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Legality of cannabis

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Since the 20th century, most countries have enacted laws affecting the legality of cannabis regarding the cultivation, use, possession, or transfer of cannabis for recreational use. These laws have impacted adversely on the cannabis plant's cultivation for non-recreational purposes, but there are many regions where, under certain circumstances, handling of cannabis is legal or licensed. Many jurisdictions have lessened the penalties for possession of small quantities of cannabis, so that it is punished by confiscation or a fine, rather than imprisonment, focuses more on those who traffic and sell the drug on the black market. Some jurisdictions use mandatory treatment programs for frequent users with freedom from narcotic drugs as goal. Buying or growing cannabis is still illegal. Increasingly, many jurisdictions also permit cannabis use for medicinal purposes. There are also changes in a more restrictive direction as in Canada, Denmark or Netherlands and drug tests, more or less mandatory, are more common than before in many countries. Some countries allow the sale through drug companies.[citation needed] However, simple possession can carry long jail sentences in some countries, particularly in East Asia, where the sale of cannabis may lead to a sentence of life in prison or even execution.

History

Propaganda used by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Narcotics in the late 1930s and 1940s.

Under the name cannabis, 19th century medical practitioners sold the drug, (usually as a tincture) popularizing the word amongst English-speakers. It was rumored that Queen Victoria's menstrual pains were treated with cannabis, because her personal physician, Sir John Russell Reynolds, wrote an article in the first edition of the medical journal The Lancet about the benefits of cannabis.[1] Cannabis users included nineteenth century literary figures Robert Louis Stevenson, [2] and Le Club des Hashishins members Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas[3], Charles Baudelaire and Eugene Delacroix.

Cannabis was also openly available from shops in the US. The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago included a Turkish booth complete with hashish smoking and authors like Louisa May Alcott included hashish encounters in their stories.[4] Eli Lilly and Company and others sold cannabis tinctures over the counter for a variety of maladies. By the end of the 19th century, its medicinal use began to fall as other drugs like aspirin took over its use as a pain reliever.

In 1894, the Report of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission commissioned by the UK Secretary of State and the government of India, was instrumental in the decision not to criminalize the drug in those countries.[5] From 1906 started different states in the United States to implement regulations for sales of Cannabis indica. In 1925 a change of the International Opium Convention [6] banned exportation of Indian hemp to countries that have prohibited its use, and requiring importing countries to issue certificates approving the importation and stating that the shipment was required "exclusively for medical or scientific purposes."

In 1937 the F.D. Roosevelt administration crafted 1937 Marihuana Tax Act the first national US law making cannabis possession illegal in the US via an unpayable tax on the drug. Hollywood supported that effort with the release of "misinformation documentaries" such as the iconical "Reefer Madness" (1937) and Nathanael West wrote about it in his Hollywood novel, The Day of the Locust.[7]

The name marijuana (Mexican Spanish marihuana, mariguana) is associated almost exclusively with the plant's psychoactive use. The term is now well known in English largely due to the efforts of American drug prohibitionists during the 1920s and 1930s, which deliberately used a Mexican name for cannabis in order to turn the populace against the idea that it should be legal, playing upon attitudes towards the nationality. (See 1937 Marihuana Tax Act). Those who demonized the drug by calling it marihuana omitted the fact that the "deadly marihuana" was identical to cannabis indica, which had at the time a reputation for pharmaceutical safety.[8] It must however be noted that cannabis indica in the 1930s had lost most of its former popularity as a medical drug.[9],

Although cannabis has been used for its psychoactive effects since ancient times, it first became well known in the United States during the jazz music scene of the late 1920s and 1930s. Louis Armstrong became a prominent and life-long devotee.[10] Bing Crosby[11], Gene Krupa[12], Anita O'Day[13], and other jazz stars were "vipers", as written about by Mezz Mezzrow in Really the Blues[14]. It was popular in the blues scene as well. In 1948 film star Robert Mitchum[15] was arrested for marijuana and served time in jail. Embraced by Beat generation writers like Alan Ginsberg[16], it eventually became a prominent part of the 1960s counterculture and human rights movements, used by Bob Dylan[17], John Lennon[18], Paul McCartney[19] and even John Denver[20]. Anthropologist Margaret Mead testified before Congress advocating marijuana legalization in 1969 and admitted she'd tried it herself. [21]

Some advocate legalization of marijuana, believing that it will reduce illegal trade & associated crime and yield a valuable tax-source. Marijuana is now available as a palliative agent, in Canada, with a medical prescription. Yet 86% of Canadians with HIV/AIDS, eligible for a prescription, continue to obtain marijuana illegally (AIDS Care. 2007 Apr;19(4):500-6.)

Current status

See also: Legal and medical status of cannabis, Drug prohibition, and Drug liberalization
A large scale anti-prohibition demonstration in Vancouver, Canada, on April 20, 2005.

Most if not all countries have laws regarding the cultivation, possession, supply or use of cannabis. Non-psychoactive cannabis products (e.g. fibre and seed) are legal in many countries, and these countries may license cultivation for these purposes. The herb is a controlled substance in most, though its use is condoned in some locales for medicinal purposes. In some countries, cannabis drug material is legal for personal use. In the example of Portugal, restrictions apply to its sale, distribution or consumption, and amount one is legally allowed to possess is limited to 25 grams. In many countries the consumption of cannabis is legal although it is illegal to possess, sell or distribute it or allow others to consume it on one's property. If the amount of cannabis a person possessed is considered as "minor", charges may be dropped. In the U.S.A (nationwide, in 2004) a person is arrested on "marijuana charges" every 42 seconds, on average [22]. Most other countries have very strict laws against the possession or consumption of cannabis.

At a 1925 conference to amend the International Opium Convention[23], Egypt and other nations complained of abuse problems with hashish and proposed requiring Parties to prohibit non-medical, non-scientific use of the drug. India and others, citing traditional uses of the drug and its prevalence as a wild-growing plant, objected to the measure. A compromise was made that banned exportation of Indian hemp to countries that have prohibited its use, and requiring importing countries to issue certificates approving the importation and stating that the shipment was required "exclusively for medical or scientific purposes". [24]. The word Indian hemp was used so that trade with fiber and similar products from traditional European hemp was excluded from the convention. European hemp was considered as almost useless for use as a drug due to tradition and low narcotic effect.

By Nation

Australia

In the Australian Capital Territory, possession of up to 25 grams, or two plants, is not a criminal offence but carries a $100 fine.[citation needed] In South Australia however, possession of cannabis is a moderate offense, with fines ranging from $150 to $300 for possession and cultivation of small amounts.[25] There is much confusion on the subject, with many people believing that possession of a certain amount is legal. In South Australia however, this is a myth. In New South Wales and Tasmania, cannabis use is illegal but often unenforced. In Australia political parties such as the Liberty & Democracy Party[26] advocate legalisation.

Bangladesh

Cannabis has grown throughout the Bengal region, which is currently split between Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. In both parts of Bengal, cannabis (Bengali language: গাঁজা gãja or গাঞ্জা ganja) has been widely used for centuries. Neither the possession nor the use of cannabis is restricted by any national or local laws, thus making Bangladesh one of the few countries where cannabis remains legal.

Canada

Main article: Cannabis legalization in Canada
  • A July 13th, 2007 decision in Ontario Provincial court has ruled that criminal possession laws for cannabis are unconstitutional (R. v. Long). However, Toronto police spokesman Mark Pugash said that nothing will change about how the police deal with marijuana possession for the time being. [27]
  • Possession of cannabis is legal in Canada according to Justice Edmonson of the Ontario Court of Justice in R. v. Bodnar/Hall/Spasic - "there is no offence known to law which the accused have committed." [28] [29]
  • However, the federal prosecution service is attempting to enforce an unconstitutional law. [30]

In October 2007, Prime Minister Harper announced a new National Anti-Drug Strategy. A proposed Bill would have dealers facing one-year mandatory prison sentences if they’re operating for organized crime purposes, or if violence is involved. Dealers would also face a two-year mandatory jail sentence if they’re selling to youth, or dealing drugs near a school or an area normally frequented by youth. Additionally, people in Canada who run a large marijuana grow operation of at least 500 plants would risk facing a mandatory two-year jail term. Maximum penalties for producing cannabis would increase from 7 to 14 years. [31]

Perhaps the biggest proposed policy change is mandatory six-month sentencing for those growing as little as one marijuana plant for the purposes of trafficking. If the Bill passes, this is certain to be felt by small-time distributors who are not linked to the ring of organized crime, and who usually face no more than a fine if caught. [32]

Currently the Conservative Government holds a minority in Parliament, so the Bill would require support of at least one other political party before it can become law. Previous attempts by past Liberal Governments in the late 1990s and early 2000s to decriminalize marijuana for personal use have failed to become law - this is a distinct policy contrast from the current minority Conservatives who aspire to a more US-style 'War on Drugs'.[33]

Czech Republic

In 1938 production and possession (but not the consumption) of drugs became a punishable crime in Czechoslovakia. The law did not distinguish between different types of drugs. Until the Velvet Revolution (1989) the narcotics were only minor problem in the society. A law from 1992 stopped criminalization of drug possession for personal use. This has changed with a 1998 law when the "possession of more than a small amount of drugs" (the amount was not defined by the law) became criminal offence again. The limits were defined later for internal police use: for marijuana possession of less than about 20 grams was not a crime but the owner could be fined. Consumption was not punishable. Enforcement of the law was spotty and sometimes inconsistent.

Young people are the most frequent users of marijuana: a research from 2007 estimated that almost 30% of Czechs under 24 tried it. In 2007 the Supreme Court of the Czech Republic decided a case where it stated that mere cultivation of hemp should not be punishable unless production of drug is proven; a police officer from anti-drug unit said this decision is irrelevant for their work. As of 2007 several initiatives demand either decriminalization of marijuana or creating a more tolerated category of soft drugs. [34]

Hong Kong

Cannabis is regulated under section 9 of Hong Kong's Chapter 134 Dangerous Drugs Ordinance. Cultivation and dealing with cannabis plant is illegal and a fine of $100,000 and to imprisonment for 15 years can be laid by the court. Anyone who supplies the substance without prescription can be fined $10,000(HKD). The penalty for trafficking or manufacturing the substance is a $5,000,000 (HKD) fine and life imprisonment. Possession of the substance for consumption without license from the Department of Health is illegal with a $1,000,000 fine and/or 7 years of jail time.

Ireland

Cannabis is considered a Schedule I drug in Ireland MISUSE OF DRUGS ACT, 1977. Various movements have been founded to legalize the drug, including an attempt at starting a cannabis legalization political party. Under Irish Law a Schedule 1 drug, such as cannabis, is a drug which is highly abusable with no medicinal value. Unlike British law, Irish law does not organize drugs in Classes A,B,C etc.

Ireland - Five Classes.

  • SCHEDULE I - cannabis, LSD, mescaline, opium
  • SCHEDULE II - cocaine, heroin, methadone, morphine
  • SCHEDULE III & IV - other psychotropic substances
  • SCHEDULE V - specific preparations of drugs

It is common for the Gardaí (police) to 'turn a blind eye' to small amounts of cannabis for personal use.

Mexico

See Wikinews:Mexico on the verge of decriminalizing possession of small amounts of drugs

On April 29, 2006, the Congress of Mexico passed a bill decriminalizing possession of small amounts of drugs intended for recreational use (up to 5g for marijuana).[35] The new bill was hoped to relieve cartel-related crime as well as reduce drug-related arrests. A possibly unintended consequence would have been increased tourism. The move caused many in the US government to question Mexico's commitment to the "War on Drugs." However, President Fox sent the legislation back, asking that the decriminalization be removed. Pressure from the United States government is suspected in playing a large part, [36] sparking broad controversy over the bill.[37][38][39]

Netherlands

Main article: Drug policy of the Netherlands

Cannabis is legal to possess and purchase in small amounts in special shops for people age eighteen and over, but the cultivation and wholesale of cannabis is illegal. A recent court decision allowed a medical cannabis user to avoid legal prosecution for possession of a small number of cannabis plants; however, the state is appealing the decision.[40]

