cannabisnews.com: Jamaica's Ganja Study


cannabisnews.com: Jamaica's Ganja Study 





Jamaica's Ganja Study 
Posted by CN Staff on August 27, 2002 at 23:19:23 PT
By Pete Brady
Source: Cannabis Culture
National Commission of Ganja reports widespread support for freeing the island's sacred weed. Ganja was brought to the West Indies in the mid-19th century by East Indian laborers who settled in Guyana, Trinidad and Jamaica.In Jamaica, from the 1800's until the early years of the 20th century, ganja was an unregulated herb widely used as medicine, intoxicant, and religious sacrament.
Even though it caused few medical or social problems, Judeo-Christian church groups and Jamaica's white ruling elite convinced legislators to criminalize it in 1913. The country later became a signatory to international anti-marijuana treaties.Prohibition has been a disaster for Jamaica. Tens of thousands of Jamaicans have been harassed, jailed and even killed due to enforcement of ganja laws. Yet, the island's climate, culture, and topography are ideal for ganja cultivation, and Jamaica has become famous for potent outdoor marijuana, reggae music, and herb-infused Rastafarian religion.In 1977, after decades of counterproductive attempts to stop Jamaicans from growing and using marijuana, the government set up an aptly-named "Joint Select Committee" to study ganja and make new policy recommendations.The Committee rejected full legalization only because it did not believe Jamaica could legalize herb and still be in compliance with anti-narcotics treaties, but it unanimously concluded that "there was a substantial case for decriminalizing personal use of ganja."The Committee recommended "no punishment" for personal use of as much as two ounces of ganja by users on private premises. It recommended total legalization of medical marijuana.American aggression The United States government, and church groups, forced the Jamaican government to ignore the 1977 committee's recommendations. US military personnel and equipment, along with US spy agencies like the CIA and DEA, then invaded Jamaica, using Jamaican police and soldiers as proxy warriors waging a scorched earth campaign against the island's burgeoning domestic and export marijuana trade.The US put a naval and aerial blockade around Jamaica during the 1970's and 80's, unsuccessfully seeking to interdict megatons of baled and bricked Jamaican weed, much of which was being offloaded along Florida's coastline.During this period, America provided millions of dollars in funding for the Jamaican government's counter-narcotics efforts. According to the US State Department, America "has provided more counter-narcotics assistance to Jamaica than to any other Caribbean country."US officials have long complained that Jamaicans were making a half-hearted effort to eradicate ganja. They allege that the country is the Caribbean's biggest producer and exporter of ganja and a major transit country for cocaine destined for the US and other international markets.In 1999, the US halved its financial support of Jamaica's anti-marijuana efforts, in part because the Jamaican government used "cutter teams" rather than herbicides and other poisons that the US uses domestically and in places like Colombia.Even while the US was scaling back financial and cultivation-killer support, the DEA, ATF, CIA and other US law enforcers were increasing clandestine operational activities in and around Jamaica. Like citizens in Colombia, Canada, Mexico, Afghanistan, and other countries, Jamaicans believe that the drug war is a way for the US to gain control over the internal affairs of what should be a sovereign nation. Some Jamaicans credibly suspect that US spy agencies and organized crime are smuggling guns and cocaine into Jamaica, in an attempt to destabilize the country and derail its efforts to legalize ganja.Although direct US involvement in eradication campaigns has dwindled, US spy planes continue to conduct aerial surveys to precisely identify and target areas of cannabis cultivation; they also target boats traveling to and from Jamaica and throughout the Caribbean.Study buddy In 1999, Jamaican Senator Trevor Munroe told Cannabis Culture he was pushing legislation to set up a "National Commission of Ganja" Jamaican - ganja journey. In November 2000, Munroe's national Commission officially commenced a nine-month cannabis study.The Commission was chaired by the dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of the West Indies, Professor Barry Chevannes.Chevannes was a lauded member of the research staff for an earlier Jamaican ganja study, conducted by Vera Rubin and Lambros Comitas on behalf of the US National Institute of Mental Health in the early 1970's. That pioneering and comprehensive study concluded that Jamaicans used marijuana to enhance work performance and health, with few negative effects.Chevannes shared Commission duties with commissioners from a broad array of ideological and professional backgrounds, including educators, artists, clergymen, and a member of the National Council on Drug Abuse.The Commission conducted hearings in every parish in Jamaica. It took comment from hundreds of people – old and young, male and female, artisans, farmers, professionals, managers, unskilled and unemployed persons, police, clergy, and others who gave oral or written testimony at home and abroad.And, in what must have been one of the inquiry's most sought-after duties, a Commission member was selected to make a trip to Holland to see first hand how The Netherlands' de facto decriminalization policy worked."We looked around the world for the latest information about ganja and policy," Dr Chevannes told me in a recent conversation. "We believe that our report is a significant step in developing rational policies about this plant."Popular plant Researchers told the Commission that approximately one third of the island's residents smoke ganja on a regular basis, and that ganja use, once confined mostly to people on the lower rungs of the socioeconomic ladder, is now practiced by people from all strata of society.A parade of experts, including scientists, police, drug abuse counselors and community leaders, testified that they supported decriminalization of ganja.The commissioners found medical evidence and expert testimony supported the idea that cannabis is useful in decreasing severity of the following medical problems: nausea, vomiting, insomnia, chronic pain, appetite loss, glaucoma, muscle spasticity from spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis, migraine headaches, depression, and seizures.Cannabis Culture interviewed a pioneering Jamaican medical researcher, Dr Manley West, who developed a cannabis extract – Cannasol – that is now a registered medicine used to treat glaucoma -- http://www.cannabisculture.com/articles/59.html -- Ganja medicine in Jamaica. West and colleagues developed another product, Asmasol, based on the Cannasol research, for the treatment of cough, cold and bronchial asthma. West and the late Professor Sir John Golding developed a protocol for using a cannabis preparation in the control of pain in terminally ill patients. West has also developed a cannabis medicine that treats motion sickness.According to West, his cannabis products are safe and effective, but the US government and its Food and Drug Administration (FDA) blocked approval for using the products in America."They're depriving their citizens of useful medicines for financial and political reasons," West complained. "Our products are medically safe and very effective, and we have proven that by scientific methods."Some supporters of ganja law reform told the Commission that the herb had provided them with "deep personal benefits.""These range from miraculous cures to relief from simple colds, but they include well-known ailments and symptoms such as asthma and glaucoma," the Commission reported. "There were many personal testimonies of benefits from either smoking ganja or ingesting it as tea or medicine steeped in rum. We heard the tale of a woman whose beast of burden was cured from the ashes stuffed in a wound; of a man stricken as a schoolboy with dengue fever, who drank the tea and was cured overnight; of a former Jamaica Constabulary Force member whose chronic hypertension, after nineteen years of prescribed medication, completely disappeared with the now regular smoking of ganja.Jamaican drug counselors told the Commission that ganja is not harmful enough to justify criminal penalties, and that dishonest anti-ganja propaganda made it harder for them to credibly teach young people about drug abuse.The president of the Medical Association of Jamaica, along with the country's premier medical officer, told the Chevannes Commission that laws criminalizing people for small amounts of ganja are "probably having a worse effect than if it had been legalized."US response Last year, Chevannes made public the Commission's findings and recommendations."We advised lawmakers to amend the laws to make private, personal possession of small amounts of ganja legal," Chevannes said.After Jamaica's Prime Minister publicly stated support for the Commission's recommendations, the US embassy in Jamaica weighed in."The US opposes decriminalization of marijuana use," said embassy spokesman Michael Koplovsky. "The US Government will evaluate if such proposals violate Jamaica's commitments to 1988 United Nations anti-drug treaty."Other US officials said that if Jamaica loosened its ganja laws, the US would respond with economic sanctions that would cause serious harm to the already-impoverished country.And according to US spokeswoman Orna Bloom, "The United States government opposes the decriminalization of marijuana use because it creates the perception, especially to our youth, that marijuana is not harmful, which could lead then to an increase in its use."In Washington, DC, Jamaican embassy spokesperson Neil Hamilton told Cannabis Culture in March, 2002 that Jamaican legislators were "still working on the details of the proposed ganja law changes.""It's being discussed in our country, and between our countries," Hamilton said. "Washington has not formally threatened us about this. We're committed to stopping drug exports, but we also want to acknowledge the effects of the laws in our country, and the religious and medical aspects of ganja use. And, we must acknowledge the professionalism and scope of what Dr. Chevannes and his team did. We hope we will see positive developments very soon."• Jamaican news and events: http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com Newshawk: The GCWSource: Cannabis Culture Author: Pete Brady Published: August 26, 2002Copyright: 2002 Cannabis CultureContact: ccmag cannabisculture.com Website: http://www.cannabisculture.com/ DL: http://www.hempbc.com/articles/2407.htmlRelated Articles: Jamaica's Parliament Set To Debate Marijuana http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11989.shtmlPanel 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 Jamaica: The Ganja Culturehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10439.shtml
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Comment #21 posted by dddd on August 29, 2002 at 23:46:17 PT
...no pardon needed Dr. Dan...
....quite the contrary,,,I appreciated your comments on the thing......I wouldnt consider your response an "over reaction".... I was glad you took the time to take a look....LoL...dddd
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Comment #20 posted by Dan B on August 29, 2002 at 21:49:19 PT:
Pardon my overreaction
Still, it is interesting that I have yet to see the story published anywhere other than US News Wire. Quite obviously, that fact is the true story here, as Corvallis Eric pointed out the true meaning of the word "embargoed" as it applies to news articles. A big "Oops!" from me. I'll try to be more educated about my responses from this point forward.Dan B
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Comment #19 posted by fearfull on August 29, 2002 at 11:09:40 PT
I agree with you GCW
A location near to the "homeland " where cannabis was legal would attract hundreds of thousands of tourists. Heck,Jamacia already has a flourishing, albeit covert, drug tourism now, just imagine what they could do if they legalized.
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Comment #18 posted by dddd on August 29, 2002 at 06:16:25 PT
...Thank you Eric..
..for the demystifacation...........[darn,,I was kinda hoping it was some sort of conspiracy anomole].....dddd
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Comment #17 posted by CorvallisEric on August 28, 2002 at 14:45:02 PT
demystification
The usual meaning of "embargo" in journalism is when a story is to be withheld until a specific release time and date. The purpose is to allow the story to be distributed in advance (for example to radio stations), and then everyone can transmit it to the public at the same time. I learned this (and a whole lot of good sense) from Dr. Dean Edell who would sometimes pick up a news release and go "oops, can't do this, it's embargoed until tomorrow ..."
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Comment #16 posted by karkulus on August 28, 2002 at 13:44:38 PT
He said facetiously..
"Some Jamaicans credibly suspect that US spy agencies and organized crime are smuggling guns and cocaine into Jamaica, in an attempt to destabilize the country and derail its efforts to legalize ganja."...But it's a good thing we live in America,Where such things can't happen !(Like if Nevada votes to legalize). Like biker-gang instigation,or giving some stoned nut 100$ to cream-pie Wayne Newton or something!
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Comment #15 posted by dddd on August 28, 2002 at 12:04:00 PT
..Thank you DanB...
....the reason I posted the 'embargo' comment,,is ::
 
...*)..I have never encountered an "embargo" error type message...
... *)...It was weird,,that usnewswire,,which is obviously a "news" site that is heavily influenced by empire powers,,would have such a strange message linked to one of their "stories".!
 ....*)..It was hard to believe!..I was hoping for verification from someone else..
 
 
....an "embargo"..???..it's a first for me....I've never seen the term 'embargo',used in reference to a 'news item'..
 ..I know what you mean,in that it makes sense that an 'embargo',would be applied to such an article,,on such a website...The main question is,,:What hierarchy caused this anomole to occur???...Was this some sort of story that went out of bounds somehow,,and therefore had to be "embargoed"..????? 
 
...Most peculiar!....  Most peculiar indeeddddd
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Comment #14 posted by Morgan on August 28, 2002 at 11:50:10 PT
No trouble
Personally, I had no trouble accessing the article.
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Comment #13 posted by Dan B on August 28, 2002 at 10:59:59 PT:
Why the Article Was "Embargoed"
I know this has to do with a comment, and not the article at hand, so I'll apologize for getting off topic at the outset.It should be clear by now that the Bush administration thinks it benefits from violence in the Middle East. The article dddd linked to says the following, among other things:-- 80 percent of Palestinians would support a large-scale non-violent protest movement and 56 percent would participate in its activities. -- 78 percent of Israeli Jews believe that the Palestinians have a legitimate right to seek a Palestinian state, provided that they use non-violent means. 
What ever shall the U.S. government do if word gets out that the vast majority of Isrealis and Palestinians want peace and oppose violence? What a disaster for the warhawks, should this information actually leak out to the press! The only possible reason for this article being embargoed is that someone at usnewswire felt a need to clear it with the federal government before posting it. If anyone else has trouble downloading the article, I have it saved to a Word document, and I can send it via email. Just contact me by clicking my name, above.Dan B
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Comment #12 posted by The GCW on August 28, 2002 at 09:57:04 PT
Jamaica could get many American travelers...
If Jamaica Re-legalizes cannabis, they will be in competition with Nevada for turist dollars. AND THEY WILL COME!+ It may be time for Jamaica, to place some economic sanctions on the U.S. 
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Comment #11 posted by PonziScheme on August 28, 2002 at 07:52:35 PT
Link to Full Text of Jamaican Study
"The Commission, after reviewing the most up-to-date body of medical and scientific research, is of the view that whatever health hazards the substance poses to the individual, ... these do not warrant the criminalization of thousands of Jamaicans for using it in ways and with beliefs that are deeply rooted in the culture of the people. ... Accordingly, the National Commission is recommending that the relevant laws be amended so that ganja be decriminalized for the private, personal use of small quantities by adults."
- Jamaican National Commission on Ganja. 2001. A Report of the National Commission on Ganja. Office of the Prime Minister: Kingston.
http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3382
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on August 28, 2002 at 07:40:31 PT
JR Just a Note
I wanted to mention that I was sent the article you posted about the dorm but I can't post it. It is against copyright laws to modify any news article and the names of the people are in the article. I wish they wouldn't put names in articles but they do. I hope everyone reads it.
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Comment #9 posted by dddd on August 28, 2002 at 07:35:40 PT
....Goneposthole.....
....TWILIGHT ZONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!....
 
...Sho' nuff...I jus' checked,,an its all normal now......BUT......I hope you know that I am not joking,,,I even took a snapshot of the desktop,,and the message said..:
 
"The requested document is emargoed for future release.
 
It will be availiable when the embargo has been removed."
 
 
..I am not kidding!.....I have never seen anything quite like it,,..it looked like one of those "404 Errror"..things,,but it was the "embargo" thing!!!....I'm not kidding!...the only reason I posted it,,was becauise I couldn't believe it!..This is usnewswire,,,I have never seen,,nor heard of an "embargo",involving a news thing!.
 .. I mean,,what?,,,was it some sort of journalistic fruit involved here,where they had to "embargo" it,to sort out the bugs?.
 
 
...thank you for checking it out Fred....now Ethel probably thinks I've gone off the edge.....It's probably all part of the governments plot to try and make me look crazy!!...the next thing ya know,,someones going to suggest that I'm not actually Ricky Ricardo!....dddd
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Comment #8 posted by bbbb on August 28, 2002 at 07:18:56 PT
........good questions.....
...st1r_dude..."quick question for the group - i've often time wondered...wasn't cannabis legal before 1900 all over the world ? why
      don't we see more art/literature showing how people enjoyed this plant more ? i figure there would be tons of art from
      the renaissance with pot plants and pipes and such...didn't the greeks and romans smoke cannabis ? 
 
 
I would imagine,,that one of the main reasons we see so little reference to Marijuana in mainstream history,art/literature,would be due to the fact that popular history,,(as taught in the classrooms of US public schools,),,,is skewed to favor that which is deemed "proper,and good",for the choldrun!....just think,,if a person from Outer Space,was to take an unbiased look at world history,,it would be a different story from the ones we were taught in school!.........I'm glad that I ended up an American,,,,but,,when I think back on the history taught in public school,,,I dont really think that I was presented an unbiased,,balanced view of history...(?)..  .........For some reason,,I've been thinking about Native {Americans?},lately,,,we are taught to believe that we have some sort of proud heritage as Americans,,,and in many ways,,we do,,,BUT ..when you consider the way our government SLAUGHTERED the Redman,,it aint pretty ...and..it aint pretty what the US government is doing today!..the slaughter continues,,yet ,,all we hear about,,is the story of the US soldier who stubbed his toe in Afghanistan while on a mission to hunt down and kill "terrorists"..!...we dont get the news about the MAIMED kids,,Moms,,,Grandpas,,that were victims of mistaken blasts of US TERROR!!!.....
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Comment #7 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on August 28, 2002 at 07:15:54 PT
Dorm-room forfeiture?
  The cops in New Hampshire want to seize a dorm room because it was a "drug market":
http://www.boston.com/dailynews/239/region/N_H_police_chief_wants_dorm_fo:.shtml
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Comment #6 posted by goneposthole on August 28, 2002 at 06:53:12 PT
embargoed document
I did what you instructed, dddd and sho-nuff, there it wasn't. Ethel tried, too, same result.
It probably wasn't that important, anyway.Maybe the ganja commissioners should visit Warshington, DC (dumb congressman) with a big load of ganja and give out free samples to the 'fearless leaders'. Who, coincidentally, do not have any sons or daughters serving in the armed forces. They sure can dawn a lot of war paint and beat the war drum when they really have nothing to lose except for their sanity.Bush policy should be embargoed. It's insane.
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Comment #5 posted by st1r_dude on August 28, 2002 at 06:40:48 PT
tired worn-out policy
"Other US officials said that if Jamaica loosened its ganja laws, the US would respond with economic sanctions that would cause serious harm to the already-impoverished country."like adding insult to injury...i'm sure US pols would call it "tough love" - yeah, right."The United States government opposes the decriminalization of marijuana use because it creates the perception, especially to our youth, that marijuana is not harmful, which could lead then to an increase in its use."not the "anything to save the chilluns" line again...this is getting sooOOOO old.I'll estimate that most of europe and canada will decriminalize or legalize MJ within 3 years, then FINALLY the US will do something within 5 years +/- 10%. comments ?quick question for the group -
i've often time wondered...wasn't cannabis legal before 1900 all over the world ? why don't we see more art/literature showing how people enjoyed this plant more ? i figure there would be tons of art from the renaissance with pot plants and pipes and such...didn't the greeks and romans smoke cannabis ? i sure see alot of references to beer and wine and tobacco in historical art and literature, but no cannabis - strange. anybody seen different ?thx -
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Comment #4 posted by goneposthole on August 28, 2002 at 05:56:56 PT
already-impoverished country
"Other US officials said that if Jamaica loosened it's ganja laws, the US would respond with economic sanctions that would cause serious harm to the already-impverished county."The US is a trading partner and Jamaica is impoverished maybe that is the reason why.
Jamaica should take a chance, legalize ganja, and maybe, just maybe they may no longer be so impoverished after economic sanctions are in place. It is worth a try. 
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Comment #3 posted by pppp on August 28, 2002 at 01:55:46 PT
....whassup wif dis..??
...I have seen alot of strange things,,but,,,,,as I surfed by usnewswire,(a governmentesque type "news" site.), http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/current.htm   
 
and I tried to see a certain article,,I got a message I had never seen before....it said;
 
 
"The requested document is embargoed for further release.
It will be availiable when the embargo is removed."
 
 
..I am not kidding....this is not a joke!...see for yourself......go to the above link,,and click on the story;;"
 
ADVANCE Survey: Surprising Potential For Non-Violent Intifada
 
 
...weird.........really weird.......?
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Comment #2 posted by dddd on August 28, 2002 at 01:24:12 PT
........National Commission of Ganja.......
........National Commission of Ganja....
 
 
.....I like the sound of that......;National Commission of Ganja...........wouldnt it be nice if our "represenative government" here in the US ,,could form a "commission",,or "commitee",,to look into the rights of Marijuana users?,,,after all,,there are 'commissions and committees' on any and everything else.......anyway....
 
....It looks like Nevada may very well be the first state to call the feds bluff...[[which is strange when you consider that a few tears back,Nevada had some of the most harsh,draconian Marijuana laws of all???!]]]....... ..But..
..it looks as if the factor that may get the Nevada initiative passed ,,will be the factor that gets most laws passed,,and that is MONEY!...
 
 
"The largest newspaper in Nevada -- the Las Vegas Review-Journal --
just ran a huge front-page story on Saturday entitled "Marijuana
Initiative: Economic Benefits Touted."The article estimated that bringing marijuana into a regulated market
would generate $200 million in annual tax revenues for the state; this
economic boon does not count the savings that will result from
eliminating the law-enforcement expenditures that are currently wasted
on marijuana "crimes." And, in the same article, the spokesperson for
Republican Gov. Kenny Guinn said that he is not opposing the
initiative!"
 
 
....yup.....when you bring up the cash tax revenues,,all of a sudden a bunch of wishy-washy ,fence-sitting pols,start wandering toward the cash !!,,and it all makes sense,after all,,this is Nevada!..The Silver State. ... .Home of Las Vegas!!.... yes...Las fucking Vegas!!..A special place!..No where else on the earth can compare!!. ..A unique fake jewel that casts a sleezy gleeming glow of vice!.....Nevada,,the first state to decide that they would allow such things as gambling!...WHY??...because,,,MONEY!,,,and now,,,,Why will they legalize Marijuana???..
  MONEY!,,,,and no one argues with MONEY!...if there's enough money in it,,it will pass!.......
 
..If 4Q had 9 Trillion dollars,,he could,,and would,take over the earth,and buy everyone a nice place,,and set up trust funds for everyone so they would always have enough water and food and shelter....4Q would buy up all the governments of the world,and would actually own the whole fuckin' planet......things would be good for a few decades,,but then,,eventually,4Q would become infected with the opite of being the global owner and ruler,,the power would destroy him!!..and this is why 4Q has now decided to forget the plan to purchase the earth...he cant afford it anyway!......indeedddd
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on August 27, 2002 at 23:22:16 PT
Extra Link From The Above Article
I didn't post this link in the article because I was having trouble getting it too look right so here it is!
National Commission of Ganja
http://www.cannabisculture.com/backissues/issue.cgi?num=23 
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