B.C. MARIJUANA PARTY RUNS CANDIDATE IN RICHMOND CENTRE

Members of the pro-pot public in Richmond now have a reason to get out to
the polls in the coming provincial election.

Nineteen-year-old Alice Kan-Halford, a recent graduate of R.C. Palmer
secondary, has stepped forward as the latest addition to the B.C. Marijuana
Party, running as a candidate in Richmond Centre.

Kan-Halford, an admitted "recreational" user of marijuana, said the
government must stop interfering with an individual's choices - like
smoking pot.

"I strongly believe marijuana should be legalized," she said.

That philosophy also extends to harder drug use, including heroin and cocaine.

"People should be free to take whatever they want into their bodies,"
Kan-Halford said.

By decriminalizing drugs, the crime rate gets reduced and drug users get
what they need in a clean and safe environment, she said.

But the B.C. Marijuana Party isn't just about bringing drug use above
ground. In pamphlets distributed by Kan-Halford, the party tackles several
issues, including legalizing brothels to give better protection to
prostitutes. Its ultimate purpose, the pamphlets state, is to "reverse the
trend of government control over our daily lives."

"We believe that people should be free to make decisions about their own
bodies and beliefs, without undue restriction from the government or police."

Kan-Halford said, so far, she's got a "mixed reaction" from Richmond
citizens on her party's message.

"Some people were horrified and appalled (by the party platform). Some
people were nice," she said of her pre-campaign discussions with citizens
over the past two weeks.

Those who expressed interest, she said, varied in age, family status and
ethnicity.

"It was a wide-range of people."

Campaigning from the B.C. Marijuana Party's headquarters on West Hastings
Street in Vancouver, Kan-Halford promised to make herself "highly visible"
in Richmond in the coming election, using her language skills in both
English and Cantonese to bring her message to as many people as possible.

Kan-Halford is married and works full-time as assistant manager for the
B.C. Marijuana Party Bookshop in Vancouver.