MPS PUSH FOR LOOSER LAWS ON POT POSSESSION

Carrying Around 30 Joints Would Merit Ticket, Fine U.S. Drug Czar
Warns Canada Against Move

OTTAWA—They couldn't say how many "joints" 30 grams of marijuana produces,
but a Commons committee of MPs recommended yesterday Canadians should be
able to grow and carry around that much for "personal use" at risk only of
a ticket and fine, not a criminal record.

Under recommendations that immediately drew fire from the top drug official
in the United States, marijuana would remain an illegal substance, and
"trafficking" in any amount would remain a crime.

But the majority of the Liberal-dominated committee, in an echo of a Senate
committee report and recent comments by Justice Minister Martin Cauchon,
said enforcement of current criminal laws against simple possession is
expensive, uneven, "unfair and wasteful" and stigmatizes young people with
a criminal record for life.

The head of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, John
Walters, warned Canada yesterday border security would be tightened further
if the federal government relaxed its criminal laws on possession marijuana.

"We do not need on either side of the border more of our citizens harmed,"
Walters told a news conference in Buffalo, N.Y.

Cauchon, who this week said he may introduce legislation on
decriminalization early next year, said yesterday the government would
toughen enforcement efforts on organized crime and commercial traffickers.

"We're not talking about making it legal. It's something different. ... We
will have to look into the question of the quantity. We're talking about
simple possession. But one point which is important, we're talking about
being tougher as regards to drug smuggling, drug trafficking and
distribution as well."

The Canadian Alliance, in a minority dissenting report, warned
decriminalization of even 30 grams — which it estimated equals about 30
small "joints" or marijuana cigarettes — amounts to legalizing use and
trafficking of the drug.

It said a more reasonable threshold for decriminalization would be five
grams, or enough for about five or six "joints" — the amount MP Kevin
Sorenson (Crowfoot) said is legally sold for personal consumption in cafe's
in the Netherlands.

"We are not looking at giving criminal records to every single person who
has a joint or two in their pocket," said MP Randy White (Langley-Abbotsford).

"However, if you can wander around with 20 to 30 marijuana joints for
so-called personal use, you have to wonder when personal possession becomes
trafficking. Tell that to parents of high school students who will now see
pushers who can carry 30 joints around with them, risking no greater fine
than they would get if they got a speeding ticket."

The committee headed by Liberal MP Paddy Torsney (Burlington) said
marijuana smokers or growers caught with an amount over 30 grams would be
issued a ticket, pay a fine without a court appearance, and possibly risk
losing something "substantial" like a driver's licence if they fail to pay
the fine.

The committee also recommended more drug prevention and education programs
on the risk of marijuana use.

The Commons committee's recommendations did not go as far as the NDP
wanted, or as far as a Senate committee did in September when it called for
a national drug strategy that would legalize cannabis use by all Canadian
residents over 16.

NDP MP Libby Davies (Vancouver East) agreed personal use should be
legalized, and yesterday issued a minority report that called for an
amnesty for the estimated 600,000 Canadians who now have criminal
convictions for simple possessio