By 2009, 27 coffee shops selling cannabis in Rotterdam, Netherlands, all within 200 meters from schools, must close down. This is nearly half of the coffeeshops that currently operate within its municipality. This is due to a new policy of city mayor Ivo Opstelten and the town council as a result of increased use of soft drugs among pupils.[41] [42]

New Zealand

Possession of any amount of cannabis is illegal in New Zealand and can result in a fine of up to $500 or even a 3-month prison sentence (though the latter is rarely used). Anyone caught in possession of more than 28 grams of cannabis or 100 cannabis joints is classed as a dealer unless s/he can prove they are not. Cannabis is a class C drug in New Zealand, of which the penalty for dealing can result in a maximum prison sentence of 14 years under the New Zealand Misuse Of Drugs Act 1975. There have been many public campaigns to decriminalise Cannabis but so far none have succeeded. It is generally accepted that the usage rate is high and possession in small quantities may not often be prosecuted. In some cases first offences may not always result in convictions.

Spain

Personal consumption and home cultivation of cannabis have been decriminalized, but buying or selling remains a criminal offense.

Sweden

Cannabis is not seen as a soft drug. Zero tolerance is the official policy. Possession and consumption is illegal, even for personal use.[43] Drug testing is legal on anyone older than 14; a drug test by the police is seen as a cogent proof of consumption. If the person is younger the police or the school must ask permission from the parents. The penalty for the sale of cannabis is imprisonment, from 6 months to 10 years. Sweden has less users of cannabis and other drugs than many other comparable countries and is reported as a positive example by UNODC[44]

Cultivation of industrial hemp, cannabis varieties with less than 0.2% THC, is legal if the farmer reports the fields in advance and follow some other restrictions. The cultivation is of small extent.

Switzerland

Cannabis is classified as an illegal narcotic in Switzerland.[45] The production, possession, consumption and sale of illegal narcotics, even for personal use, is punishable by a monetary penalty or by imprisonment of up until three years, as are public incitements to the consumption of illegal narcotics.[46]

The enforcement of the prohibition on cannabis is spotty, because around 500'000 Swiss people (or 7% of young people from 15 to 39) are believed to regularly use cannabis.[47] Also, in 1998, some 250 hectares of land were used in Switzerland to grow cannabis,[48] yielding more than 100 tons of narcotics per year.[49] The produce is sold mostly on the street and – under the guise of e.g. "scent bags" – through "cannabis shops" clustered in the urban centers. These shops, of which there were about 135 in 1999 and which authorities believe earn about 85-95% of their income with illegal narcotics,[50] are the target of irregular police crackdowns in some cities, while in others they are tolerated to some degree. Overall, enforcement varies substantially depending on the canton.[51] Some tolerate limited public consumption[52] while others periodically attempt to limit it. In Zürich, for instance, a fine of CHF 50 to 300 for first infractions was the usual practice in 1999.[53] Nationwide, police registered some 27,000 cannabis-related infractions in 1999.[54]

An attempt to decriminalize possession and consumption of cannabis failed narrowly in Parliament in 2004.[55] As a reaction, a popular initiative that would amend the constitution to decriminalize cannabis has been introduced; it is scheduled for a nationwide referendum in 2008–10.[56]

Portugal

Personal consumption limit is 2.5g per day and you can have in your possession 3 days' worth without contravening the law. Cultivation, even if for personal use is still totally illegal and cultivation of even one plant is assumed to indicate involvement with trafficking. Possession of seeds is also illegal and despite there being several Head or Grow Shops in Portugal, they are not allowed to sell seeds.

United Kingdom

Main article: Cannabis reclassification in the United Kingdom

Cultivation and use of cannabis was generally outlawed in 1928. In 2001, the UK government announced that possession of small quantities of cannabis would no longer generally be an arrestable offense although confiscation and a warning do apply. An arrest is still possible for distribution or cultivation and now cannabis oil is also a class C drug.[57]

United States

History

Main article: Legal history of marijuana in the United States

The United States has had a long history of producing and using cannabis.

Under federal law, it is illegal to possess, use, buy, sell, or cultivate marijuana anywhere in the United States, although in Alaska it is legal to possess up to 4 ounces in the home. The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 classifies marijuana as a Schedule I drug, meaning it has a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use. Under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, Federal law in the United States preempts conflicting state and local laws. Nevertheless, some states and local governments have established laws attempting to decriminalize cannabis, which has reduced the number of "simple possession" offenders sent to jail, since federal enforcement agents rarely target individuals directly for such relatively minor offenses. Other state and local governments ask law enforcement agencies to limit enforcement of drug laws with respect to cannabis.

The National Center for Natural Products Research in Oxford, Mississippi is the only facility in the United States that is federally licensed by the National Institute on Drug Abuse to cultivate cannabis for scientific research. The Center is part of the School of Pharmacy at the University of Mississippi.

Decriminalization

Main article: Decriminalization of marijuana in the United States
See also: Cannabis rescheduling in the United States

In the 2006 election, Colorado attempted to pass amendment 44. The amendment would decriminalize possession of less than 1 ounce of marijuana. It failed in a 40%-60% at the polls rating. However it is still a misdemeanor to possess up to one half pound, and is punished mainly by fines unless proof of sale is established. Twelve US states have passed, by majority vote of the citizenry, laws allowing some degree of medical use, while a further six states have taken steps to decriminalize it to some degree. This movement seeks to make simple possession of cannabis punishable by only confiscation or a fine, rather than prison. In the past several years, the movement has started to have some successes. These include Denver, Colorado legalizing possession of up to an ounce of cannabis,[20] a broad coalition of political parties in Amsterdam, Netherlands unveiling a pilot program to allow farmers to grow it legally,[58] and Massachusetts voting in favor of a bill to decriminalize the possession of up to an ounce of cannabis.[59] These laws passed by states and cities to decriminalize marijuana do not result in marijuana being legal, however. The Federal Government has the power to regulate marijuana because of the Interstate Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. Additionally, under the Supremacy Clause, any state law in conflict with federal law is not valid. These issues were addressed squarely by the United States Supreme Court in Raich v. Ashcroft, 352 F. 3d 1222.

In Alaska, cannabis was decidedly legal for in-home, personal use under the Ravin vs. State ruling of 1975. This ruling allowed up to two ounces of cannabis and cultivation of less than 25 plants for these purposes. A 1991 voter ballot initiative recriminalized marijuana possession, but when that law was eventually challenged in 2004, the Alaska courts upheld the Ravin ruling, saying the popular vote could not trump the state constitution. In response to former Governor Frank Murkowski's successive attempt to re-criminalize cannabis, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against the state. On July 17, 2006, Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins awarded the Case Summary judgment to the ACLU. In her ruling, she said "No specific argument has been advanced in this case that possession of more than 1 ounce of cannabis, even within the privacy of the home, is constitutionally protected conduct under Ravin or that any plaintiff or ACLU of Alaska member actually possesses more than 1 ounce of cannabis in their homes." This does not mean that the legal possession threshold has been reduced to one ounce, as this was a mere case summary review filed by the ACLU, not a full case. Reinforcing Ravin, Collins wrote "A lower court cannot reverse the State Supreme Court's 1975 decision in Ravin v. State" and "Unless and until the Supreme Court directs otherwise, Ravin is the law in this state and this court is duty bound to follow that law". The law regarding possession of cannabis has not changed in Alaska, and the Supreme Court has declined to review the case, therefore the law still stands at 4 ounces.[citation needed]

In 2002, Nevada voters defeated a ballot question which would legalize up to 3 ounces for adults 21 and older by 39% to 61%. In 2006, a similar Nevada ballot initiative, which would have legalized and regulated the cultivation, distribution, and possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana by adults 21 and older, was defeated by 44% to 56%.

In 2006, South Dakota voters defeated Measure 4, voting 48% for and 52% against. Measure 4 was to allow the use of medical marijuana by patients deemed by their physicians to benefit from its use, and was to be regulated by state-issued ID cards and protection of legitimate medical distributors.

Crime

There have been over eight million cannabis arrests in the United States since 1993, including 786,545 arrests in 2005. Cannabis users have been arrested at the rate of 1 every 40 seconds. About 88% of all marijuana arrests are for possession - not manufacture or distribution. (FBI Uniform Crimes Report)

Large-scale marijuana growing operations are frequently targeted by police in raids to attack the supply side and discourage the spread and marketing of the drug, though the great majority of those in prison for cannabis are either there for simple possession or small scale dealing.[citation needed]

Use of capital punishment against the cannabis trade

Several countries have either carried out or legislated capital punishment for cannabis trafficking.

Country Status Notes
Saudi Arabia Sentenced An Iraqi man named Mattar bin Bakhit al-Khazaali was convicted of smuggling hashish and was executed in the northern town of Arar, close to the Iraqi border.
Indonesia Available In 1997, the Indonesian government under international pressure[citation needed] added the death penalty as a punishment for those convicted of drugs in their country. The law has yet to be enforced on any significant, well-established drug dealers. Rather, the trend has been to execute unknown, first time and clueless, alleged drug traffickers, who don't have the cunning, resources, and contacts to persuade the authorities to set them free. The former Indonesian President, Megawati Sukarnoputri announced Indonesia's intent to implement a fierce war on drugs in 2002. She called for the execution of all drug dealers. "For those who distribute drugs, life sentences and other prison sentences are no longer sufficient," she said. "No sentence is sufficient other than the death sentence." Indonesia's new president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, also proudly supports executions for drug dealers. [60]
Malaysia Has been used Mustaffa Kamal Abdul Aziz, 38 years old, and Mohd Radi Abdul Majid, 53 years old, were executed at dawn on January 17, 1996, for the trafficking of 1.2 kilograms of cannabis. [61]
Philippines No Longer Used The Philippines abolished the death penalty on June 24, 2006. The Philippines introduced stronger anti-drug laws, including the death penalty, in 2002. [62] Possession of over 500 grams of marijuana usually earned execution in the Philippines, as did possessing over ten grams of opium, morphine, heroin, ecstasy, or cocaine. Angeles City is often a mecca for Filipino cannabis users and cultivators, although enforcement has been inconsistent.[63].
United Arab Emirates Sentenced In the United Arab Emirates city of Fujairah, a woman named Lisa Tray was sentenced to death in December 2004, after being found guilty of possessing and dealing hashish. Undercover officers in Fujairah claim they caught Tray with 149 grams of hashish. Tray claims that her stepfather had given her the bag of hashish to deliver to someone, but didn't know its contents. Her lawyers have appealed the sentence.
Thailand Frequently Used Death penalty is possible for drug offenses under Thai law. Extra-judicial killings also alleged. [64]
Singapore Frequently Used Death penalty carried out many times for cannabis trafficking. (July 20 2004) A convicted drug trafficker, Raman Selvam Renganathan, 39, who stored 2.7 kilogrammes of cannabis or marijuana in a Singapore flat was hanged in Changi Prison. He was sentenced to death September 1, 2004 after an eight-day trial. (The Straits Times, July 20 2004).
People's Republic of China Frequently Used Death penalty is exercised regularly for drug offenses under Chinese law, often in an annual frenzy corresponding to the United Nations' International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Drug Trafficking [65] The government does not make precise records public, however Amnesty International estimates that around 500 people are executed there each year for drug offenses. Those executed have typically been convicted of smuggling or trafficking in anything from cannabis to methamphetamine.
United States Available Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (himself an admitted former marijuana smoker [66]), in 1996, proposed to introduce a mandatory death penalty for a second offense of smuggling 50 grams of marijuana into the United States, in the proposed law H.R. 4170. [67] This proposal failed.

Current Federal law (1994 Crime Act) sets the threshold for a possible death sentence for marijuana offenses at 60,000 kilograms or 60,000 plants (including seedlings) regardless of weight. The death penalty is also possible for running a continuing criminal enterprise that distributes marijuana and receives more than $20 million in proceeds in one year, regardless of the weight of marijuana involved.

The United States Supreme Court has held that no crimes other than murder can constitutionally carry a death sentence (Coker v. Georgia)

Non-drug purposes

Main article: Hemp

Hemp is the common name for cannabis and the name most used (in English) when this annual herb is grown for non-drug purposes. These include the industrial purposes for which cultivation licences may be issued in the European Union (EU). When grown for industrial purposes hemp is often called industrial hemp, and a common product is fibre for use in a variety of different ways. Fuel is often a by-product of hemp cultivation.

