MPs PRESENT PETITION FOR EMERY

PARLIAMENT - MPs representing three political parties stood in the
House of Commons yesterday in support of "Prince of Pot" Marc Emery.

Ontario Tory Scott Reid with Vancouver MPs Libby Davies (NDP) and
Ujjal Dosanjh (Liberal) together presented a 12,000-signature petition
asking Canada's justice minister to refuse Emery's
extradition.

The Vancouver marijuana activist faces five years in a U.S. prison
after agreeing in September to a plea bargain for one count of
conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.

Dosanjh, a former B.C. premier and attorney general, called Emery's
possible extradition "inherently unfair." "Countries don't usually
extradite people to countries where they could face inordinate
penalties," Dosanjh said.

Davies had a number of concerns about Emery's extradition and
questioned what it meant for Canadian sovereignty. "It's a question of
upholding a Canadian position," Davies said. "For upholding our own
laws for Canadian citizens."

In Parliament, Reid noted that Health Canada used to refer medical
marijuana patients to Emery's seed bank. He also said Canadian courts
found that a $200 fine was appropriate for selling seeds, as opposed
to the possibility of life in prison in the U.S.

Emery said he was pleased by the petition and said he has heard
nothing but love and support from Canadians.