WHILE respecting the rights of individuals to enjoy a safe and healthy environment, this column has been advocating legislative and judicial reforms in the way we treat users of marijuana (ganja) in Jamaica. In fact, this column has been bolder than just advocating common-sense amendments to the present laws that govern the cultivation, distribution and possession of the plant. It has suggested that the production and use of the weed (to qualified adults) be part of any recuperative health tourism plans we might be contemplating. [continues 864 words]
Forty-seven years in the life of any nation is relatively short; yet years of social blight and economic underperformance can make those years seem eternal. For when Jamaica gained political independence from Britain in 1962, it was achieved on the premise that political independence would empower us not only to embrace the freedom that came with self-government, but also to help us actualise the opportunities it offered to develop and maintain a prosperous, well-organised, and orderly society. Therefore, it was the beliefs, desires and intentions of the architects of political independence for the country to use the freedom, the rights and responsibilities that came with such, as springboards toward achieving social progress and economic independence for the majority. [continues 1032 words]
