CANNABIS PROTEST TARGETS WESTMINSTER

SUPPORTERS of the cannabis campaigner Biz Ivol staged a protest at
Westminster yesterday to back moves to legalise the drug for medicinal use.

Mrs Ivol, a multiple sclerosis sufferer from South Ronaldsay, Orkney, left
hospital at the weekend after a suicide attempt. Yesterday's protest was le
d
by Chris Baldwin, who also suffers from MS and is a pioneer of cannabis
cafes in Sussex. He had bail restrictions lifted to allow him to visit Mrs
Ivol last week.

A petition supporting Mrs Ivol, drawn up by the Legalise Cannabis Alliance,
has been signed by more than 1,200 people. Mrs Ivol, who is
wheelchair-bound, went on trial facing charges of cultivating, possessing
and supplying cannabis. The charges referred to cannabis-laced chocolates
she admitted sending to other MS sufferers.

However, the Crown dropped the case because of her medical condition. She
attempted to take her own life the next morning and has vowed to try again.