CENTRAL CLARENDON Member of Parliament, Mike Henry, has called for a concerted national effort to, "follow the rest of the world or, more precisely, most of the developed world, where the use of marijuana (ganja) in prescribed settings and small amounts, is no longer a criminal offence."
He said while there was, "little or no credible scientific evidence establishing ganja as a dangerous substance, the opposite was true of tobacco, but the Jamaican authorities have persisted in applying the medicine to the wrong patient."
"Ganja to a true Rastafarian is almost like the Bible to a Christian, so why do we think we have the moral right to deny the rasta man one of the most integral ingredients of his worship and spiritual calling?" Mr. Henry said in a release responding to the recent arrest of singer, Luciano, on ganja charges.
"It is high time Rastafarians and, indeed, just about anyone, be permitted, like elsewhere, to have and use even small amounts of the weed for, at least, specific purposes. We will get there, no doubt, but why should it be after so many more prosecutions, so many more court appearances and so many more unnecessary criminal records?" asked the Member of Parliament.
Luciano was about to board a flight for an overseas trip, when the ganja was discovered among his luggage. He was arrested and put before the courts, where he pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of the ganja. After some delay, the court applied a small fine to the artiste and acceded to his lawyer's request that the conviction be not recorded against the singer.
Mr. Henry said that while he was not against implementation of the law, once it is on the books, it was the "inordinate delays in scrapping such archaic laws that are unnecessarily making criminals of so many of our young men and women that just totally riles me as one who has helped to make and shape the laws of the country."
He noted that perhaps because of Luciano's standing in the country, his lawyer was able to get the magistrate to not have the conviction recorded. However, Mr. Henry said most of the nation's youths who used the weed, even as a part of their religious sacrament, "were not so fortunate when arrested for having the stuff in their possession."
