After months of discussions and deliberation, a group consisting of 99 Irish citizens who were selected by the Government to provide input on the country’s drug policies voted in favor of decriminalizing small amounts of illicit substances currently and adopting an approach based on public health.
Despite this, the panel narrowly voted to oppose legalization and regulation.
Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use published summaries on Monday of 36 policy recommendations following its final meeting at the weekend. The culmination of a discussion that the chair of the group, Paul Reid, described as “the most comprehensive and wide-ranging” on drugs use and drug policy ever held in Ireland.
Reid, in a press release, said that the group’s message was to “take a more ambitious and progressive approach in dealing with drug abuse in Ireland.”
He said that it would be up to Ireland’s national assembly, the Oireachtas, to put into practice what the Assembly had requested. “But if the Oireachtas does it, not only will this change national policy and approach but also people’s lives.” “For the better.”
Statement on the conclusion of #CADrugsUse pic.twitter.com/xDghm5mX2s
The Citizens’ Assembly October 22, 2020
Citizens’ assemblies are designed to allow ordinary Irish citizens, who don’t usually participate in policy discussions, to discuss a specific issue. In this case it was drug policy. Members, who are chosen by the government to represent the population of Ireland, examine public research and consider evidence from other nations. They also hear from both experts and everyday people.
Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use met for the first time in April this year. Since then, they have spent over 200 hours discussing drug policy. More than 120 presentations were heard and nearly 800 submissions from the public were considered.
The three dozen recommendations can be divided into six major themes:
- Supporting people who have a drug problem within the criminal justice system
- Possession of drugs by individuals
- Governance and Implementation
- Funding and Resources Service Design Research
- Preventing harm, protecting youth and communities, reducing supply
- Innovation, research and referral of submissions
Many of the descriptions are very short. One recommendation says that the National Drugs Strategy “should prioritize a systematic approach to recovery.” A second says that the government should “take urgent, decisive, and ambitious actions to improve its response, including the implementation of necessary legislative changes.”
Some recommendations have been expanded. The summary of the recommendations states that the “comprehensive approach to health” is behind the decriminalization of drugs. “While possession of controlled drugs will remain illegal, those found in possession illicit drugs for their personal use will be given extensive opportunities to engage with health-led service.”
It says that, depending on the way the legislation is designed, this approach could minimise or even completely eliminate the possibility of a criminal conviction for simple possession and prison sentences.
The interventions will be designed to “assess people, inform them, dissuade them and prevent their drug abuse from becoming problematic,” a policy that the organization said is similar to Austrian and Portuguese policies.
Other recommendations include strengthening the treatment and recovery services within the criminal justice systems, prioritizing studying and addressing drugs policy issues.
After the assembly adopts its recommendation it will write a detailed description for each in a future final report.
Citizens’ Assembly calls for change are not appreciated by everyone. Crainn, an Irish harm reduction advocacy group, said that the recommendations were “good for getting headlines but have very little substance.”
The organization’s statement states that “this broad recommendation allows the Oireachtas the freedom to interpret their approach to specific drugs like cannabis.” The organization warns that the new system will still allow law enforcement officers to search and stop people, or to force them to attend drug intervention.
It adds that “some of our EU neighbors are reforming their cannabis policy to be more health-led, and include the legal regulation of and sale of marijuana as a cornerstone of these health policies.”
The Assembly gave the Oireachtas vague recommendations that are great for headlines but have little substance.
Please read our full statement below. #CADrugsUse pic.twitter.com/wbl7Dwbn6I
Crainn October 22, 2020 HTML0
Crainn reported that the Oireachtas joint committee on justice in 2022 came to “more nuanced conclusions about how cannabis should treated,” such as allowing for personal cultivation of cannabis, creating cannabis social clubs and establishing a noncommercial distribution system.
The group also said that a majority (51%) of the Citizens’ Assembly’s votes for first preference were in favor of either decriminalization or legalization of cannabis. This indicates a desire to overhaul the state’s cannabis policies, including full decriminalisation of cannabis, and regulatory implementation surrounding sale and supply, along with the repealing of previous criminal convictions.
The group shared a video on social media where one of the members noted that cannabis should be treated different than other drugs. The Journal reports, however, that 39 people voted in favor of a health-focused marijuana approach and 38 others preferred legalization and regulations.
Today, the Assembly tried to push back again on the cannabis vote.
The government was asked to note in the final recommendations that there is confusion and that cannabis should be treated differently.
Rounds of applause to this.#CADrugsUse pic.twitter.com/ezookTtGyg
Crainn October 22, 2020 HTML0
Gino Kenny, an Irish politician, introduced legislation about a year back that would have allowed possession of up seven grams of cannabis or 2.5 grams of marijuana tar by adults for their own personal use. Kenny stated at the time that he anticipated the country’s parliamentary to have a broader debate on cannabis reform within the next year.
He said that “we need a new narrative” in regards to drug reform, because criminalizing people who have small amounts of cannabis or any other drug is a waste of time.
According to Volteface, medical cannabis is legal in Ireland. However, patients must be approved individually by the Health Ministry. There has also been criticism about the delays in the rollout of this program.
German lawmakers are also considering a law that would legalize cannabis in the entire country. Last week, the country’s Bundestag parliament held its first debate about the proposed legislation after had delayed the meeting because of the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Legalization measures, led by Health Minister Karl Lauterbach would allow adults to possess cannabis and grow a maximum three plants for their personal use . The bill would also allow social clubs to distribute marijuana among their members. Officials said that a second phase of legalization would eventually launch a program for regulated commercial cannabis sales.
The framework is the result of months of discussions and reviews within the German government and its “traffic-light” coalition. Last summer officials began a series hearings to inform legislation that would end the prohibition of cannabis in Germany.
Last year, a group of German legislators, including Narcotics Drugs Commission Burkhard Blienert , visited California and toured California marijuana businesses to inform their approach to legalization.
The visit took place two months after the first meeting of its kind between top officials from Germany and Luxembourg, Malta, and the Netherlands to discuss plans and challenges related to recreational marijuana legalization.
In 2021, the leaders of the coalition government announced that they had agreed to end cannabis prohibition as well as enacting regulations for a legal marijuana industry. They first revealed certain details of this plan in 2013.
In a new international survey released last year , the majority of respondents in Germany and other key European countries supported legalization.
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Image element by Ron Cogswell.
The post Irish Citizens Panel Votes to Recommend Drug Possession Decriminalization, but Marijuana Legislation Falls One Vote Short first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
