By Vanessa Cort

IN writing about drugs and the users, I did not mention marijuana, which I feel requires separate attention. No discussion on the subject can be complete without a look at what is the most used illicit drug on the planet.
With upwards of 147 million users worldwide, it is the drug with the greatest variety of names, including ganja, Mary Jane, weed, herb, kaya, pot and cannabis. It has also been the subject of endless debates about its positive and negative effects and is being increasingly decriminalised by countries around the world.
An entire subculture – Rastafarianism – revolves around marijuana, with Jamaica and Jamaicans playing a central role in not only cultivating the plant, but in promulgating its use.
In an interview decades ago, then Prime Minister of Jamaica, Michael Manley, admitted that marijuana cultivation and the revenue it generated contributed significantly to the Jamaican economy.
Iconic Jamaican reggae star Bob Marley, as a Rastafarian, smoked ganja and sang about his need for it in songs like, ‘Kaya’. So did many other Jamaican artistes, who both defended and lauded the medicinal properties of the drug.
On his 1976 debut album, after leaving Bob Marley and the Wailers to pursue a solo career, Peter Tosh proclaimed, ‘Legalise it’.
This title song denounced the drug’s illegal status and became the rallying cry in support of making marijuana legal worldwide.
Far from being ‘a voice in the wilderness ‘, Tosh simply put into song what so many around the world felt, joining a growing tide of people from all walks of life and professions who lauded the benefits of marijuana.
However, in this same decade, American President Richard Nixon placed marijuana on a list of the most dangerous drugs (Schedule I), where it still remains.
The US government also launched its “War on Drugs”, aimed at stopping the trade, distribution and consumption of illegal drugs, of which ganja was firmly a part.
Then in 1973 the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) was formed and by the 1980s the “War” had spread to several other countries. Authorities were burning ganja fields in Jamaica, shipments were intercepted and seized worldwide, while in the US mass incarcerations became the ‘order of the day’.
The subsequent public outcry eventually led to reforms in the early part of this century and the legalisation of recreational marijuana in several states in the US.
Americans and Canadians are the highest consumers of the drug and now recreational marijuana is legal in 23 states and 32 states have legalised it for medicinal use.
The Cleveland Clinic in the US describes the drug as “a mind-altering substance”, but acknowledges that, while it has several long- and short-term effects, “there are many unknowns” and scientists are still studying it.
Public Health expert and Harvard Law Professor, Carmel Shachar, said in an interview three years ago, “A lot of states have legalised marijuana. There’s a robust adult recreational use industry. And it’s very normalised and accepted that marijuana is a substance that has medicinal and social value”.
She was at the time lending support to efforts to have the drug rescheduled to a lower tier, known as Schedule III, which regulates less deadly substances. And as of April of this year, the US Department of Justice has reclassified medical marijuana to the lower tier, while recreational marijuana is still federally classified as Schedule I.
The difference in categorising ganja is a reflection of the varying opinions on the nature of the drug, not only in the US but worldwide.
In some countries like Canada and Uruguay, commercial sales are legal nationwide. In Portugal, Mexico and several US states personal possession of small amounts is treated as a “non- criminal offense”. But strict prohibition still remains in most countries in the Middle East, Asia and parts of Africa.
Marijuana is illegal in Guyana under the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Act. However, a subsequent amendment to the Act in 2022 allows for individuals found in possession of 30 grams or less to be exempt from mandatory jail time.
And two years ago, Attorney-General, Anil Nandlall, rebuked police ranks for continuing to detain and lock up persons found with such small amounts of marijuana.
The Attorney-General clarified that possession of up to 15 grams of the drug mandates counselling and possession of between 15 and 30 grams may result in community service.
He declared, “If the court cannot impose a prison sentence, then the police cannot lock up someone for that offence…If an offence does not carry imprisonment upon conviction, the police cannot detain individuals prior to trial. Bail must be granted in such cases”.
Given the increasingly liberal attitudes towards marijuana, it is entirely possible that laws will continue to be amended both here and abroad to further decriminalise a drug whose use has also been steadily increasing over the years.
Now, marijuana is used by almost five per cent of the global adult population, amounting to somewhere between 249 and 256 million people.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.