GOB to decriminalize marijuanaAfter years of research and consultation, the Government of Belize is preparing to amend the laws of Belize to decriminalize marijuana.
Cabinet has handed recommendations made by the Decriminalization of Marijuana Committee, over to the office of the Attorney General for the legislative amendments to be drafted.
Douglas Singh, DOMC chairman, told the Reporter on Thursday evening, that the committee contacted the government to inquire where they were in considering the recommendations the committee had submitted in its report last year.
Singh explained that GOB, for the benefit of current ministers who were not a part of Cabinet at the time the report was initially submitted, gave the report another review and accepted the recommendations therein.
"There were some recommendations relative to fines�these things sometimes have conflicts so they will have to look at certain areas and elements but in principle the government has embraced the concept of decriminalization," Singh said.
He added that, to his knowledge, none of the recommendations were subject to change. Some of those recommendations, however, require structures which are not yet in place in Belize.
In March 2015, the DOMC presented its's report to Cabinet, concluding a process started in 2012 by Prime Minister Dean Barrow. The Committee tabled 11 recommendations including: that it not be a criminal offense for anyone to be found in possession of up to 10 grams of marijuana and that there be an amendment to the "Misuse of Drugs Act" to remove the word cannabis as one of the listed substances.
The Committee also recommended that there be no incarceration for up to 10 grams and that instead, a ticket be issued as well as mandatory drug education counseling plus a fine of $15 per gram and community service, rehabilitation and treatment.
The National Drug Abuse Control Council, when consulted by the DOMC, opposed the decriminalization until those rehabilitation facilities were in place and an established drug court system could be implemented to deal with offenses that would occur under the new amendments.
The Committee also advocated for the removal of a criminal penalty for the use of paraphernalia, including pipes and other products, in relation to the use of cannabis.
If GOB proceeds with all the recommendations of the DOMC, everyone who has been arrested for offenses under the amendment will retroactively have their criminal records expunged of those charges.
Decriminalization is where governments remove prison sentences from an offense, and replace it with lesser penalties. Decriminalization is not to be confused with legalization, where an action ceases to be an offense under the law.
The Reporter ==================================
Laws in the works for marijuana decriminalizationLaws for the decriminalization of marijuana, for possession of up to 10 grams, are in the works. Amandala is reliably informed that after Cabinet gave its nod for the legal drafting, the Attorney General's Ministry began working on amendments to the Criminal Code which would remove criminal penalties in the event that persons are found with marijuana within what would become the new limit.
Of note, though, is that Government is not moving to legalize marijuana use. Persons found with small quantities of marijuana would instead receive a fine through a sort of ticketing system. It is only in the event that the person fails to pay the fine that he or she would face incarceration.
Former National Security Minister Doug Singh, who was integrally involved in preparing a white paper which has been reviewed twice by Cabinet, told Amandala that Cabinet had approved the recommendations which were unveiled to the press last year. Since the November elections, new members were added to Cabinet, and they were recently presented with the white paper.
According to Singh, the drafted legislation would go back to Cabinet to ensure that what was intended is being accomplished. Subsequently, the proposed legislation would be tabled in the National Assembly.
Singh said that if we consider the way the world is going, Belize's recommendations happen to be "conservative."
In the case of Jamaica, he said, they last year decriminalized 60 grams of marijuana, which is the full amount for which a person would be charged with drug possession here in Belize. Anyone found with over that amount will be charged with drug trafficking. Belize is only decriminalizing a sixth of what Jamaica has decriminalized.
Singh said that Jamaica had also proceeded to include medical marijuana in its exemptions - effectively legalizing it for a purpose - something that Belize has not included in its set of recommendations.
Whereas the new laws being drafted would allow for persons in possession of 10 grams of marijuana or less to face a fine and/or be committed to community service, they would also allow for the records of persons who have been convicted for possession within these limits to be expunged.
"Too many young people have this following them, those who are seeking jobs," Singh said.
He noted that whereas for certain levels of jobs, employers do not usually ask for a police record, for basic entry-level positions they often do, and so the ability of persons who may have been caught with small amounts of marijuana to earn an honest living is adversely impacted.
Singh notes that there is already a mechanism in place to expunge those records, because some years ago, when he was Minister with responsibility for Police, he had led a similar process which saw hundreds of records expunged following an amendment to the Criminal Code.
The gamut of recommendations on the decriminalization of marijuana in Belize also includes drug education and rehabilitation for repeat offenders.
Singh said that there should be a "firewalling of penalties to put into a fund" that could be accessed for drug education and rehab through entities such as the National Drug Abuse Control Council.
A drug court, a separate initiative, is also in the works, which would allow persons who elect to do so, to appear before that court for drug-related infractions and crimes.
Amandala