POLICE ROUST POTHEAD PARTY

Rally For Legalization

The Marijuana Party didn't have the right papers when it rolled into
Winnipeg yesterday.

Canada's newest grassroots political party had high hopes of getting
its legalization message out, but police doused a rally at the Old
Market Square bandstand because the pro-dopers didn't have a permit.

"If we were promoting giving money to homeless people I don't know who
would have called to complain, but you put up a marijuana leaf and all
hell breaks loose," said Marijuana Party Leader Marc-Boris St-Maurice.

St-Maurice hung a banner and was running a sound system when he was
told to leave by a representative of the Exchange District Biz, which
has a lease with the city to operate the bandstand.

SHUT DOWN PEACEFULLY

Police were called in to mediate and the rally was shut down
peacefully.

"It really becomes a question of if we overlook some use of permits it
creates a problem when other groups want to use the area without a
permit; it creates a precedent," BIZ executive director Wayne Copet
said, adding he didn't know what the group was promoting.

The Marijuana Party hopes its main platform plank of legalizing weed
will get voters off the pot to elect its candidates in the next
federal election.

"Realistically, 600,000 Canadians have criminal records for
marijuana," St-Maurice said. "If we had candidates in every riding I
would expect all of those people voting for us, which is a pretty
respectable number."

The party is an offshoot of Bloc Pot, which St-Maurice founded in
Montreal to run in Quebec's last provincial election.

The party's 23 candidates tallied almost 10,000 votes in 1998 and came
in seventh out of 12 parties, said St-Maurice, the bassist for punk
band Grim Skunk.

Because Bloc Pot received so many votes, it is now eligible to collect
$500 a month from the Quebec government to run an office.

Local marijuana activist Chris Buors has signed on as the party's
first Manitoba candidate.

Buors will run in Lloyd Axworthy's Winnipeg South Centre riding in the
next federal election, but is realistic about his chances of beating
the cabinet minister.

"There's not a chance in hell. But if we move the cannabis issue up to
the front burner I'll be happy," he said.

St-Maurice was more confident.

Recent polls have found almost two-thirds of Canadians support
decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana and 7.5
million people have admitted trying it, he noted.

"Public opinion is so strongly in favour for it, it's inexcusable of
the government not to do anything at this point," he said.

St-Maurice said he has commitments from 50 candidates to run in
British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and Alberta.