POT DECRIMINALIZATION A LONG, SLOW INHALE

JUSTICE MINISTER Martin Cauchons announcement that he will introduce
legislation that would decriminalize the possession of marijuana
induces deja vu rather than an altered state of consciousness.

In anticipation of a Commons committee report scheduled to be released
tomorrow, Mr. Cauchons proposal will reduce the penalty for possession
of less than 30 grams of pot to a fine similar to those rendered for
parking tickets. Under the present law, possession is punishable by a
$1,000 fine and a jail term of up to six months.

The Commons committees recommendation falls short of a Senate
committees proposal to legalize the use of marijuana for Canadians 16
and older. Even so, the decriminalization debate is likely to be long
and loud just as it was 32 years ago, when the LeDain Drug Inquiry
Commission tabled its report on the same issue.

One of the LeDain Commissions recommendations was that no one should be
liable to imprisonment for simple possession of a psychotropic drug for
non-medical purposes.

The federal health minister of the time, John Munro, said legislation
would be introduced that would call for fines rather than jail for
possession of pot. That legislation never passed; and now, a
generation later, its Mr. Cauchons turn to try to change Canadas
marijuana laws.

In that regard, this country is caught between the war-on-drugs
mentality of the United States and the more lenient attitude of the
Europeans. The government-licenced smoking cafes of Amsterdam in The
Netherlands are unique, but France, Germany, Spain and Italy have
either decriminalized marijuana or relaxed the enforcement of existing
laws. Britains government also plans to downgrade its penalties.

The U.S., however, remains hard-line. In a referendum last month, the
voters of Nevada, a state that has legalized gambling and
prostitution, rejected the decriminalization of marijuana.

If Mr. Cauchon succeeds where others before him failed, Canadas stance
on pot-possession will be avant-garde compared with that of the U.S.,
but far more conservative than the policies of most European
countries.

Of course, the debate over marijuana will not end if the proposed
legislation passes. The growing and selling of pot will continue to be
criminal offences. And the medical use of cannabis will be a
complicating factor.

Decriminalizing marijuana may put Canada at odds with the U.S., but it
would hardly make us Amsterdam North.