MARIJUANA LAWS HAVE 'NO EFFECT'

Senate Committee Questions Canada's Laws On Cannabis. 'Prohibition Is Not
An Effective Policy Method'

Evidence presented to a Senate committee looking at Canada's illegal drug
policy points to a possible decriminalization of marijuana.

"We're questioning prohibition as an effective way or policy to control a
substance," committee chairman Pierre Claude Nolin said yesterday.

"We think that prohibition is not an effective policy method to reach an
objective. We even don't know what is the objective," he said. "Should we
control the use? Or should we control the abuse of it? Or are we in both
sides?"

The Senate committee also found that efforts to prevent marijuana use are
having little impact, and young Canadians are smoking up in greater numbers
than ever.

An estimated 30 to 50 per cent of people age 15 to 24 have used cannabis
even though it's illegal, the report says.

"When you examine cannabis usage among youth, you realize that public
policy has absolutely no effect," Mr. Nolin said. "The psychology of
adolescents seems to take no account of the rules of law."

The committee, which was set up to review Canada's anti-drug laws and
policies on cannabis, released an interim report yesterday and will hold a
series of public hearings across the country, aiming for final
recommendations in August.

While the committee offered no recommendations, scientific and expert
opinions suggest the effect of cannabis on users' health is "relatively
benign," according to the report.

Federal government regulations allow the medicinal use of marijuana.

The committee was told it is better not to use cannabis, which is a mood
and perception altering drug, like alcohol, tobacco and some prescription
medicines.

But "the same thing is true of scotch," said Alberta Senator Tommy Banks.

Using cannabis can increase the risk of lung cancer, although the report
states that "research has yet to distinguish between the effects of
cannabis and tobacco."

However, cannabis is not a gateway drug, and its use "does not induce users
to commit other forms of crime," according to the report.

Between 30 and 50 per cent of youth, aged 15 to 24, have used cannabis
within the past year, the report says. The most recent auditor general's
report found it costs more than $500 million for federal agencies to fight
illegal drugs.

Canadian Alliance MP Keith Martin, who introduced a private member's bill
to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, said he
agrees with the report, but the information isn't new.

"We're going around in a big circle again and again and again," he said,
adding that it is time for the government to act on the findings.

Dr. Martin, who is opposed to marijuana use other than for extreme medical
reasons, said decriminalizing the drug will free limited resources of the
justice system to focus on organized crime.

Two weeks ago, the government passed a motion that stopped the reading of
Dr. Martin's bill. He plans to ask the Speaker to allow the bill to be
brought back as a votable bill, by presenting a cross-party petition.

The House of Commons set up its own committee to examine Canada's policy on
all non-medical drugs. It is expected to release its report in November.