SOFTER MARIJUANA LAW STALLED

Complaints From U.S., Health Worries From McLellan Will Postpone Bill For
At Least Two Weeks

OTTAWA - The federal government's marijuana bill was suddenly postponed
Wednesday, amid Liberal infighting, renewed complaints from the U.S. drug
czar, and a warning from Health Minister Anne McLellan that
decriminalization will cause a spike in drug use.

The bill was expected to be tabled today but Justice Minister Martin
Cauchon said it will not be introduced until at least the last week of May,
when Parliament returns from a week recess.

Government officials were still haggling Wednesday over funding for the new
national drug strategy, a prevention, education and treatment package that
will accompany legislation to relax marijuana laws by removing possession
of less than 15 grams from the Criminal Code.

McLellan, emerging from a Liberal caucus meeting, predicted that
decriminalization will lead to an increase in pot smoking, as it has done
in other countries that have softened their laws, before usage stabilized.

"Certainly one has to be ready to deal with that spike," McLellan said.

"It can lead to addiction, it can lead to all sorts of situations within
local communities. You need to be ready with information, with education,
and with treatment."

Cauchon disputed McLellan's prediction, saying: "I don't believe that.
Today there are 100,000 Canadians using cannabis on a daily basis."

McLellan's words of caution came the day after Cauchon returned from
Washington, where he said he broadly outlined his marijuana bill in a
meeting with a skeptical U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft.

The government has retreated from its initial plan to decriminalize 30
grams or less, about an ounce in the former imperial system of measurement.

Cauchon has also shifted his emphasis to the harsh measures of his
legislation, which will include stiffer penalties against drug traffickers
and marijuana grow operations.

But John Walters, the U.S. director of national drug policy, said Wednesday
he does not buy Canada's pitch as he repeated his warning that
decriminalization will lead to holdups at the border as officers check for
drugs.

In an interview, Walters denounced the plan to decriminalize even 15 grams,
particularly considering the increasing prevalence of a potent strain,
known as B.C. bud, which he described as the "crack" of marijuana.

"It's too much, it should be zero," said Walters. "If you want to control a
drug problem or an addictive substance problem, you have to work on demand
and supply."

Walters described Canada's drug problem as "out of control," with marijuana
grow operations run by organized crime escalating across the country.

Cauchon has said Canada intends to hand out fines to small-time users so
they will not be saddled with criminal records.

"As justice minister I will do what I think is best for the Canadian
population," said Cauchon.

He would not discuss his meeting with Ashcroft, saying only that he gave
his U.S. counterpart the "general principles"of his coming marijuana bill.

Critics of the U.S.'s outspoken stand against decriminalization point out
that 12 states also have decriminalization.

The crack in the federal cabinet was echoed in the lower ranks of the
party, where two backbenchers said they oppose the government's
decriminalization plan.

"Certainly I'm not going to vote for it," said Niagara Falls MP Gary
Pillitteri. "I've never condoned it in my household and I couldn't see
doing that in the future."