BRITAIN LEANING TO OK POT USE

Brixton Experiment Prompts Much Debate

LONDON -- A sudden and unexpected movement to loosen controls on marijuana
use is sweeping Britain, gaining bipartisan support and setting the stage
for possible decriminalization of the drug, which is extremely popular in
the country.

Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has promised a hard-line approach to drug
abuse, has not spoken out, but senior figures in his Labor Party have called
for the use of small amounts of marijuana to go unpunished. Surprisingly,
some leaders in the Conservative Party have agreed that the time has come to
change the law.

Newly appointed Home Secretary David Blunkett has called for an "adult,
rational debate" on the subject, showing far more openness than his
predecessor, Jack Straw, who frequently ruled out easing any laws governing
"soft drug" use.

Blunkett spoke out after two former home secretaries -- including one who is
a longtime mentor to the prime minister -- called for an end to criminal
sanctions for marijuana use.

Michael Portillo, the leading candidate in the race to become Conservative
Party leader, joined the chorus this week by suggesting that a strong enough
case for legalization of marijuana has been made. Some politicians have
suggested that marijuana be sold in licensed stores and taxed, as it is in
the Netherlands.

The epicenter of change is the predominantly African and Caribbean
neighborhood of Brixton, where police have announced a 6-month experiment.
During that time, they will not charge people found to be smoking or
carrying marijuana with any criminal offense if the quantity involved is
small.

Instead of being formally charged, pot smokers will have to surrender their
drugs and will receive a warning that carries no criminal penalty.

The sudden announcement of a no-prosecution zone has delighted Brixton's
many Rastafarians who trace their family roots to Jamaica. Many of them
regard marijuana use as part of their religious activity and use the drug
daily.

Now they can light up without fear, said David Clarke.

"It's safer than alcohol and cigarettes," he said. "It makes sense to change
the law. They should change the law in the whole country."

Clarke said Brixton police have for several years turned a blind eye on
casual marijuana use in the neighborhood and concentrated instead on dealers
of hard drugs. He said the new policy makes official -- at least for 6
months -- the unstated policy that was already in place.

"It's been happening for a long time with no molestation from the police,"
he said. "It hasn't been enforced lately, if it's a small amount. It depends
on the amount."

The pot-tolerant policy angers some people in Brixton, particularly
shopkeepers who say they have found a rise in street crime to be associated
with the widespread drug use in the downtown area. Blacks who own small
businesses in downtown Brixton said they resented the way their neighborhood
had been chosen for the pilot project.

"It's not a good idea," said Kwaku Nyami, who runs a small food shop near
the Brixton market, where drugs are openly sold. "Some people use it
excessively, and it gives them mental problems. It's a crazy idea to try it
here. They should try it somewhere else. We already have a lot of
drug-related problems."

He said it's unfair to start the new policy in a poor, largely black
community that is susceptible to drug abuse.

"I'm not aware of the police asking anyone in the community about it," he
said. "At the end of the day, it's their decision, but I don't support it."

Others said they were worried that the Brixton area would become a lure for
drug-using youths from other parts of Britain and the rest of Europe. This
phenomenon of so-called drug tourism has caused problems in the Netherlands,
where border towns have become a magnet for marijuana users from Germany,
France and other countries.

Some local businessmen said they are not troubled by the policy shift, and
said it recognizes the reality that the police do not have the manpower to
shut down the marijuana dealers and should instead concentrate on those
selling heroin and crack.

Shoe salesman Errol Brady said the police can put the ubiquitous marijuana
dealers out of business for several hours but not for an entire day.

"They can't stop it," he said. "Not much has changed with this policy.... I
think the drug money helps Brixton, actually. I get a lot of it here. You
can tell. People come in and buy expensive shoes with a lot of small bills
and coins."

The decision not to enforce marijuana laws in Brixton contrasts with the
rest of Britain, where marijuana is still listed as a Class B drug, with
anyone found possessing it facing up to 5 years in prison. Many now call for
it to be reclassified as a Class C drug, which would mean that someone found
carrying a small amount would not face criminal charges.

In the past few weeks, the current policy has been denounced by a wide
variety of public figures and newspaper writers. Among those calling for
modification are Lord Jenkins, a former home secretary from the Labor Party
who is close to the current prime minister, and Lord Baker, who served as
home secretary from the Conservative Party in the 1990s.

Lord Baker said the policy no longer makes sense. "To fill our prisons with
marijuana users is a bum use of prisons," he said.

Sir David Ramsbotham, the outgoing chief inspector of prisons, this week
called for decriminalization of drug use as a step toward helping drug users
and their families.

Bruce Anderson, a columnist for the Independent newspaper, said a shift in
public attitude was also revealed when the British public failed to react to
disclosures by a number of Conservative Party leaders that they had used
marijuana in the past.

This allowed senior politicians who had privately felt that marijuana laws
no longer made sense to speak out on the matter without fear of public
censure, opening the way for reform, he said. As a result, he said, British
laws against marijuana use had begun "to crumble."