Pubdate: Mon, 26 Mar 2012
Source: Calgary Herald (CN AB)
Copyright: 2012 Canwest Publishing Inc.
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/calgaryherald/letters.html
Website: http://www.calgaryherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/66
Author: Jason Van Rassel
Cited: Stop the Violence BC: http://stoptheviolencebc.org/

B.C. COALITION URGES END TO MARIJUANA PROHIBITION

ER Doctor Is a CO-Founder of Stop the Violence B.C.

Call it a growing movement: a broad range of advocates who say ending 
the prohibition on marijuana would reduce the violence and property 
damage associated with its illegal cultivation and sale.

That viewpoint won't be heard in Banff this week as police, municipal 
officials and real estate industry representatives convene a 
three-day conference on fighting marijuana grow ops.

While cannabis users have long had their own reasons for wanting it 
legalized, in B.C. they've been joined by a coalition of academics, 
health professionals, former politicians and police officials called 
Stop the Violence B.C.

The group argues legalizing and regulating cannabis would deprive 
organized crime groups of a huge revenue source and end the violence 
currently employed by gangs competing for illegal business.

"Anyone who has taken a sober look at the issue of organized crime, 
gangs and grow ops can see the home invasions, the power theft and 
the rich organized crime groups are direct results of prohibition," 
said Dr. Evan Wood, a Vancouver emergency room doctor and a 
co-founder of Stop the Violence B.C.

The group recently received support from four former Vancouver 
mayors, who penned an open letter calling on politicians to end prohibition.

Although Wood backs legalization as a means of decreasing gang 
violence, the doctor stressed he doesn't condone using marijuana.

"We're not saying it's harmless," he said.

However, Wood said ending prohibition would give authorities a chance 
to strictly regulate the production and sale of marijuana and 
generate revenue through taxation.

The World Health Organization estimates the rate of cannabis use in 
Canada as roughly double that of the Netherlands, where marijuana is 
legally sold to adults in coffee shops.

Allowing marijuana sales in Canada - albeit in a less freewheeling 
way than the Netherlands - might lead to a decrease in consumption 
among Canadians, Wood argued.

"We'd really like to see it in (an esthetically) sterile environment," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom