Pubdate: Fri, 29 Dec 2000 Source: Globe and Mail (Canada) Copyright: 2000, The Globe and Mail Company Contact: http://www.globeandmail.ca/ Forum: http://forums.theglobeandmail.com/ Author: Caroline Alphonso MARIJUANA PARTY READIES FOR B.C. ELECTION Vancouver - Riding high from its surprising success in the recent federal election, the Marijuana Party will announce its B.C. leader in January, and discuss its platform for entering provincial politics. "We need a provincial government on our side," said Brian Taylor, who will be the leader for the election, which must be held by spring. Mr. Taylor was mayor of Grand Forks, B.C., from 1997 to 1999. The party's platform calls for, among other things, the legalization of marijuana, prescription of heroin for addicts, increased Charter protections and restrictions on police power. The party polled 65,000 votes in November's federal election. Running for the first time in a B.C. election, the party is expecting to field candidates in each of the provinces 79 ridings. It has about 30 candidates so far. Mr. Taylor, who runs the Cannabis Research Institute in Grand Forks, said that while many Canadians support the use of marijuana for therapeutic purposes, both the provincial and federal governments are dragging their feet on legalizing the drug. David Malmo-Levine, who lost in the federal election and is now planning to run provincially in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside riding, said the Marijuana Party is looking to educate people on the benefits of using the "herb" and, at the same time, of legalizing a drug that can be used for medicinal purposes. Earlier this month, the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench gave a Calgary man, suffering from a chronic nervous-system disease, the right to grow marijuana for his own use. "We just want the same rights and freedoms as caffeine users," Mr. Malmo-Levine, 29, said. While the marijuana missionaries ran on a single issue in the federal election, this time they plan to tackle all provincial topics, from health care to education. This will be the first time candidates for the Marijuana Party, under its new name, will run in a provincial election. Marc-Boris St-Maurice's provincial party, Bloc Pot, had a platform similar to that of the Marijuana Party when it garnered 10,000 votes in Quebec's provincial election two years ago. Mr. St-Maurice was subsequently arrested for selling marijuana at Montreal's Compassion Club, where the drug is sold to those who bring a note from a doctor. His case will be heard next month. Mr. St-Maurice, the federal leader of the Marijuana Party, said "offshoots" of the national party help get the issue of decriminalizing cannabis to the forefront. (Marijuana parties are beginning to spring up in other provinces, such as Alberta and Saskatchewan.) "There might be a faster way of acceptance than going through the federal government," said Mr. St-Maurice, who placed fourth in his downtown Montreal constituency. B.C. could be an ideal setting for the Marijuana Party because there is more tolerance and visibility of cannabis in the province, he said. "We may be surprised at the polls." - --- MAP posted-by: Don Beck