Pubdate: Thu,  3 Jul 2003
Source: Daily News, The (CN NS)
Copyright: 2003 The Daily News
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/halifax/dailynews/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/179
Author: Ruth Davenport

CANNABIS DAY GOERS CULTIVATE CONCERN

DARTMOUTH - Most of those who came to the eighth annual Cannabis Day picnic 
at the Dartmouth Commons yesterday sunbathed contentedly and shared a joint 
with friends. Others, however, came with an agenda.

"I came out to support a friend of mine who is one of the most awesome 
people I know," said Lori Harvey of Hants County.

Harvey explained that her friend was diagnosed with a brain tumour years 
ago and began smoking marijuana to relieve pain and nausea caused by 
radiation treatments. Marijuana is more effective than conventional 
painkillers, but her friend is having to fight court battles to gain legal 
access to the drug.

"The government is just wasting money to fight this," said Harvey. "They 
could just say, everyone smo-ke your marijuana, feel better, and spend 
their money on something else."

Harvey wasn't alone in her concerns at this year's Cannabis Day picnic, 
billed as a protest against proposed federal marijuana legislation. 
Maritimers United for Medical Marijuana chairwoman Debbie Stutz-Giffin also 
attended the event, raising awareness of the difficulties facing users of 
medicinal pot.

"The federal government was ordered on Jan. 9 to supply exemption holders 
with safe, legal, affordable medication and, to date, they've made no move 
to do that," said Stutz-Giffin, who is legally permitted to use marijuana 
to control pain caused by multiple sclerosis.

"We're allowed to use this substance, but we have no place to legally buy 
it. So we've virtually been driven into the arms of the black market and 
forced to break an antiquated and ludicrous law."

While pro-pot activists describe the current laws against marijuana use as 
an affront to constitutional rights for recreational users, Stutz-Giffin 
said it's a matter of life or death for medicinal users.

"It's a regulatory regime that leaves chronically ill and dying Canadians 
out on a limb," she said. "We're too sick to deal with this gobbledygook on 
a daily basis, worrying about where we're going to get our medication or if 
someone's going to get arrested for providing us with it."

Stutz-Giffin said that more than 400,000 Canadians use medicinal marijuana, 
though only 800 are legally permitted to do so. While the situation seems 
dire, she said it's garnered enough attention to guarantee a change.

"People are talking about it a lot more, they're coming forward asking how 
they can help advance this issue," she said. "I'm extremely optimistic that 
by next year we'll be celebrating new freedoms and tackling new issues to 
make sure that everyone has all the medication they need in order to feel well."
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart