OUR JUSTICE MINISTER IS GOING TO POT

Cauchon Being Sneaky About New Drug Law

OTTAWA -- Could it be a case of reefer madness? We know he smoked up
because he told us. But that was long ago.

Still, this was a strange week for Martin Cauchon, the man in charge of
Canada's justice system, who by now was supposed to have introduced a bill
to decriminalize pot.

First, Cauchon thought it would be a good idea to skip on down to
Washington to have a little chat with U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft
about his coming pot plan. But for some reason, Cauchon didn't think it was
a good idea to let anyone back home know that he was planning to make a run
for the border last Tuesday. Fortunately, someone with a far better sense
of politics and the public interest thought otherwise and decided to tip
off reporters about what, by any measure, was an important meeting that
could have an impact on Canada-U.S. relations.

Then, Cauchon's office tried to pretend this meeting was just a private
affair, certainly nothing worthy of the attention of reporters who might
have a few questions on behalf of those taxpayers back home about who paid
the bill for his flight to Washington. (A wee bit of background: When
politicians want media coverage, they will go to great lengths to hook up
with reporters. Formal notices will be sent out to newsrooms advising them
of the who, when and where of meetings. News conferences will be arranged.
And in cases where cabinet ministers are out of the country, special
toll-free conference calls will be arranged so anyone can dial in and ask
questions.)

Nothing Finally, upon his return to a country where possession of small
amounts of pot will soon be subject to fines and not jail time, Cauchon had
virtually nothing to say about his meeting with Ashcroft.

We don't know whether Cauchon was able to soothe American fears that
Canada's coming change in drug laws won't lead to a whack of weed flowing
across south of the border. We have no idea whether the delay in the bill's
introduction was the result of any changes the Americans wanted. In fact,
to hear Cauchon talk, marijuana was almost an afterthought during their
dinner discussions on a range of issues.

All Cauchon would say is that the meeting was "cordial" and that "it's not
up to me to comment on their position."

Great. I'm sure Cheech and Chong would love to have Cauchon in their next
movie. But this man, this rising star within the Liberal world, or so we
are told, could be the stuff of a future prime minister.

Leave aside the fact that Cauchon was going to be damned if he went to
Washington before introducing the legislation, and damned if he didn't,
given the state of relations between Jean Chretien and George W. Bush.

But is it too much to ask that Canada's top lawmaker not only have a sense
of right and wrong, but also the courage and conviction to make the case
for what will be one of the most significant pieces of legislation this
government will have introduced? If the country's drug laws need to be
modernized, then tell us how and why. If drugs and border issues with the
Americans need to be part of the legal equation, then don't be afraid to
say so. And whatever you do, please don't behave like some toked-up teen
praying he can sneak past his parents without them catching a whiff or
looking into his eyes.