POT SHOULD BE SOLD LIKE WINE OR BEER

Senate Recommends Making Marijuana Legal, Granting Amnesty To 600,000

Marijuana should be legalized, regulated, taxed and sold to anyone over age
16, a Senate committee recommended yesterday.

The proposals -- contained in a 600-page report written after two years of
public hearings -- could lead to pot being sold in government-run stores or
even corner groceries, like tobacco or wine, said Conservative Sen.
Pierre-Claude Nolin, a committee co-chairman.

Inquiry members agreed more harm than good is being done by making
marijuana possession a criminal offence, said Liberal Sen. Colin Kenny, the
five-member committee's other co-chairman.

"Whether or not an individual uses marijuana should be a personal choice
that is not subject to criminal penalties," Nolin said, adding the
committee believed that keeping the drug illegal, but subject to
non-criminal laws, would not end its production and distribution by
organized crime.

"We have come to the conclusion that, as a drug, it should be regulated by
the state as much as we do for wine and beer."

The senators made it clear that while they aren't endorsing the drug, they
believe Canadians want pot use regarded as a matter of personal choice and
not as a crime.

"Scientific evidence overwhelmingly indicates that cannabis is
substantially less harmful than alcohol and should not be treated as a
criminal issue but as a social and public health issue," said Nolin.

"Canadians from every walk of life told us loud and clear that we should
not be imposing criminal records on users or unduly prohibiting personal
use of cannabis."

The senators are also calling for amnesty for the 600,000 Canadians who
have been convicted of marijuana possession.

"The fact that somebody in some high place has noticed that we're being
persecuted is reassuring," said B.C. Marijuana Party founder Marc Emery.

He estimated that the price of pot could drop from $220 an ounce to between
$30 and $40 in the event of legalization.

"It should be sold in places like Starbucks."

Although it is unclear if the suggestions will ever be adopted by
Parliament, the recommendations could have huge implications for both law
enforcement and taxation -- particularly in B.C., where estimates put the
annual value of pot production at up to $6 billion.

Federal Justice Minister Martin Cauchon said the Senate committee
recommendations would be considered and that related laws are outdated. But
the government won't disclose its next move before early next year, he added.

The changes would require the Canadian government to insist on amendments
to international conventions and treaties that govern illegal drugs, a
particularly sticky point with the U.S., which continues to maintain a hard
line on the subject of marijuana.

Anticipating U.S. opposition to legalization in Canada, Nolin said that
while the White House under President George W. Bush might react
negatively, views vary widely across the U.S. Several states have already
de-criminalized marijuana, Nolin noted.

He added restriction of sales to resident Canadian citizens would also help
curb smuggling to the U.S.

"A look at trends in cannabis use, both among adults and young people,
forces us to admit that current policies are ineffective," the report states.

"Throughout Canada, above all in British Columbia and Quebec, the cannabis
industry is growing, flooding local markets, irritating the United States
and lining the pockets of criminal society."

The Canadian Police Association denounced the committee's recommendations,
saying Nolin and his colleagues began the study with the belief that pot
possession should be legalized and set about to prove their case.

"We are appalled but not surprised," said David Griffin, the association's
executive officer, who called the report "nothing more than a
back-to-school gift for drug pushers."

The association referred to studies it has cited earlier, including during
testimony to the committee, that all drugs can be harmful.

"Drugs are not dangerous because they are illegal; drugs are illegal
because they are dangerous," said Griffin, suggesting the senators were
"playing scientist."

Griffin added the association believes powerful lobbies, which stand to
benefit commercially from the legal distribution and sale of marijuana, are
behind the push for legalization.

The annual cost of drug enforcement in Canada is estimated to be between
$700 million and $1 billion -- and yet Canadian youth appear to have the
highest rate of cannabis use in the world.

The senators believe school drug-prevention strategies should not be led or
delivered by police officers.

Despite the negative health effects of drug use, the government should not
be in the business of controlling human actions such as cannabis
consumption, the committee said.

"We might wish for a drug-free world, fewer smokers or alcoholics or less
prescription drug dependency, but we all know that we shall never be able
to eliminate these problems," the report says. "More importantly, we should
not opt to criminalize them."

FACTS ABOUT MARIJUANA

What is it? Dried leaves, flowers and stems of the hemp plant from the
genus cannabis. It contains tetrahydrocannibol (THC) that can produce an
intoxicating sensation when ingested.

How is it used? Leaves and the concentrated resin known as hashish are
usually smoked.

How many people use it? A new Senate committee report estimates as many as
two million Canadians have used cannabis in the last year and as many as
100,000 use it daily. Police say as much as 800 tonnes of cannabis
circulates in Canada each year.

Justice issues:

- - Cannabis was outlawed in 1923, amid what the Senate report called a
"panic" over drugs.

- - About half of the 90,000 drug incidents reported each year involve
cannabis and up to 600,000 people have criminal records for simple possession.

- - Cost of drug enforcement runs at $1 billion to $1.5 billion a year, with
a third of that related to cannabis.

Effects: The Senate report said cannabis use can cause short-term memory
loss, loss of co-ordination and concentration, but the effects wear off.

High doses or first-time use can also cause anxiety, disorientation,
vomiting and even convulsions.

Other names: Pot, dope, Mary Jane, ganja, hemp, reefer.