LEGALISE IT

There has long been a worldwide debate about the need to legalise
marijuana. Perhaps the most important argument in favour of its
legalisation is that marijuana is far less damaging to a person's
health than alcohol and cigarettes.

Here in Britain, the statistics show that many more crimes are
committed by persons under the influence of alcohol than marijuana.
Almost as significant is the argument that it is the illegality of
marijuana which causes criminality. If it were legal, the argument
goes, the gangs and the violence associated with the drug would
disappear overnight. Supporters of decriminalisation have also
pointed out that despite the so-called "War on Drugs", consumption of
drugs around the world has never been higher.

But opponents of decriminalisation reject all these arguments. The
church, in particular, makes a strong moral case. However, there is
no opponent more vociferous than the United States of America. And it
has used its power in the United Nations to crush any attempts to
decriminalise the drug anywhere in the world and rubber-stamp its
favoured policy of crop eradication and the "War on Drugs".

So it is interesting that, despite long-standing US opposition,
governments in Latin America are currently taking significant steps
to decriminalise the drug.

The American-led "War on Drugs" has always been unpopular amongst the
masses in Latin America. Crop eradication has meant decimating the
income of small rural producers who rely on the money to survive,
send their children to school, etc. In Bolivia coca, the raw
material for cocaine, has been in production for centuries. Bolivian
peasants traditionally chew the leaves. It has been seen as a part of
their culture. The current president, Evo Morales, was a peasant coca
grower. He rose to fame campaigning for his fellow growers and
against the wildly unpopular crop eradication policies that the
government was pursuing under pressure from the Americans.

Now, in Argentina, the Supreme Court has ruled that it is
unconstitutional to punish people for having marijuana for personal
use.

The court ruled, "Each adult is free to make lifestyle decisions
without the intervention of the state." In Mexico, the government has
decided to stop prosecuting people for possession of small quantities
of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and other drugs. These persons will be
referred to clinics instead. Last year in Ecuador the president,
Rafael Correa, pardoned 1,500 "mules" who had been sentenced to jail.
His late father was a convicted mule. And Brazil is also considering
partial decriminalisation.

Earlier this year Fernando Henrique Cardoso, the former Brazilian
president, collaborated with two former presidents of Colombia and
Mexico to produce a report "Latin American Commission on Drugs and
Democracy". This called for new approaches to the drug problem.
Cardoso says, "The tide is clearly turning. The 'War on Drugs'
strategy has failed."

Latin America has long been ravaged by the violence associated with
the drug trade. Worse, the power of the drug cartels has undermined
democratic institutions. Reformers argue that the only way to reduce
the violence and restore stability to Latin America is to legalise
the production, supply and consumption of drugs.

Interestingly, the last time Mexico tried to decriminalise the
possession of small quantities of drugs it was met with ferocious
opposition from the United States. So they had to reinstate the law.
This time the United States has said nothing. Maybe, under a new
president, even the Americans are beginning to realise that the "War
on Drugs" strategy has failed.

It should be noted that many people who support the decriminalisation
of marijuana do not support legalising harder drugs like cocaine and
heroin.

But the arguments for decriminalising marijuana are at least as
strong in Jamaica as in Latin America. Many argue that, just like
Bolivia, modest consumption of the naturally grown product is part of
the culture. If the United States is really dropping its fierce
opposition to decriminalisation, maybe it is time for Jamaica to
reopen the contentious debate on legalising marijuana.