POT LAWS MINEFIELD FOR FEDS

Marijuana: A Growing Debate

This is the second of four stories examining the place of marijuana in
Canadian society. Companion reports will be broadcast by Global news today
on its evening and late newcasts.

It's a dreary afternoon near the Berri-UQaM metro, and business is slow for
the handful of drug dealers working the western fringe of the Gay Village.

Ask any one of them, and they could offer a neat summary of the conundrum
that Canadian policy-makers face in regard to marijuana legislation.

"Probably the worst thing that could happen to me is if they legalized the
stuff," said a pot-seller who identified himself only as Spike.

And what about decriminalization?

"It doesn't affect me a bit. People want the stuff."

"They'll go wherever to buy it," Spike said before moving off to make a
sales pitch to a group of passers-by.

For a government that has signaled its intention to liberalize marijuana
laws, the likeliest option is the one that is least palatable to those
involved in the debate.

Decriminalization, where pot possession would be treated like a traffic
ticket rather than a criminal offence, is seen by many as a political
solution, a middle-ground compromise that doesn't satisfy anyone.

Law enforcement doesn't like decriminalization because police believe the
biker-controlled black market in pot will continue unfettered.

Pro-marijuana advocates don't like it because, in the words of one, "just
because you're being beaten over the head with a smaller stick doesn't mean
you enjoy being beaten over the head."

People in the drug-treatment field don't like it because it sends mixed
messages to teenagers: you can have it, but you can't buy it; it's bad for
you, but you're allowed to smoke it.

Decriminalization also has its opponents in Parliament.

"It's a false liberalization, and it doesn't solve any real problems

. . . but I suppose we're dealing with what's politically possible, not
with what's ideal for Canadians," said Senator Pierre-Claude Nolin, the
Tory chairman of a committee that recommended a form of legalization
(marijuana would be controlled and sold in much the same way as wine) in a
report published last month.

In Montreal, feelings are split concerning the policy direction government
should take.

A poll by SOM Recherches et Sondages commissioned by The Gazette and Global
TV indicates opinion falls evenly between the status quo, legalization and
decriminalization.

This city's attitude toward cannabis has been historically liberal, but in
the study conducted Oct. 10-17, the polling firm found 54.7 per cent of
people here favour laxer laws, slightly above the national trend.

Asked about specific options, 33.5 per cent of respondents opted for
legalization, 32.4 per cent favoured prohibition, and 29.7 per cent chose
decriminalization.

Among francophones 38.6 per cent favoured legalization (vs. 27.4 per cent
for anglophones). Of the anglos polled, 40 per cent picked prohibition as
their preferred option.

"I think most of the people who want to make pot legal would accept
decriminalization as a sort of middle step. Add both groups together, and
they form the majority opinion in this city," said Guy Larocque, a SOM analyst.

As a whole, Canada overwhelmingly supports medicinal marijuana, and polls
conducted since the mid-1990s show a slight majority in favour of
decriminalization.

That's as far as the public is willing to go in liberalizing cannabis laws,
says federal Justice Minister Martin Cauchon. He has suggested he will
bring forth a decriminalization bill early next year because current
criminal penalties for possession are out of step with public opinion.

"When you look at the polls, people are very much supporting the notion of
decriminalizing," he said recently in Montreal.

Cauchon also said decriminalization removes the stigma of a criminal record
for minor cannabis offences while still providing law enforcement with the
tools to continue fighting organized crime.

But McGill psychiatry professor Dr. Mark Zocolillo says the idea of taking
possession out of the Criminal Code could have disastrous effects on young
people.

"The government has been slowly liberalizing laws without putting in any
other social controls or resources to deal with it," said Zocolillo, who
specializes in child psychiatry.

According to a recent study by the Institut de Statistique du Quebec, about
60 per cent of 16-year-olds in the province have used drugs, as have about
15 per cent of 13-year-olds.

The SOM poll indicates 68.7 per cent of respondents age 18-24 admit to
using pot at least once.

Decriminalization doesn't provide an adequate framework for curbing drug
use among teens, said Zocolillo, who thinks the government isn't taking
this facet of the issue seriously.

