RIGHT TO PUFF SPARKS TIFF

Marijuana Activist Angry at Councillor's E-Mail

A federally licensed medicinal marijuana user is fuming after
receiving correspondence from his city councillor telling him to "Quit
taking up taxpayers' dollars" with a "frivolous" human rights complaint.

Russell Barth lit up a joint in on the lawn of Ottawa City Hall this
weekend as he relayed his disgust at an e-mail he received from Coun.
Gord Hunter in response to an e-mail of his own.

"I am not asking for anything special except the same rights that
tobacco smokers have," he said between puffs. "I don't think I should
be forcing my smoke on other people, but I offer tobacco smokers and
non-smokers far more courtesy than most tobacco smokers do."

Barth e-mailed Hunter on Friday asking to meet in person to discuss
his assertion that his human rights were violated when a cigarette
smoker outside his doctor's office building "asked me to move along."

The local comedian had previously filed a complaint with the Ontario
Human Rights Commission following an incident on May 7 when he and his
wife -- Christine Lowe, who is also a federally licensed user -- were
told not to smoke marijuana outside a comedy club.

Amend Legislation

The complaint states that the government has failed to "amend
legislation to accommodate licensed medical marijuana users" because
the club's liquor licence could be suspended if someone was caught
smoking marijuana on the premises -- even if they have a medicinal
licence.

In Barth's e-mail to Hunter, he asks for a meeting to discuss
"rectifying" the matters that led to the perceived violation of the
couple's rights.

"Tough luck on you that you feel you had your human rights violated,"
Hunter responded in an e-mail. "Tough luck on the taxpayers of Ontario
that you feel this is a serious matter."

The councillor goes on to say if every smoker were to file a human
rights complaint every time someone asked them to move because their
smoke was bothering them, where would we be?

"Bully for you that you can legally smoke dope. I do not feel that
gives you the right to shove it in anyone else's face," Hunter writes.

In a phone conversation on Sunday, Hunter questioned why a
councillor's having told someone what's on his mind would be
considered so rare as to warrant media coverage.

Several Contacts

"You can't actually think this guy has a legitimate complaint to go
before the Human Rights Commission because some people say 'Don't blow
marijuana in my face,'" he said.

Hunter said Barth had contacted his office on several occasions, but
since human rights complaints are not the jurisdiction of a municipal
politician, he had chosen not to respond until this recent exchange.

"Of all the serious human rights complaints there could be ... but his
is about the most frivolous complaint that probably has come across
their desk," he said.

Barth fires back by noting that the Human Rights Act requires the
public and government to accommodate the needs of the disabled. He
says his use of medicinal marijuana falls into this category.

"This is a bigger issue and not just about me wanting to smoke where I
want to, but it's the fact there is this huge hole in the law that
doesn't protect bar owners, that doesn't protect us," he said.