MARIJUANA LAWS TOO STRINGENT, MDS SAY

Canada's leading medical journal has added its voice to a growing
call to decriminalize marijuana by saying that Canadians caught with
small amounts of pot should not be saddled with the "indelible
tattoo" of a criminal record.

The Canadian Medical Association Journal, the publication of the
association which represents the country's 50,000 doctors, will urge
Justice Minister Anne McLellan to liberalize the country's cannabis
laws in an editorial to be published today.

"The minimal negative health effects of moderate use would be
attested to by the estimated 1.5 million Canadians who smoke
marijuana for recreational purposes," says the journal. While the
editorial applauds the recent initiative to legalize marijuana for
medical purposes, it says a "bolder strike" is now needed.

"The decriminalization of marijuana possession for personal use does
not mean making marijuana legal or letting it be sold in every
schoolyard," the journal writes. "It does mean possession of small
amounts for personal use would become a civil offence, like a traffic
violation, not a criminal one."

The call for decriminalization comes amid Senate hearings on drug
laws in which the major theme emerging so far is that Canada's
possession law is too paternalistic.

At hearings on Monday, several experts testified about the high
financial and social costs of outlawing possession and one witness
called for an end to the "coercive sanctions" of the Criminal Code.

On the same day that Canada was under pressure to decriminalize, the
United States Supreme Court took the opposite tack, dealing a crucial
blow to sick Americans seeking medical marijuana by upholding the
illegality of the drug.

The Canadian Medical Association Journal details the "legal and
social fallout" of continuing to criminalize possession of small
amounts, a law that resulted in 31,299 convictions in 1995, the
editorial says.

"Many lead to jail terms or fines and all result in that indelible
social tattoo: a criminal record.

"This means that for anyone who's ever been caught with a stash in
his or her pocket, the question 'Have you ever had a criminal
conviction?' during a job application or medical school interview can
force higher aspirations to go up in a puff of smoke."

A spokeswoman for McLellan said the minister welcomes debate on
decriminalization of marijuana but has no immediate plan to drop
possession from the Criminal Code.

"It is far too complex to just move ahead without fully understanding
what the social, what the legal and what the educational impacts may
be," said Farah Mohammed.

Among other things, the government is awaiting the outcome of the
special Senate committee on illegal drugs, which was struck last year.

On Monday, sociologist Andrew Hathaway echoed the sentiment of three
other expert witnesses when he told the committee that Canada must
drop "coercive sanctions" for marijuana possession.

"Why the need of the criminal justice machinery of the state to stop
people from doing what they choose to do?" he asked. "A lot of these
illicit drugs are less harmful than the ones we accept."

In an interview, Hathaway said the federal government is moving in
the right direction on drug policy by exploring the prospect of
setting up safe injection sites for heroin addicts in major cities
such as Vancouver and Montreal.

The sites, which would provide junkies with a place to safely inject
themselves, already exist in Europe.

Tory Senator Pierre Claude Nolin, who has already said marijuana
possession has no place in the Criminal Code, said the message to
decriminalize has been delivered loud and clear from witnesses who
have appeared at the committee so far.