The local campaign against illicit drugs has been making headlines recently, and the news has not been in only one direction.
On the one hand, the police seem to have stepped up their campaign against cultivation of marijuana and the increasing number of discoveries of plants in various degrees of readiness for reaping and processing has led to their destruction by the authorities.
Given that these narcotic drugs have such a deleterious impact upon the lives of our young people who use these illegal substances, we consider this good news since such action makes it more difficult for those involved in the trade to get their hands on the merchandise. And who knows, another life may be saved from the drug-induced ravage.
On the other hand, the issue of illegal drugs surfaced at the Conference Of Heads Of Government in St Lucia last week. It was not on the agenda but a group of people calling themselves the Cannabis Movement chose to exercise their right to freedom of expression by gathering outside the meeting. Aiming for maximum collateral publicity, they armed themselves with placards calling for the legalization of marijuana.
It is true that there are some medical conditions for which marijuana may have certain therapeutic application, but this group appeared to have had a much wider agenda aimed, so it said, at assisting in the saving and greening of the society. Some of the placards referred to the industrial use of marijuana as a fuel and for other industrial purposes.
But one of their number also mentioned the recreational use of ganja while the leader of the movement himself advocated that people should not be jailed for its possession and use because the jails were overcrowded and that alternative punishments should be given to those caught with “small amounts of marijuana”.
Contrasting view
The message of the Cannabis Movement seems to be at odds with the orthodox view that such drugs must not be legalized. In a democracy one must contend with opposing perspectives even if one vehemently disagrees with such adverse opinions. However, the presence of two small children holding placards, alleging that they “skipped school” to take part in the process, succeeded in rubbing ordinary people the wrong way.
Marijuana is regarded by all the experts as a gateway drug and there is strong evidence that it leads to the use of the more potent drugs such as cocaine, heroin and the like, which have the potential to harm the human brain and body more than marijuana. All these drugs, marijuana included, are therefore bad news, hence the law prohibiting their use.
Those who argue for its legalization need only consider the recent statements of a 41-year-old English member of parliament. She is a married mother of three children, an Oxford graduate who is highly thought of as a young politician, and already a very successful novelist in her own right, with 11 books published so far. She is clearly slated for an upward lift in her political career.
Last November, she disclosed that she had tried drugs in her 20s, and last Thursday, as part of a panel discussing drugs, she strongly opposed their legalization. What she said is important to all those who support the legalization of drugs: “It’s something I regret incredibly, that in my youth I messed with my brain. It’s had long-term mental health effects on me. It’s caused me to be more anxious than I need to be. It’s nothing that anybody needs to glorify.”
This lady has walked the walk. We should take her seriously. It is important that we arm all our children with the news that illegal drugs are bad and try to persuade them from messing with their own brains.