"Kids are going to school stoned," he warned. "We did a study in 1999 which
showed almost a quarter of adolescents in Quebec use marijuana regularly.
... The question that isn't being answered is: do we want our adolescents
spending part of the day high?"

The Canadian Police Association also thinks Cauchon wants to go too far.

The police association contends that pot is essentially decriminalized now;
most courts don't punish simple possession with jail terms, and young
offenders are usually sentenced through alternative measures like community
service.

The association, which represents 30,000 police officers nationwide, says
the move to "decriminalization by stealth" hasn't stemmed drug use, and it
advocates tougher laws.

"We need to ask ourselves what type of society we want. Do we want to
reduce the consumption of drugs or not?" said Mike Niebudek, an RCMP
officer who is vice-president of the CPA.

The federal Marijuana Party and the Bloc Pot formally oppose
decriminalization because they say it serves no real purpose.

Pot activist Blair Longley says the government is dragging its feet on
liberalization because it hopes the Supreme Court will do the job first.

There are three marijuana cases scheduled to go before the country's top
court next month.

"I think people in the pro-cannabis world cling to the belief that this
will be their Morgentaler decision (which overturned federal abortion
laws)," said Longley, who recently relocated to Montreal from B.C.

Other proponents of liberal laws, like Universite de Montreal criminologist
Serge Brochu, say they'd settle for decriminalization because it's a step
toward changing the way society views drugs.

Nolin, who isn't exactly the archetypal legalization activist, said it
"doesn't mean being more permissive. It means having it out in the open, it
actually allows for more control, just not through police and the courts."

There's another factor behind Cauchon's decision-making: the federal
government is under pressure from the White House, which has aggressively
pursued the fight against marijuana.

A former Canadian diplomat who worked in Washington said U.S. officials
oppose even token attempts to liberalize laws and exert constant pressure
on this country's embassy officials.

In recent visits to Canada, American drug czar John Walters hinted that the
U.S. could enact tighter border controls in retaliation for laxer pot laws
here.

A recent Time/CNN poll showed American public opinion lags behind Canada's,
but it's heading in the same direction. In next week's congressional
elections, Nevada voters are expected to approve Proposition 9, an
off-ballot initiative that would allow people to possess up to 85 grams of
marijuana.

Cauchon says his hands are tied, largely because Canada is a signatory to
at least three international conventions on illegal drugs that prevent the
government from going farther.

An official from the UN's anti-drug agency said that's true, but suggested
that world opinion is changing, especially in light of liberal drug
policies in countries like Britain, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and Holland.

The United Nations is formally opposed to laxer pot laws in Canada, but the
official, speaking privately at a recent drug conference, said "Countries
are growing more receptive to the question of liberalization. ... countries
like Canada, the U.K., to lead the way over the next five or 10 years."

Next week: Who are the users and suppliers?

Web-site readers join the debate

The opinions below were from among dozens of readers who

E-mailed Canada.com.

The criminalization of marijuana is an anachronism given the relatively
benign effects of consumption vs. alcohol or tobacco. ... In fact, the
ability of the various governments to tax this product if mass-produced,
packaged and brought to the open market by legitimate manufacturers will
ultimately be of benefit to society.

A ton of people come to this city to drink every year. Bring relaxed
marijuana laws into the picture and we'd have every single pothead in North
America pumping money into our economy. Munchies don't come cheap!

More and more kids are doing marijuana, in part because of the growing
relaxed attitude toward the drug. Because of this, kids are experiencing
harder times in school, in the family and their social lives. ... The fact
remains marijuana is an addictive substance.

I smoke marijuana. I'm not addicted, and I don't believe that you can be. I
have gone through long periods smoking it and have no problems. On the
other hand, I've tried numerous times to quit smoking cigarettes and have
not succeeded yet.

What do you think about the marijuana debate? Should it be legalized? Share
your views with us in our SOUNDOFF debate at canada.com/montreal. Type in
Montreal marijuana in the Searchword field at the top of our site. Our
marijuana section will also have Global video and links to Internet sources
on the issue.