LEGALIZE MARIJUANA, FEDS URGED

It's high time the federal government legalized the possession of
marijuana for those over 16 years old and licensed its sale, a special
Senate committee recommended yesterday.

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

"Hence our preference for legalization over decriminalization."

However, the Senate committee's proposal risks triggering an emotional
and divisive debate. No sooner had it been made public than the
Canadian Police Association condemned the report, calling it a
"back-to-school gift for drug pushers."

"Unfortunately, there are too many politicians playing scientist,"
said David Griffin, executive officer for the group representing
28,000 police officers.

"There is no such thing as safe use of illicit drugs, including
marijuana. Drugs are not dangerous because they are illegal, drugs are
illegal because they are dangerous."

The issue also risks pitting provinces like Quebec and British
Columbia, which tend to be more open toward marijuana, against other
provinces with more rigid attitudes.

In Quebec, which has one of the highest rates of cannabis use in the
country, MPs interviewed yesterday were unanimous in saying pot use
should be decriminalized. However, they were also unanimous in saying
much more study is needed before the government contemplates
legalizing it.

The comments come after the Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs
tabled a nearly 700-page report calling for sweeping changes in the
law.

Over two years, the committee, chaired by Nolin, traveled the country
hearing from experts and ordinary Canadians - even granting some
people parliamentary immunity to allow them to testify freely about
their drug use.

What the committee found is that current laws aren't
working.

"Clearly, current approaches are ineffective and inefficient," it
wrote. "Ultimately, their effect amounts to throwing taxpayers' money
down the drain in a crusade that is not warranted by the danger posed
by the substance."

The billions spent to enforce the law have done little to curb either
the demand or the supply, the committee said.

The solution, it said, is to legalize pot use and set up a system to
license its sale and distribution. It would remain a crime to traffic
or export it.

Youths as young as 16 would be able to legally purchase marijuana, but
consumption in many public places would be prohibited. The threshold
for drunk driving would be lowered to 0.04 for those found to have
used marijuana.

Possession charges have risen sharply in recent years. While 30,499
Canadians were charged in 1995, that number had risen to 70,624 in
2001.

Andre Bachand, Conservative MP for Richmond-Arthabaska, said, "I think
the people in Quebec are more open to legalizing marijuana. If you
think Kyoto can divide western Canada and eastern Canada or central
Canada, wait for marijuana. It's going to be huge."

Bachand also predicted Canada will face opposition from the United
States to any move to liberalize drug laws.

Marlene Jennings, Liberal MP for Notre Dame de Grace-Lachine and a
lawyer by profession, said she favours decriminalization but doesn't
think Canada is ready for legalization.

Jennings freely volunteers that she smoked marijuana years ago. "I
have smoked and I inhaled as hard as I could," she said with a laugh.

Real Menard, Bloc MP for Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, said his party
supports decriminalization but not legalization.

Randy White, Canadian Alliance MP and vice-chairman of a Commons
committee studying the same subject, was sharply critical of the
Senate committee report. "You can't even buy cigarettes or alcohol in
Canada until you are 18, but it would be OK to light up a joint?"

A Plant by Any Other Name ...

What is marijuana? Dried leaves, flowers and stems of the hemp plant
from the genus cannabis. It contains tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which
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 2 million Canadians have used cannabis in the past year and as
many as 100,000 use it daily. Police say as much as 800 tonnes of
cannabis circulates in Canada each year.

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

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, even convulsions.

Highlights of the Report

- -Marijuana and hashish should come under a regulatory system for
production and sale under license for legal use by any Canadian
resident over 16.

- -Looser rules for the use of medical marijuana should provide easier
access.

- -The law should be changed for those who drive after using both
alcohol and marijuana, with blood-alcohol limits lowered to .04 per
cent in such cases.

- -The government should erase the criminal records of 300,000 to
600,000 Canadians convicted of simple possession of marijuana.

- -The government should appoint a national adviser on psychoactive
substances.

- -The government should call a conference of the provinces,
municipalities and other interested parties to set the ground rules
for legal marijuana.

- -The government should finance research on drugs and on prevention and
treatment programs, financed by taxes on the sale of legal marijuana.