Pubdate: Thu, 29 Mar 2012
Source: Monday Magazine (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Monday Publications
Contact: http://mondaymag.com/contact/
Website: http://www.mondaymag.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1150
Author: Danielle Pope

VICTORIA CALLS FOR TAX ON POT RATHER THAN PROHIBITION

City Council Asks Other Municipalities to Join in Letters of Support 
for Regulation Over Prohibition

Victoria may not see pot shops allowing you to legally buy regulated 
marijuana anytime soon, but a recent motion from Victoria City 
Council has shown directed intent on the issue: a unanimous decision 
to support a regulatory approach to cannabis control over prohibition 
- - and a request for surrounding municipalities to do the same.

The motion, which resolves that "The City of Victoria supports the 
taxation and regulation of cannabis to address the ineffectiveness 
and harm of cannabis prohibition," was approved with no discussion 
upon its third reading at City Hall during the March 22 council 
meeting. The motion also states that the city "agrees to write to 
municipalities in the Capital Regional District, the Union of BC 
Municipalities, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the 
Provincial and Federal Ministers in the Justice and Health 
departments to inform them of our support."

City councillor Ben Isitt, who originally moved the motion and 
brought it to the attention of the Governance and Priorities 
Committee, says the importance of the motion lies in its symbolism as 
much as anything.

"I think the fact that a council with as diverse beliefs as ours did 
not have debate on this motion really speaks volumes," says Isitt. 
"This motion is not so much an endorsement of marijuana use or any 
substance use as it is an acknowledgement of the failure of the war 
on drugs ... and the fact that we have so much more important things 
to be using our resources on."

While Isitt says he is unsure whether or not other municipalities in 
the region will pass similar motions, he is hopeful that others will 
see the value in cross-partisan support. Victoria joins Metchosin, 
Vancouver and a handful of other B.C. municipalities in taking an 
official stance.

"Of course, this action won't have immediate waves, but it's still 
important to go on record and call on the government to do the right 
thing when that is the right thing to do," says Isitt. "Harm 
reduction is the safest option on the war on drugs, and regulation 
helps to ensure that safety."

With increasing strain on the medical and recreational use of 
cannabis thanks to the criminalization regulation of the Conservative 
government's Bill C-10, Victoria MP Denise Savoie says while actions 
like these may not force change alone, cumulatively they are of 
utmost importance.

"We've seen Bill C-10 be proposed with massive opposition, and the 
Conservative government still moved forward. We know it's going to 
cost a lot of money and drain resources, and the Conservative 
government still moved forward," says Savoie. "So we know this is 
going to take a lot of ground work and a lot of effort, but the more 
efforts like this we see, the harder it is going to be for the prime 
minister to maintain support for his regressive drug policies."

Savoie says that while she'll happily pass on all letters and 
messages to the government from her local constituents, it is going 
to take a lot more than that to make the PM change his mind. Still, 
she hopes to see motions like this grow across the country and as it 
does, she says, it will begin to have more clout.

But while Victoria's motion won't change drug policy, it can have a 
role in how the local police force prioritizes its policing. 
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall says that although the 
province considers this to be a federal issue, the practicalities of 
how laws are carried out are largely up to the local levels.

"There are instances, of course, where police will set cannabis 
regulation and control as the lowest-level priority, where they turn 
a blind eye to smoke-ins and where an amount of discretion is used in 
the pursuit of that patrolling," Kendall says.

Kendall could not comment on whether or not the province supports a 
similar regulatory approach to cannabis use, adding again that this 
is a federal issue. And, despite Monday's attempts to contact both 
the premiere's office and the minister of health, all offices stated 
that the issue was federal and would not be commented on at the 
provincial level. However, Kendall agrees that change is needed.

"I think it's clear that the current approach is not very effective. 
When cannabis and any drugs are in the hands of organized crime, it's 
totally unregulated and there is nothing safe about that," he says. 
"If you recognize that cannabis is not without its harms, then by 
regulation and taxation you have a better chance of keeping it out of 
the hands of people you don't want to have it."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom