WHILE a difference in position in regard to ganja has led to the departure of Ras Leon Saul from the United Republican Party (URP), the party’s presidential candidate, Mr Vishnu Bandhu, has said he will be more tolerant to legalisation regarding gays.
Saul this month said goodbye to Bandhu after the two failed to see eye-to-eye on the legalisation of ‘ganja’, an issue both the Alliance For Change (AFC) and A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) said they will consider if elected to office.
Saul had said that ganja is an integral part of the Rastafarian culture, and it would be remiss of him not to promote his culture in a party he represents; but Bandhu has said that, with all the problems in society today, legalisation of ganja would only add to the woes of Guyanese society, which Guyana at this time can ill afford.
The URP Leader, however, saw some benefit in the legalisation of the illicit substance for medicinal purposes, but cautioned that some people would be determined to abuse it by wanting to “smoke every day”.
Caricom leaders announced, last year March, the creation of a regional commission to analyse the possibility of legalising marijuana. The announcement was made following a two-day summit in which Caricom members discussed a preliminary report that found that decriminalising medical marijuana could help boost the region’s economy. The report was compiled by Caricom researchers, the Associated Press had reported.
The commission is expected to submit its report by Caricom’s next summit, scheduled for February 2016.
“Heads of Government agreed to establish a regional commission on marijuana; to conduct a rigorous inquiry into the social, economic, health and legal issues surrounding marijuana use in the region; and to advise whether there should be a change in the current drug classification of marijuana, thereby making the drug more accessible for a range of users,” a statement at the conclusion of the meeting said.
NO
Amid queries from several quarters on the Administration’s position in regard to the matter, Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee had said the Government of Guyana will not be legalising the substance.
Saul has since formed the Healing the Nation Theocracy Party, and the Rastafarian community has since stated unequivocally that, while it will be happy for ganja to be legalised, it will not support legalisation of gay relationships.
Bandhu has said that while he will not budge on his position against the legalisation of ganja, he is swayed to be more lenient with gays, as it is more of a human rights issue, and recognition of human rights is necessary in any democracy.
The URP leader has said the great USA has seen the need to recognise gays, and he contends that there is nothing really criminal about that aspect of one’s personal life.
“Even some soldiers in the US Army that defends American, they don’t really do what they do in the fields. You can’t stop them, they kill their enemies,” he said, whilst noting that the URP will not be campaigning on the issue, but will include legalisation on its agenda if elected to office.
Government has said that decriminalisation of gays will be determined through consultation with every group in society, because it is not a decision that it would make unilaterally.
In its 2015/2014 Report, Amnesty International was critical of the Government, saying: “Consultations into the abolition of the death penalty, the repeal of legislation criminalising consensual same-sex relations, and discrimination against LGBT people, to which the Government also committed in 2010, had yet to begin by the end of the year”.
By Tajeram Mohabir
