DUTCH LAWMAKERS SEEK TO REGULATE POT CROPS

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- In a country where selling small packets of hash
and marijuana is already openly tolerated, farmers in this Dutch nation may
soon be able to grow the soft drug without fear of punishment.

The Dutch parliament adopted a resolution yesterday to tolerate the
cultivation of cannabis and to regulate the crop, government officials said
today.

Legislators from two of the three parties in the government coalition
drafted the motion, which passed the 150-seat chamber by a 73-72 vote.

But the vote was so narrow that Justice Ministry spokesman Victor Holtus
said it was unlikely the cabinet would approve the resolution. It was to be
discussed Friday, and if endorsed, would then be drafted for legislation.

"It sharply contradicts international agreements and we don't live on an
island. It is assumed that the minister won't support it," he said.

The motion avoids using the term "legalization," apparently to curtail
reaction by other countries.

As any tourist to Amsterdam soon learns, some 3,000 "coffee shops" openly
sell hash and marijuana for smoking, or hash cakes and cookies for eating.

But authorities still crack down on the cultivation and supply of it. Tons
of cannabis grown in Dutch fields are impounded each year, even though some
city residents grow it in their window boxes.

"One of the main objectives is to fight crime," said Labor Party
parliamentarian Thanasis Apostolou, who helped draft the motion. "By
regulating the supply we would know who is selling what and where it is going."

But Holtus said the proposal would do nothing to curtail international
crime syndicates.

The sponsors, he said, "want to officially regulate a group of selected
hemp growers so they can keep tabs on the supply. Simply said: it's the
legalization of hemp cultivation. To call this anything else is just
playing word games."

The resolution aims to curb exports -- an illegal business now worth up to
$8.5 billion annually, Apostolou said.