LEGALIZE MARIJUANA: SENATE

OTTAWA (CP) -- Pot smoking should be legal for any resident over 16, a
Senate committee said Wednesday in a sweeping recommendation that goes
beyond decriminalization or even the kind of tolerance in such
cannabis-friendly jurisdictions as the Netherlands.

The report was hailed by marijuana activists but fiercely condemned by the
Canadian Police Association which called it "a back-to-school gift for drug
pushers."

Senator Pierre Claude Nolin, chairman of the special committee that drafted
the report, acknowledged the issue remains in the hands of the federal
government and said nothing is likely to happen quickly.

A House if Commons committee is expected to issue a report on illicit drugs
in November. Justice Minister Martin Cauchon said the government will study
those findings and won't unveil its position before early next year.

Cauchon wouldn't say whether he feels the time has come for legalization,
but he did suggest current marijuana laws are outdated.

"We must be able to evolve at the pace of society," he said in Quebec City.
"It strikes me as unlikely that someone could have a criminal record after
being arrested for simple possession.

"When we have legislation that's not really being enforced because it's no
longer consistent with social realities, it's important for a government to
look at and reshape such legislation."

While all political parties support decriminalization, legalization is a
big step beyond that. The former would make it legal to possess small
amounts of cannabis for personal use; the latter could see it sold at
government outlets, even corner stores.

The report said the current system of prohibition simply doesn't work and
should be replaced by a regulated system, perhaps like that used for
alcohol, with cannabis available to anyone 16 or older.

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

The senators called for an amnesty for the 300,000 to 600,000 Canadians who
have a criminal record for simple possession of cannabis.

They also recommended improvements to ease access to medicinal marijuana
for people undergoing cancer chemotherapy or those suffering from glaucoma
or chronic pain.

Health Minister Anne McLellan said it's "too soon to say" if there will be
changes to the regulations on medical pot, adding there's a need for
careful trials.

David Griffin, executive director of the Canadian Police Association, said
he was appalled by the report.

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

The association said drugs, crime and violence go hand in hand, but Nolin
said marijuana use doesn't lead to violence and legalizing it will
eliminate the organized drug traffickers who may use violence.

Nolin said scientific studies found that cannabis is not addictive and has
few, if any, long-term effects. The report also concluded that the
long-held view that cannabis use leads to abuse of harder drugs such as
cocaine and heroin, is wrong.

Nolin said liberalization policies in other countries have produced
short-term rises in the number of users, but that this effect levelled off
and eventually dropped.

He said the senators recommended legalization over decriminalization
because the latter would leave the production and sale of cannabis in the
hands of organized crime.

Nolin said the idea is not to encourage marijuana use, but to regulate it,
saving hundreds of millions in annual drug-enforcement costs.

Marc Boris Saint-Maurice, leader of the Marijuana Party, welcomed the
report, joking that Nolin should become senator for his party. But
Saint-Maurice didn't see the report as a breakthrough.

"The big challenge, now, is to see those recommendations translated in the
reality," he said.

MP Keith Martin of the Canadian Alliance, a medical doctor, called the
report an important step in reforming drug laws, but said it should have
gone for decriminalization, not legalization.

"Decriminalization will decrease pot use, unlike full legalization, which
will only serve to make Canada an even greater haven for organized crime,"
Martin said.

The Senate report said marijuana was banned in 1923 amid "a moral panic,
racist sentiment and a notorious absence of debate."

The report comes three months before the Supreme Court of Canada is to hear
a constitutional challenge to the legality of the marijuana laws and
follows a two-year committee study of public policy related to marijuana.