GRASS USERS IN FOR POT LUCK

Justice Minister Calls Laws Archaic

OTTAWA -- Decriminalizing marijuana might be a "first step" in reforming
drug laws which seem out of date, Justice Minister Martin Cauchon said
yesterday.

The marijuana law needs to be changed, he said, and decriminalization --
which would let people possess and use small quantities of cannabis without
facing a criminal record -- is a logical option.

"It probably would be feasible as a first step," Cauchon said.

"I feel that there is a strong support. I feel that the population is
there. To keep it the way it is now doesn't make any sense to me in the
year 2002 ... The legislation in place is sort of disconnected with
Canadian reality."

Cauchon's musing didn't sit well with Canadian Alliance Leader Stephen
Harper, who told reporters he'd rather see his kids drinking booze than
smoking pot.

Harper, father of a three-year-old girl and five-year-old boy, said he
doesn't buy the argument that alcohol is more harmful than marijuana.

"As a parent, I would be more concerned about pot use than alcohol use by
my children, even in moderation," said Harper, an asthmatic who has never
smoked.

Cauchon said he'll have a new policy ready early next year, but first he
wants to see the report of a Commons committee, which has been studying the
issue of illicit drugs. That report is expected in November.

A special Senate committee recommended Wednesday that cannabis be
legalized, but Cauchon said that may be going too far.

Legalizing pot -- which would allow for the open sale of the drug -- might
promote a global ruckus, he said, because Canada has signed a number of
international treaties outlawing various drugs.

"At this point in time, the notion of legalizing marijuana is just not
possible from an international point of view," he said.

"We have to proceed on a step-by-step basis."

The U.S. disagrees with the Senate report's findings that cannabis is less
harmful than alcohol and causes few, if any, long-term problems.

John Walters, director of the U.S. national drug control policy, disputed
those findings, saying "we know that marijuana is a harmful drug,
particularly for young people."

Cauchon said he hasn't had any reaction from Washington on the issue and
said, "I'll do what's good for Canadian society."