'OF COURSE I TRIED' POT, CAUCHON SAYS

May Relax Possession Laws

OTTAWA -- Martin Cauchon, the Justice Minister, confessed yesterday that
"of course" he has smoked pot.

Jean Chretien, the Prime Minister, on the other hand, said he didn't even
know what marijuana was when he was growing up.

They made their admissions yesterday as the federal government contemplates
decriminalizing possession of marijuana so people who smoke for
recreational purposes would be slapped with a fine rather than a criminal
record.

Cauchon, one of the youngest members of the federal Cabinet, said it was
obvious that many people his age had tried pot at one time or another.

"I'm 39 years old," he told reporters. "Yes, of course I tried it before,
obviously. My own experience can't tell you if it's harmful or not."

He acknowledged it could be unfair that people such as himself could be
branded criminals and prevented from obtaining jobs just because they
experimented with drugs in their youth.

"The question that you raise is a very good question in our society," he said.

Chretien, 68, tripped over the pronunciation of the word marijuana when he
was asked whether he'd ever smoked the stuff.

"For me, I don't know these things," he said. "When I was young, the word
marijuana did not exist. I learned about the word long after that. It was
too late for me to try it."

But Chretien appeared to retreat from his position of one year ago, when he
said decriminalizing marijuana was "not part of the agenda at this time."

The Prime Minister said he is now leaving the matter up to his Justice
Minister.

Cauchon said he wants to wait for the recommendations of Senate and House
of Commons committees before deciding whether to wipe marijuana possession
from the Criminal Code and make it a non-criminal offence that is
punishable by a fine rather than an arrest.

The Senate committee, which has been studying the prospect for more than a
year, is expected to recommend later this summer Canada relax its
possession laws.

The Justice Minister joined a list of several other Canadian politicians
who have already admitted they have tried marijuana, including Ralph Klein,
the Alberta Premier, and former Canadian Alliance leader Stockwell Day.

Cauchon, like other politicians, said he no longer smokes.