Hemp may be grown also for food (the seed) but in the UK at least (and probably in other EU countries) cultivation licences are not available for this purpose. Within Defra (the UK's Department for the Environment, Food and the Rural Affairs) hemp is treated as purely a non-food crop, despite the fact that seed can and does appear on the UK market as a perfectly legal food product.

In the UK, at least, the seed and fibre have been always perfectly legal products. Cultivation for non drug purposes was however completely prohibited from 1928 until circa 1998, when Home Office industrial-purpose licenses became available under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

If industrial strains of the herb are intended for legal use within the EU then they are bred to be compliant with regulations which limit potential THC content to 0.2%. (THC content is a measure of the herb's drug potential and can reach 20% or more in drug strains). In Canada the THC limit is 1%.

Millennia of selective breeding have resulted in varieties that look quite different. Also, breeding since circa 1930 has focused quite specifically on producing strains which would perform very poorly as sources of drug material.

Hemp grown for fibre is planted closely, resulting in tall, slender plants with long fibers. Ideally, according to Defra in 2004, the herb should be harvested before it flowers. This early cropping is because fibre quality begins to decline as flowering starts and, incidentally, this cropping also pre-empts the herb’s maturity as potentially a source of drug material. UK licence conditions actually oblige farmers, however, to allow some flowering so that flower material can be tested for its drug potential.

Cannabis for religious use

Further information: Spiritual use of cannabis

Cannabis has an ancient history of ritual usage as a trance inducing drug and is found in pharmacological cults around the world. Hemp seeds discovered by archaeologists at Pazyryk suggest early ceremonial practices by the Scythians occurred during the 5th to 2nd century BC, confirming previous historical reports by Herodotus. In India, it has been engaged by itinerant sadhus for centuries, and in modern times the Rastafari movement has embraced it. Some historians and etymologists have claimed that cannabis was engaged as a religious sacrament by Muslims of the Sufi order.[citation needed]

See also

Further reading

References

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  39. ^ "Drug Bill Veto Sparks Mexico City Marijuana Smoke-In". Fox News. 2006-06-05. Retrieved 2006-05-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  40. ^ "?". DutchNews.nl. 2007-03-21. Retrieved 2007-03-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); External link in |publisher= (help)
  41. ^ Washington Post Changing Patterns in Social Fabric Test Netherlands
  42. ^ Rotterdamse gemeente doekt 27 coffeeshops
  43. ^ SFS 1968:64
  44. ^ UNODC: Sweden’s successful drug policy, 2007
  45. ^ Art. 8 par. 1 lit. d of the Federal Narcotics Law
  46. ^ Art. 19 of the Federal Narcotics Law
  47. ^ See the message to Parliament accompanying the government's decriminalization proposal; Federal Official Journal (BBl/FO) 2001 3715, p. 3719/21
  48. ^ 1999 Cannabis Report of the Federal Narcotics Commission, p. 18.
  49. ^ Id. at 20.
  50. ^ Ibid.
  51. ^ Message to Parliament, op.cit., at 3733.
  52. ^ 1999 Cannabis Report, op.cit., at 47.
  53. ^ Id. at 46, note 8.
  54. ^ Message to Parliament, op.cit., at 3721.
  55. ^ See documentation available under docket no. 01.024 on the Parliament website.
  56. ^ See the English language website of the campaign.
  57. ^ "Home Office- Class B to Class C". Retrieved 2006-03-27.
  58. ^ "Dutch Politicians Seek Marijuana Rules". Retrieved 2006-02-25.
  59. ^ "Marijuana fight nears". Retrieved 2006-02-17.
  60. ^ http://www.cannabisculture.com/articles/4092.html
  61. ^ http://www.amnesty.it/news/1996/32800196.htm
  62. ^ http://www.stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/241/philippines.shtml
  63. ^ http://www.preda.org/work/child%20rescue/minreport.html
  64. ^ http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2003/05/264281.shtml
  65. ^ http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/192/chinakillings.shtml
  66. ^ http://www.norml.org/pdf_files/NORML_Report_Sixty_Years_US_Prohibition.pdf
  67. ^ http://www.mpp.org/archive/newtdth.html

Novel excerpts

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