Festivals shouldn’t be fatal.
A young life lost and 12 hospitalisations at festivals this year already. How many more tragedies before Premier Jacinta Allan does something?
Pill testing saves lives. We need it up and running in Victoria ASAP. That’s why the Unharm community is pushing Premier Allan to act.
Will you add your voice to the petition calling on Jacinta Allan to set up pill testing? Sign now 👇
About the campaign
The Unharm Community is a group of thousands of people fighting for better drug laws. We’re working together to demand that Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan stops playing political games with people’s lives.
On the 10th of March, 23-year-old Antony Maugeri died of a suspected overdose at Pitch music festival. This follows a horror spate of festival overdoses in January, when 10 people were hospitalised in a single day.
Since then, Premier Allan has been under a lot of pressure to launch pill testing. But she’s stalling, afraid of backlash from media sensationalists and shock-jocks.
If we’re going to get her over the line, we need to make so much noise that we can’t be ignored.
Drug Checking FAQs
- What is drug checking aka pill testing, and how does it work?
Drug checking is a harm reduction service that helps people who are planning on taking drugs know what they’re really taking. People can bring their drugs to be tested and talk to an expert about the strength and purity of what they’ve got, as well as get advice on how best to manage the risks
- Are drug checking and pill testing the same thing?
In a word, yes. Pill testing is the more commonly used name, but it implies that we can only test pills. We know that drugs come in many other forms and drug checking can test all of them for strength and purity
- Why is drug checking important?
It empowers people who are planning on taking drugs to make informed decisions to manage their own wellbeing. It also gives people access to expert health advice about taking drugs which can be very hard to access otherwise. This helps to reduce the chance of overdose deaths. Plus, it allows everyone to have a better understanding of what’s in drugs circulating in the community, meaning we can get more timely warnings when there’s bad batches floating around.
- Where has drug checking been successful?
Drug checking operates globally, including in nearly 30 countries. From New Zealand, to the UK, to the US, drug checking has been helping people stay safe for 30 years. It’s been running in Canberra for over a year, and will be helping people in Queensland by the end of the year. It’s endorsed by health professionals and has a proven track record.
- Is drug checking only for festivals?
While festivals are a focus because they’re places where lots of people will be taking drugs, often in hot, exposed conditions, we know that people also take drugs in a range of other settings. So we want the government to set up fixed site drug checking services for people to be able to get their drugs checked at any point.
- Does drug checking encourage drug use?
No, people are already taking drugs. Drug checking provides information for harm reduction, not endorsement. It’s about making informed choices and keeping people safe.
- How can I be sure drug checking is accurate?
The testing is conducted by expert chemists and health professionals to ensure precision, providing you with reliable results. Drug checking already operates in 28+ countries around the world and technology used has been validated through rigorous field testing.