Marijuana Legalization Discussion To Continue

The Honorable Minister of Health and Social Services says discussions on the legalization of marijuana will be broadened to include other stakeholders.

Mrs. Ryan says the decision was taken at a recent meeting of the Council of Ministers' Meeting for Human and Social Development in Grenada.

She says the issue is too important to be tackled by just Health Ministers in CARICOM.

Meantime, a UWI Professor has called for the legalization of marijuana in all CARICOM member states including Montserrat.

Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, Dean of the Faculty of Law and chair of the CARICOM commission on cannabis, says the prohibition on cannabis should be lifted across the region.

In 2017, Ms. Antoine led a Commission to Montserrat and other islands, which found that the current regime for marijuana is ineffective, incongruous, obsolete and deeply unjust.

She calls on nations in the region to totally dismantle prohibition and replace it with strictly regulated national regimes similar to alcohol and tobacco control.

As attitudes towards ganja shift around the world, CARICOM established the commission to lead the way on the future options for the region.

After considering the most up to date evidence and the views of Caribbean people, Antoine stated that the status quo cannot be maintained and legal reform should be a priority for member states.