continue her campaign to protect consumer rights after her retirement as a lecturer at Chulalongkorn University’s faculty of pharmacy. CHANAT KATANYU







"Thais tend to be compromising. As consumers, we may shrink from confronting businesses, even retail outlets, when we find themselves being ripped off," she said.

The Foundation for Consumers is planning changes as it needs to gain strength in specific technical areas which could help protect consumers, she added.

A single woman, she has no plan to retire from activism.

"I enjoy working more than ever before," she said.

"I may stop working once I find someone who can replace me."

Contact Buyer Beware: consumers@bangkokpost.co.th

Source:bangkokpost.com