House Meeting History: Small Amounts of Marijuana Decriminalized
History was made at the House Meeting in Belmopan today when the bill to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana was introduced. Minister of Home Affairs Wilfred Elrington bought it to the house for the first reading:..
Hon. Wilfred Elrington - UDP Area Rep.
"To decriminalize the possession of cannabis in amounts not exceeding ten grams. To provide for the imposition of monetary and non-recordable penalties for the possession of cannabis in such amounts occurring on school premises in specified circumstances, to decriminalize the smoking of cannabis in private premises and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. This bill has long been in gestation. I think it is recognized by members on both sides of this House that the present regime which we have dealing with marijuana is not equitable. As a matter of fact, it is viewed that it is unduly prejudicial, particularly to the poorer members of our society, who for one reason or the other use marijuana in smaller quantities and this is a small step towards ameliorating what we consider to be an injustice over the years perpetrated against our people."
This was just the first reading, so there was no debate and, it is not the law at this time. It will now go back to committee for consideration and public consultation, and will be brought back to the house for the second and third reading. After that, the bill will be taken to the Senate for passage - and it can only become law after that - a process that will take a few months.
"Weedists" Celebrate, Evangelicals Lament, GOB Calls It Progress
And while tonight "weedists" all over Belize are celebrating, evangelical church leaders are lamenting, and we'll have their points and counterpoints for you later on in the news. But for the Barrow Administration, they are taking it as a progressive and worthwhile step forward. The Prime Minister explained:...
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"I feel both as a matter of conviction that it is something good to do, but also that as a society as a whole will support it."
Jules Vasquez - Reporter
"Sir, the most cynical interpretation will be that, well, there is an election in a few months and the UDP has had this on the backburner for some while but your government brought it to the front burner to give it a little boost for the elections since you don't have a lot of money to spread around."
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow- Prime Minister
"No, I don't think it's that sort of an issue that will make any material difference to the election. Certainly, that was not the reason."
Jules Vasquez - Reporter
"Will there be a public awareness campaign to sort of tell people, it's not to say you can smoke marijuana publicly."
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"There will have to be because I gather that already on the talk shows the level of, not ignorance, perhaps, wishful thinking is amazing so we will have to let people know that basically, we are creeping before we walk and so it doesn't go nearly as far as I am sure a lot of people will like. So you are perfectly correct there will have to be some sort of education campaign."
Later on we'll have the views of the Council of Churches, and the National Evangelical Association, and well as weed advocate Pulu Lightburn plus you'll see the Prime Minister and Plus TV's Luis Wade clash on the subject.
Church Council Conservative on Cannabis
As we told you in the first segment, the government introduced the amendment to the Misuse of Drugs Act today in Belmopan. While no vigorous debate had begun as yet, we asked Methodist Bishop and President of the Belize Council of Churches, Roosevelt Papaloutte to give his preliminary reaction to the legislation. He was quite diplomatic and open minded on the matter. So he didn't take a hard line stance, but he did say that many factors need to be considered especially when it comes to how this change will impact youth.
Reporter
"One aspect of the amendment is that pretty much if you are caught with 10 grams or less anywhere in the country there will be no charge. What are your thoughts or your comment in response to that?"
Roosevelt Papaloutte, Methodist Bishop - President of the Belize Council of Churches
"Again, I know that perhaps that the essence of it, is there any other thing attach to that, because if you are caught today with 10 grams and perhaps one week later with 10 grams and less than 10 grams and 2 months later with less than 10 grams. What is in place? That are a lot of implications that perhaps we will have to look at as to how this is going to take place."
Reporter
"One other element to the amendment is that if you are found with under 10 grams in your home, there will be no charge. What are your thoughts to this and I know you express concerns in terms of youths - young children, they will be in the homes as well. So what are your thoughts in terms of that portion of the amendment?"
Roosevelt Papaloutte
"And that's what I feel is that it's not simply the amendment to the law, but what are we going to put in place to help if it is something that is happening in the home for example, lack of guidance or wherever that young person is. What are going to put in place to we give you that ease, but what are we going to give you to guide you to help you to discipline yourselves, because whether we believe it or not, 10 grams or less, it still means something, especially for the younger generations. We need to have programs within the schools or in the churches and when we were looking at it as well as church leaders and I am speaking frankly from the Belize Council of Churches point of view - we were also looking at we too as a church. What can we put in place?"
