By CANA NEWS
Last year, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders agreed on the
composition of a Commission to examine marijuana legalisation throughout
the 15-member regional bloc.
Bahamas Prime Minister Perry Christie, said then that the leaders had
expected the Commission to “soon begin its work to look into the
economic, health and legal issues surrounding the use of marijuana and
to consult with stakeholders to get a view on the issue.”
The marijuana legalization debate has been on the Caribbean's agenda for more than a year.
In February last year, Jamaica's Parliament agreed to decriminalise
small amounts of marijuana and establish a licensing agency to regulate a
lawful medicinal marijuana industry. The legislation allows for
residents can carry up to two ounces of marijuana without it being on
their criminal record, and grow up to five plants where permitted.
The consultation here is being held in collaboration with the St. Vincent and the Grenadines government.
A statement posted on the CARICOM Secretariat website noted that the
main issue underpinning marijuana liberalisation surrounds its
classification as a drug.
It said that the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic
Substances, to which many, if not all Caribbean countries are party and
model their local Dangerous Drugs legislation, contains four Schedules
of controlled substances, ranging from most restrictive to the least
restrictive.
“Marijuana is currently placed in Schedule II. This means that it is
classified as a dangerous drug for which possession of any quantity
becomes an offence. It is as a result of this classification that the
other issues that fuel the currently marijuana debate stem.
“The main being the burden on the legal and judicial systems, arising
from possession of small quantities of marijuana and the lack of its
availability and accessibility for medical, recreational and research
purposes,” the CARICOM Secretariat said, noting that while there is
scientific evidence that supports the medical benefits of cannabinoids,
there is also evidence that confirms the adverse effects of tetra
hydrocannabinol (THC), which is the psychotropic or mind-altering
constituent found in the plant.
“ In considering re-classification, the salient issue to be
determined is therefore whether the benefits to be derived from removal
of current restrictions will outweigh possible harms of increased use.”
It said that the objective of the Commission will be to conduct a
rigorous enquiry into the social, economic, health and legal issues
surrounding marijuana use in the Caribbean and to determine whether
there should be a change in the current drug classification of marijuana
thereby making the drug more accessible for all types of usage.
The Commission will also recommend if there is to be a
re-classification, the legal and administrative conditions that shall
apply.
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