cannabisnews.com: Worldwide Petition Backs MS Sufferer on Trial 





Worldwide Petition Backs MS Sufferer on Trial 
Posted by CN Staff on June 23, 2003 at 08:17:52 PT
By John Ross 
Source: Scotsman UK
A Petition in support of multiple sclerosis sufferer Biz Ivol has attracted more than 500 names from across the world in a week. Mrs Ivol, from South Ronaldsay in Orkney, went on trial last week charged with cultivating, possessing and supplying cannabis, which she says has helped to alleviate the pain of MS sufferers. Mrs Ivol admitted in court that she had made cannabis-laced chocolates which were sent to people with MS, but said she did not think she was doing anything wrong. 
Her trial has been continued until next month, but once it is completed she has vowed to take her own life with an overdose of paracetamol and champagne - saying the condition has left her with no quality of life. The Legalise Cannabis Alliance (LCA) set up the petition on its website just prior to the trial going ahead in Kirkwall last week, and by yesterday had attracted 517 names from the UK, America, Canada, Australia, South America and Europe. Among the people to sign up are a Labour MP, a Conservative councillor, a Green Party candidate, a minister and the smuggler-turned-author Howard Marks. The LCA is sending the petition to the Home Office and Scottish Executive and is challenging all MPs and MSPs to sign it or be "named and shamed". The Scottish Socialist Party has already tabled a motion in the Scottish Parliament seeking support for Mrs Ivol. In a letter to the justice department, Don Barnard, spokesman for the LCA, said: "Biz has been waiting two years for the case to come to court, and her health has suffered so much that she is now bedridden and her sight has gone. "The quality of Biz’s life is now so bad that she no longer wishes to be alive. Pinochet didn’t go on trial because of his alleged ill-health; he was far healthier than Biz and he caused the deaths of over 2,000 people. "What overriding factors convinced Scotland’s justice department it was in the interest of law and order, public health or national security to bring this case forward? "It is time to stop this nonsense. I challenge all MPs, MSPs and church leaders to sign the petition, or give good reason for not signing." In signing the petition, Howard Marks said: "I urge you with as much strength and power as possible to save this lady’s life. The prohibition of cannabis has already caused innumerable hardship to millions of people. Please don’t force her to make the ultimate sacrifice." Lawrence Wood, the chief executive of the MS Resource Centre in Essex, said: "I am fully aware of the good work that Cannachoc [a cannabis chocolate product] is doing and the hypocrisy of a system that allows people to drink bleach to see if it helps but denies them a proven treatment." Christopher Jackman, a Conservative councillor in Basildon, added: "Biz Ivol is courageous and righteous, I am proud to support her and the petition." Others who have signed include Dr Ian Gibson, a Labour MP from Norwich, Ingo Wagenknecht, a Green candidate for the European Parliament, and the Rev Ferre van Beveren, from Amsterdam. Complete Title: Worldwide Petition Backs MS Sufferer on Trial for Supplying Cannabis Biz Ivol Petition: http://www.lca-uk.org/petition/index.phpSource: Scotsman (UK)Author: John RossPublished: Monday, June 23, 2003 Copyright: The Scotsman Publications Ltd 2003Contact: Letters_ts scotsman.comWebsite: http://www.scotsman.com/Related Article & Web Site:Legalise Cannabis Alliancehttp://www.lca-uk.org/Cannabis Fight Taken To Ministers http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16630.shtmlCannabis Campaigner To Take Own Life http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16613.shtml
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Comment #3 posted by Richard Paul Zuckerm on June 25, 2003 at 08:46:50 PT:
CRUEL AND GREEDY GOVERNMENTS PROHIBIT MEDICAL POT
Yesterday's article posted in www.fromthewilderness.com shows the SEVERE shortage of natural gas in the United States of America.Despite governmental support for big corporations, they should open their eyes to the need for the development of alternative sources of energy!!! The United States Department of Agriculture forced farmers to see their movie entitled HEMP FOR VICTORY!! during World War II. Henry Ford's scientists concluded that Hemp is a valuable renewable source of fuel for our automobile, it burns 80% cleaner, and it would only take 5% of America's land to solve most of our nation's energy problems. See, e.g.: www.HempCar.org; www.sumeria.net/politics/shadv3.html; www.jackherer.com [where you can download his book entitled The Emperor Wears No Clothes].Decriminalization of Hemp for an alternative source of fuel, energy, and decriminalization of marijuana for medicine should be accomplished.Sincerely,Richard Paul Zuckerman, Box 159, Metuchen, N.J., 08840-0159, (Cell)(908) 403-6990, richardzuckerman2002 yahoo.com
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Comment #2 posted by Jose Melendez on June 23, 2003 at 15:27:57 PT
Petitions Work, So Do Boycotts
NY Bar Owners Unplug Lottery to Protest Smoking Ban
Mon Jun 23, 9:27 AM ET
	
Add Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo!ALBANY, New York (Reuters) - Still steamed over a looming smoking ban, some New York bar and restaurant owners hit the state where it hurts -- in the pocketbook. They unplugged the lottery machines in their establishments. This week's coordinated cutting off of Quick Draw Lottery machines is costing the state $1 million in lost revenues, according to Scott Wexler, head of the Empire State Restaurant and Tavern Association which represents more than 3,000 bars and eateries across the state. Wexler predicted that about 10 percent of bar and restaurant owners will ultimately be forced to close because of lost business due to the anti-smoking law, which is considered one of the most restrictive in the nation. State lottery officials, however, countered that only $49,233 has been lost in the boycott, according to spokeswoman Carolyn Hapeman. Lottery machines were also turned off in protest by many restaurant and bar owners in May when the statewide law was passed. Game sales dropped by 18 percent. The Quick Draw lottery game is a popular bar and restaurant game in which numbers are played and picked every 10 minutes. The game brings in $475 million a year in revenues for the state Lottery Division, said Hapeman, adding this week's protest was losing momentum and that less than 100 machines were now off-line. (Snipped)
NY Bar Owners Unplug Lottery to Protest Smoking Ban
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Comment #1 posted by afterburner on June 23, 2003 at 10:23:20 PT:
Sign It If You Dare, Sign It If You Care.
Biz Ivol Petition: http://www.lca-uk.org/petition/index.phpYou'll be in good company: Richard Lake, The GCW, Dr. Ethan Russo, Pierre Werner, and many more.ego transcendence follows ego destruction, it's a planetary inevitability!
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