Reporter
"In your opinion, you do support this ease in terms of cutting back on the charges for this small amount of weed. You would consider that, you're open to that?"
Roosevelt Papaloutte
"I would consider that. I believe a number of us from the church community have given thought to that. The amendments is a welcome step. We need to have it before us to see exactly all that it entails and I believe the church is not really an opposition party. We tend to sit down and look at what is before us and make meaningful recommendations that will be useful not only for the young people, but for generations and for the country at large."
Now while Papaloutte was more open to finding common ground on this issue, the National Evangelical Association of Belize simply won't have it. In a release sent out today it opens by saying "The National Evangelical Association of Belize and it's 250+ represented churches expresses its disagreement with intent and steps of Government to decriminalize marijuana, a move that we are convinced is an incremental step towards legalization." It goes on to say that the Association had presented studies and reports reflecting the "danger of marijuana use" and that it's members had asked the government to NOT go in this direction.
The Good and The Bad of Ganja
As you just saw Pastor Louis Wade is against the passing of the amendment to the Misuse of Drugs Act. We spoke to Wade, after his sharp exchange with the Prime Minister, about what he doesn't like about the law. But first, here's what someone on the opposite side of the argument has to say. Clinton "Pulu" Lightburn is a long time proponent for the legalization of marijuana, and has voiced his opinion on the subject on this newscast several times before. He gave us his thoughts on the newly read amendment, and what he thinks is the way forward...
Clinton "Pulu" Lightburn, For Decriminalization
"I think it's a step in the right direction, but there is a lot more that needs to be done for us to get it right. I think what we are doing as I would say in creole "dem di play haul and back." The reality of it is that the world has found out that what we were taught about marijuana was wrong, misleading and purposely done so. The reality of it is that scientist have found out through various studies done by universities in the Ivy League, in Europe and a lot of other places in the world. And it has been discovered that marijuana has over 400 medicinal properties. As opposed to cigarette which has over 4,000 poisons. So for those advocates who are against marijuana, before we go even farther I want you to answer this question for me: Why is it that tobacco which has over 4,000 poisons is legal and marijuana which has over 400 medicinal properties is illegal?"
Reporter
"In order for us to get that legalize place how much more do we have to go? Do we need more push back from the people? From the Opposition? From who?"
Clinton "Pulu" Lightburn, For Decriminalization
"It will be time. Time will take care of everything. We cannot get away from it. Marijuana worldwide is going to be legal within the next 10 years, unless you are a draconian country. The countries that are still going to have marijuana as being illegal are going to be countries where there are no human rights."
And while Lightburn claims that all 400 of those "medicinal properties" are positive, Louis Wade says that only 50 of them have been identified by scientists. Wade also told us about his objection to marijuana being restricted by amount as opposed to blood content. Here's what he had to say...
Louis Wade, Against Decriminalization
"Imagine if alcohol was regulated in this country based upon how much rum you had on you on the moment the police comes. That's is not how drugs work. It's not when they bust you in an accident they count the pint bottles that you have on you. That is not science. What is done is a drug test is taken and the law prescribes a legal limit for alcohol consumption. It's not how much pint bottles you have. I don't know where the Prime Minister's cabinet got the concept that marijuana should be regulated based upon how much you have on you. Alcohol is measured based upon a legal limit and my question to the Prime Minister that he could not answer was very simple: What is the legal limit for marijuana in the blood? He could not answer that, because every kind of marijuana contains different quantities of Tetrahydrocannabinol just like how every beer versus tequila versus elephant foot has a different. It is very simple science that we ask the Prime Minister."
Jules Vasquez, reporter
"I know you are a scientist or scientifically disposed, but your objection is not only scientific, it is also moral. You believe that smoking marijuana is indicative or will lead to moral laxity or breakdown."
Louis Wade, Against Decriminalization
"No. Marijuana comes from a plant just like cocaine comes from a plant, just like alcohol comes from a plant, just like heroine comes from a plant. Plants have chemicals. It just so happens that marijuana has 420 Tetrahydrocannabinol of which science has only identified and tested 50 of the 420. When a person smokes marijuana they add heat to 420 chemicals, so a chemical reaction takes place and the 420 chemicals turn into something else. So we are looking at the science of marijuana in the first instance."
The National Evangelical Association of Belize, which Wade is a part of, submitted several medical studies to the PM which outline the detriments of marijuana usage, and they urged the government reconsider passing the amendment.
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