cannabisnews.com: Cauchon Brushes Off Pot Concerns 





Cauchon Brushes Off Pot Concerns 
Posted by CN Staff on May 13, 2003 at 12:00:05 PT
By Allison Dunfield, Globe and Mail Update 
Source: Globe and Mail 
Justice Minister Martin Cauchon brushed off concerns Tuesday that the federal government’s plans to decriminalize marijuana will cause border problems with the United States.After briefing the cabinet Tuesday morning on the government’s plans to decriminalize the drug, Mr. Cauchon is headed to the United States Tuesday evening to explain the policy to U.S. Attorney-General John Ashcroft.
The proposed bill to decriminalize marijuana, which Mr. Cauchon said will be more strict on drug traffickers but less harsh on those who use the drug in small quantities, could be tabled in Parliament as draft legislation as early as the end of this week.Prime Minister Jean Chrétien has said he wants the legislation in place before Parliament breaks for the summer.The caucus will be consulted on Wednesday, Mr. Cauchon said, and “after that, we will be making a decision as to when we will move forward.”“We will put in better penalties that we will be able to enforce, send a better message as well that the use of cannabis is illegal in Canada, but at the same time we are talking about the reform of the cannabis legislation,” Mr. Cauchon said.The Prime Minister said after the cabinet meeting that the new bill means “modernizing the sentences.” It does not mean legalizing the use of marijuana, he said.Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham said the new bill will actually mean heavier penalties for trafficking, calling it a “sensible policy.”Mr. Cauchon said the government’s proposal will not mean more drugs crossing the Canadian border into the United States — a concern that some U.S. politicians have voiced.He said the bill contains “broad terms” but would not provide details. The new policy will send a “strong message” that marijuana in Canada is still illegal, he added.The U.S. government has expressed alarm at Canadian plans to lighten marijuana penalties even though some people there are pushing for their government to make a similar move.U.S. officials have told the Canadian government that decriminalizing marijuana could cause a series of problems, such as long lines at border crossings while vehicles are searched for drugs.Sources told Canadian Press on Monday that possession of 15 grams of marijuana will likely be met with only a fine under new legislation, but that Ottawa will exact harsher penalties on traffickers and growers.After the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Mr. Cauchon would not confirm the number of grams that the government was looking at.“You’ll see it when the policy comes out.”With reports from Canadian Press Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)Author: Allison DunfieldPublished: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 Copyright: 2003 The Globe and Mail CompanyContact: letters globeandmail.caWebsite: http://www.globeandmail.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmOttawa Backs Off Pot Law Planshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16242.shtmlOttawa's Marijuana Plan Irks US http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16241.shtmlFor Sensible Marijuana Policy, Go Northhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16225.shtml 
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Comment #2 posted by afterburner on May 13, 2003 at 16:56:20 PT:
Kegan - I'm as Irritated with Health Canada as You
They are the gatekeepers allowing only a miniscule fraction of the truly needy potential medical cannabis patients to qualify for an exemption, which only allows possession and personal cultivation anyway, or a designated grower serving no more than three patients. This effectively leaves compassion clubs out in the "illegal grow-op" area. Your other point about medical cannabis patients unable to grow their own or find a designated grower, forcing them into the black market, means that so-called "illegal grow-ops" could have medical cannabis patients as buyers; busting these suppliers may kill, or at the least cause greater suffering of, patients deprived of their medicine. Health Canada has been dragging their feet for 3 and 1/2 years. They say all the medical cannabis patients will get Flin Flon cannabis under proposed medical trials, but when? Until recently they didn't even consider compassion clubs worthy of being advisory stakeholders. Their minds are so steeped in prohibition, that it's sometimes difficult to believe that they will ever make an effective program or even understand the urgency of those who need it. So far, all major progress has been the result of hard-fought court battles by sick people. God bless them. They don't deserve such shabby treatment.ego transcendence follows ego destruction, heart by heart, until eventually there is no more problem.
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Comment #1 posted by Kegan on May 13, 2003 at 14:15:21 PT:
FUCK THE SICK
I find it disturbing, humiliating, disgusting and insulting, to know that our own government is going to increase efforts to stop cannabis grow operations. 
If police bust a "medical" grow, the plants die, sick people die, and they have to deal with "charges" in court.
If they bust a "commercial" grow, they up the ante on the drug war, and make black market pot more expensive. Not to mention that the bust might inadvertently injure a number of sick people for whom that might have been their only supply source.This is also a strong message from the government to people considering medical cannabis as an option for them: "Don't even think about it. WE decide the medicine for you!"If we must play along in the Bush/Ashcroft insane and costly drug war, can we at least get the wounded off the battlefield, please?How do you tell a "commercial" grow from a "medical" grow? By how many sick people die.
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