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possession (small amount).]] Cannabis is in Schedule IV of the Single Convention On Narcotic Drugs , making it subject to special restrictions. Article 2 provides for the following, in reference to Schedule IV drugs: : ''A Party shall, if in its opinion the prevailing conditions in its country render it the most appropriate means of protecting the public health and welfare, prohibit the production, manufacture, export and import of, trade in, possession or use of any such drug except for amounts which may be necessary for medical and scientific research only, including clinical trials therewith to be conducted under or subject to the direct supervision and control of the Party.'' This provision, while apparently providing for the limitation of cannabis to research purposes only, also seems to allow some latitude for nations to make their own judgments. The official Commentary on the Single Convention indicates that Parties are expected to make that judgment in good faith. Albania In spite of laws prohibiting growing and possessing cannabis, enforcement has been virtually none. There have been fewer than ten arrests in five years. Australia After politicians in the Australian Capital Territory voted to allow doctors to determine when cannabis was appropriate for their patients, intense lobbying by the federal government resulted in the legislation being overturned. In May 2003 the then Premier of New South Wales (Australia's most populous state), Mr Bob Carr, promised patients a four-year trial into the medical uses of cannabis - but nothing ever happened. Northern Territory use of Cannabis is decriminalized, and in Western Australia and Northern Territory you can grow your own plant subject to height restrictions. Belgium Though the drug is still illegal, the Belgian government has recently initiated trials to determine the effectiveness of medical cannabis, and may soon decriminalize possession of small amounts.pen Cameroon Growing cannabis for any reason is illegal, though AIDS and Cancer patients are allowed to use the drug to treat their symptoms. Canada In '' Hitzig V. Canada '' (2003), a court again declared Canada's Marijuana Medical Access Regulations unconstitutional "in not allowing seriously ill Canadians to use marijuana because there is no legal source of supply of the drug." In effect, this means that Canadians cannot be prosecuted for using marijuana medically because the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations gives patients the right to do so, but does not set up any legal apparatus for obtaining cannabis. Back in July 2000, in the "Parker" (epileptic Terry Parker) decision, another judge had made a declaration of invalidity of Canada's drug laws as they relate to the "simple possession" of marijuana due to the lack of a reasonable exemption from the law for medicinal use. The Canadian government was given one year (a suspension of the declaration of invalidity) to remedy the situation, and created the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations. These regulations have been repeatedly deemed unconstitutional in a series of court decisions including "Hitzig." In a similar case based upon these decisions, lawyer Brian McAllister argued on behalf of a sixteen-year-old that because the Canadian government, after setting up the MMAR, never reenacted the relevant section of the Controlled Drugs And Substances Act , Canada effectively has no prosecutable laws prohibiting the "simple Possession " of any amount of cannabis. Representatives of the United States federal government have claimed that decriminalizing cannabis in Canada may disrupt Border Trade and relations between the two countries; many Canadians believe that this remains the primary obstacle to Decriminalization in Canada. Canada produces about 400 kg of medical cannabis annually, in an abandoned mine in Flin Flon, Manitoba . On April 19 , 2005, the Canadian government additionally licensed the prescription sale of a natural marijuana extract - effectively liquid marijuana - called Sativex . {Link without Title} The federal department Health Canada now provides detailed advice (for its own citizens), including not only the medical information needed to make an informed choice, but the law enforcement aspects, and how to apply for authorization to possess marijuana for medical purposes. There is also information that may be of help to the patient's health professional. Health Canada Medical Use of Marihuana . Retrieved 2006-10-21 Germany Use is illegal, but possession of small amounts not enforced. In Germany, medical cannabis patients may grow up to 100 plants for personal consumption. Honduras Use is illegal for both medical and recreational use and severe punishments are predicted in the law. Despite this however, enforcement for consumption is lax. Israel A small number of people have been granted special permission to use cannabis for medical uses by the Health Ministry. In 2004, the Israeli Military began using THC, the active ingredient in cannabis for experimental treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder of soldiers. {Link without Title} {Link without Title} {Link without Title} Jamaica Cannabis possession remains illegal for any reason, though enforcement is scarce. A recent panel recommended legalizing possession for adults for recreation or medical use. Japan All THC-producing forms of cannabis have been illegal since 1948 , when the occupying forces of the United States enacted the Hemp Control Law after World War II . Luxembourg In Luxembourg the law passed in April 2001 decriminalizes cannabis consumption, as well as its possession for personal use. The law classifies substances into two categories: A (other substances under control) and B (cannabis). The use of cannabis is illicit but the punishment will not include prison sentences. Thus, a cannabis user may be sentenced to pay a fine (€250 – €2,500). However, prison sentences from eight days to six months can still be applied, if cannabis use happens in front of minors, in schools, or at the workplace. Penalties increase up to two years of imprisonment in case of adults using cannabis with minors, and up to five years in case of medical doctors or pharmacists using cannabis in specific settings (e.g. prison, school, social services). Additionally, use or possession, acquisition, and transport for personal use of illicit substance(s) other than cannabis incurs between eight days to six months imprisonment and/or a fine of €250 – €2,500; Nevertheless, between one and five years imprisonment and/or a fine of €500 – €1,250,000 are foreseen in case of illicit cultivation, production, fabrication, extract, import, export, sale, and offer of type A and B drugs. Mozambique Cannabis is widely grown and tolerated. Possession is technically illegal but possession of small amounts can lead to a small fine in the worst case when a user is smoking in public, but mostly the user is warned to use cannabis in a private area. Netherlands Cannabis has been available for recreational use in . New Zealand Health Minister Annette King has stated that she is not "unsympathetic to using cannabis in a medicinal form, but that's different to saying we should let everybody smoke it." Her official position is that more conclusive studies are needed, and a method of regulating dosage is necessary before she support medical access to cannabis. Scott David Findlay, a Paraplegic , was convicted of cannabis charges. The judge, Robert Spear (Dunedin District Court) offered to allow community service instead of imprisonment, but Findlay does not recognize the validity of New Zealand's cannabis laws and would not perform community service. Judge Spear claimed this was a "hollow protest" that he was nonetheless allowed to make, and sentenced him to three months imprisonment. On the 15th of June, 2006, Green MP Metiria Turei had her Misuse of Drugs (Medicinal Cannabis) Amendment Bill drawn from the ballot, which could lead to medicinal usage. Norway Possession and cultivation of any THC substance is illegal and even small amounts can lead to heavy fines or jail. There is, of course, a black market, and even some semi-organized pot rings for medicinal purposes. Portugal Since 2001 , possession of any drug for personal use has been legal, though sale and trafficking are still criminal offenses. One can still be arrested and fined for using cannabis in public, or be accused of drug trafficking if in possession of more than 25 grams. Spain Research provides an important new Lead Compound for anticancer drugs, links to the story can be found here . The full text of the study can be seen here . In October , from the Universitat Autònoma De Barcelona . South Africa Prof. Frances Ames completed her research in 1958. The full text of the study can be seen here . Further medical research is currently being performed by the University of the Western Cape by Dr John Thomas. Switzerland Though all possession and cultivation remains illegal in most parts of the country, coffee shops can still be found in Bienne and Interlaken. Thailand Cannabis is illegal in Thailand. Even so, large numbers of cannabis consumers continue to be reported, probably due to the ease of growing low potency marijuana. United Kingdom In 1999, a House Of Lords inquiry recommended that cannabis be made available with a doctor's prescription. Though the government of the U. K. has not accepted the recommendations, new long-term clinical trials have been authorized. Sometimes juries have returned verdicts of "not guilty" for people charged with marijuana possession for medical use though there are many people in jail for the offence of possession, cultivation or supplying medical marijuana. In 2003 , the U. K. company GW Pharmaceuticals , which has been granted the exclusive licence to cultivate cannabis for medicinal trials, had hopes of obtaining regulatory approval for the manufacture and sale of a cannabis-based medicine in the United Kingdom starting in 2004 . Such approval has not yet been forthcoming. In April 2005, however, its Sativex marijuana extract, which is produced in the United Kingdom, was licensed for prescription sale in Canada. Although it is not similarly licensed in the United Kingdom, it can be imported, back to the United Kingdom from Canada, for named-patient prescription use. (Named-patient prescription is a prescription process which registers the patient's name with the Home Office .) United States See Also: Decriminalization of cannabis in the United States See Also: Legal history of marijuana in the United States |
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