cannabisnews.com: Decriminalization of Cannabis Makes Sense Decriminalization of Cannabis Makes Sense Posted by CN Staff on December 16, 2002 at 07:37:52 PT Editorial Source: Globe and Mail There is no easy way out of the marijuana box. Preserving the existing system would continue the scattershot arrest and criminal conviction of Canadians for an activity in which an estimated third of the population has engaged.Decriminalizing possession of small amounts would free Canadians from the threat of a criminal record, but the supply would remain largely in the hands of organized crime. Legalizing marijuana, while the state could control the quality and potency of the drug by regulating its supply and distribution, would send the wrong signals to youths about the safety and wisdom of taking mind-altering drugs, and particularly antagonize our closest neighbour and largest trading partner. And it wouldn't necessarily put a crimp in organized crime, since illicit suppliers would continue to ship marijuana abroad and serve a continuing Canadian market for pot of a higher potency than the government permitted.No, legalization is too radical a step, even if a Senate committee did recommend it in September, and even if Newfoundland Premier Roger Grimes last week extolled it as a revenue-enhancing opportunity, with factories pumping out the stuff and stiff taxes helping to finance health care.Three choices, all with drawbacks. In its report last week, a special parliamentary committee on the use of non-medical drugs settled on the best of a bad lot. It recommended the decriminalization of the possession and cultivation of up to 30 grams of cannabis for personal use. This possession would still be illegal, but offenders would receive the equivalent of a traffic ticket, with a fine; there would be no criminal record. Even before the report's release, Justice Minister Martin Cauchon said last week that he would introduce legislation to that effect in the new year.Criminalization of simple possession puts prohibition ahead of common sense. It does not make sense, in a country where an estimated million Canadians between 12 and 17 have tried marijuana within the past year and one-quarter of them smoke it daily, to impose criminal records on anyone convicted of smoking a joint. The authorities know it doesn't make sense; the police often turn a blind eye to crowds using cannabis, and, when they do make arrests, the courts impose light penalties on those tried and convicted of possession, particularly first offenders.But those offenders still wind up with a record, and the variability of enforcement flouts the principle that all are equal under the law. Imposing a fine may be necessary to signal Canada's official disapproval of marijuana and concern about its effects; but the penalty should be no more than that, to be proportionate in a country where hazardous materials (tobacco) and drinks with frequently lethal effects (alcohol) are widely and legally available.U.S. drug czar John Walters -- his official title is director of the National Drug Control Policy in Washington -- last week decried the parliamentary committee's recommendation to decriminalize. He said Canada would pose a "dangerous threat" to his country, which has a policy of zero tolerance, and said decriminalization would mean longer waits and tougher security at the border.Certainly Canada would be foolish to ignore the concerns of its largest trading partner and powerful neighbour. However, the United States' chief problem is not with the casual smoker, but with Canadian criminals who already grow great quantities of high-potency marijuana and smuggle it south of the border. Customs officials are attuned to that threat, and the committee's recommendation wouldn't alter it; its report would not ease the criminal laws against trafficking.What it would do is strip the Criminal Code of an overly punitive regime for Canadians whose only offence is to use a forbidden recreational drug. Thirty years after this country's Le Dain commission recommended decriminalization, we may finally see the day.Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)Published: Monday, December 16, 2002 – Print Edition, Page A16Copyright: 2002 The Globe and Mail CompanyContact: letters globeandmail.caWebsite: http://www.globeandmail.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmCanada Has It Right on Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14979.shtmlUnder The Maple Leaf: Pot Politics http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14973.shtmlCommittee Calls for Decriminalization of Cannabishttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14957.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Post Comment