cannabisnews.com: Jamaica's Parliament Set To Debate Marijuana Jamaica's Parliament Set To Debate Marijuana Posted by FoM on February 12, 2002 at 15:08:59 PT Reuters Source: South Florida Sun Sentinel Jamaican lawmakers will debate whether marijuana should be legal for adults to smoke privately in small quantities, the government said.At its weekly meeting Monday, the Jamaican Cabinet forwarded a commission recommendation that marijuana, commonly called ganja, be decriminalized for private, medicinal or religious use by adults, Information Minister Colin Campbell said. Lawmakers will take up the recommendation made in August 2001 by the government-appointed National Commission on Ganja, which said marijuana use should remain illegal for minors and in public places, and that cultivation and exportation of marijuana still be outlawed.Under current law, possession of a small quantity of marijuana, such as one cigarette, is punishable by a small fine or up to 10 days in jail.Smoking marijuana is considered a sacrament by Jamaica's minority Rastafarian religious sect.A joint select committee of the Jamaican parliament will decide whether the law should be changed, government officials said, with no time limit to act.But the move is opposed by the United States, which argues such a plan could hurt drug interdiction efforts.The Caribbean nation of 2.6 million people is a large producer of marijuana and a significant trans-shipment point for cocaine bound for the United States.The U.S. government has worked with Jamaica to destroy marijuana crops and stem exportation. In 2000, Jamaica eradicated more than 1,200 acres of cannabis and seized 55.9 metric tons of marijuana and more than 3,580 pounds of cocaine. Complete Title: Jamaica's Parliament Set To Debate Marijuana StatusSource: South Florida Sun Sentinel (FL)Published: February 12, 2002Copyright: 2002 South Florida Sun-SentinelContact: letters sun-sentinel.comWebsite: http://www.sun-sentinel.comRelated Articles:Panel Urges Legalization of Marijuana in Jamaicahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11005.shtmlForbidden Herb - Is Ganja Bad For Your Health? http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10816.shtmlDecriminalise it, Says Ganja Commission http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10627.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #3 posted by mayan on February 12, 2002 at 17:09:36 PT Please Jamaica... To those in Jamaica; You are in a position to help change this world for the better! Regardless of how insignifigant Jamaica's marijuana laws may seem in the great scheme of the world's affairs, I believe that decriminalizing the sacred herb there will be a MAJOR crack in the dam of prohibition everywhere. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by The GCW on February 12, 2002 at 16:40:22 PT A joint select committee It is the: "and that cultivation and exportation of marijuana still be outlawed", part that is a problem, because it will not allow the growing of a few plants, for personal use. Is that ritht?It should be allowed to be exported in a free world connected to the ocean that have not outlawed it. Right?Connect the dots with those who partake in what our Father has given us. FOR SACRAMENT; FOR FOOD; FOR FUEL; FOR SURVIVAL; FOR SALE.Jamaica, is in the unique position to help the rest of earth, in its opposition, to what America wants, when it is contrary to sane credible Jamaican ethics and cultrure. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by goneposthole on February 12, 2002 at 15:59:36 PT Jamaican government parliament Any chance these guys can replace the buffoons that govern, sorry, I mean rule us?Vote for any Jamaican lawmaker.I want to be a ganja commissioner. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment