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Tuesday, January 26, 2016

St. Kitts / Nevis CMO wants marijuana legalized

St Kitts health official wants marijuana legalised - News - JamaicaObserver.com:

January 26, 2016 - "Chief Medical Officer Dr. Patrick Martin says the legaliation of marijuana could have a positive effect on violent crime in St Kitts/Nevis.

"'We have the evidence in health, in the security sector. In 2007 the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime produced a report entitled Crime and Violence in the Caribbean, and I quote, Drug trafficking is the cause of the gun-related homicide, end quote. Where there are drugs there are guns. The gun culture is everywhere. Can we bring it to an end in St Kitts and Nevis, the answer is yes we are 50,000 people,' said Dr Martin, speaking on a programme on WINN FM on Monday....

"'The question is what do you do about a plant that has proper uses in the culture that has been made illegal or criminal for some strange reason and there is some evidence that shows the people who made the use of marijuana illegal and criminal were not responding to data, they are responding to hysteria....

"'It’s the profit motive. The use of marijuana in this country is culture. Demand for marijuana is universal,' he said, arguing that the State spends a lot of funds on policing and prosecuting marijuana users.

"'What we have to do as intelligent independent people is to have an intelligent conversation on data and stop filling up our jails of people who are probably self-medicating.

"'I could understand persons who are trafficking and selling to minors and stuff like that. We have to put some limits. ... But there are bona fide spiritual and medicinal use[s] of the plant and we are wasting our time and resources going down the road of criminality only,' he told listeners."

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/St-Kitts-health-official-wants-marijuana-legalised
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