Decriminalise ganja

 More than a decade after a task force appointed by the Government first recommended the decriminalisation of the use of marijuana in Jamaica, the matter has again come to the fore.

This newspaper believes that it is high time that the Government act rationally and implement the recommendations of the Chevannes commission.

For, as Anthony Gifford, QC, noted last week, it makes little sense that each year Jamaica makes criminals of thousands of its young men for smoking marijuana joints. Enforcing this stupid law helps to clog an overburdened court system and costs taxpayers money which can be better spent elsewhere.

Having done this, we should, with dispatch, get along with other aspects of marijuana reform, including regulations for the research into, and the medical use of, the drug and controls for trading in it.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.