Pubdate: Thu, 31 Jan 2013
Source: Martlet (CN BC Edu)
Copyright: 2013 Martlet Publishing Society
Contact:  http://www.martlet.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3140

MARIJUANA ACTIVISTS WANT VOTE ON POT

Larsen has dedicated his life's work to cannabis law reform.

On Jan. 23, Dana Larsen spent his afternoon in UVic's Student Union 
Building speaking about pot to an audience that no doubt consisted of 
a few more empty chairs than he would have liked to see. This has 
become a typical day for Larsen in his capacity as the face of 
Sensible B.C., a campaign to reform B.C.'s cannabis laws through a 
provincial referendum. Larsen, 41, has travelled across B.C., 
speaking at events both large and small as he promotes his campaign.

Larsen has dedicated his life's work to cannabis law reform. He was 
politically active as a student at SFU and, upon graduation, worked 
with Marc Emery, a prominent marijuana activist, at the magazine 
Cannabis Culture. He was involved with the Marijuana Party until he 
joined the NDP in 2003. In 2010, he ran for the leadership of the 
provincial NDP and received 2.7 per cent of the vote.

Sensible B.C. aims to implement something called the sensible 
policing act. This act would effectively decriminalize possession of 
cannabis in B.C. by redirecting police personnel and resources away 
from targeting cannabis possession. Activities like cultivation, 
trafficking and driving under the influence would remain subject to 
current policing and penalties. Minors in possession of cannabis 
would be treated as though they were in possession of alcohol.

The second part of the proposed act calls for the full legalization 
of marijuana in B.C. while recognizing that to do so would require 
some level of support from the federal government as the Controlled 
Drugs and Substances Act falls within federal jurisdiction.

For B.C. to legalize marijuana, the federal government would need to 
either legalize cannabis or create an exception for B.C. According to 
Larsen, this could be done through Section 56 of the Controlled Drugs 
and Substances Act, which allows for a person or "class of persons" 
to be designated exempt.

Both decriminalization and legalization would prevent people from 
facing criminal charges for cannabis possession. Legalization would 
involve the government in the regulation and taxation of the 
substance, while decriminalization would not.

The sensible policing act would mandate that the provincial 
government establish a commission that would hold hearings to study 
how B.C. should implement a taxed and regulated system if allowed to 
do so by the federal government.

Larsen voices few concerns about whether or not his initiative would 
pass if B.C. residents vote on the proposal. A 2012 poll by the 
research firm Forum found that 76 per cent of British Columbians 
favour either legalization and taxation of marijuana (52 per cent) or 
decriminalization of small amounts (24 per cent). Eleven per cent of 
British Columbians are content with the status quo, while 12 per cent 
support increasing penalties.

What Larsen sees as the real obstacle to implementing the sensible 
policing act is collecting the required number of signatures to 
compel the government to hold a referendum. Though eight initiative 
applications have been approved by Elections B.C. since 1995, only 
the initiative to repeal the HST has made it through the entire process.

For an initiative to go to referendum, it must be checked by 
Elections B.C. to ensure that it is clearly written and falls within 
provincial jurisdiction. Advocates must then collect signatures from 
10 per cent of registered voters in every provincial electoral 
district within a 90-day period. Sensible B.C. is planning to collect 
signatures between September and November of 2013 in the hopes of 
prompting a referendum in 2014. To gain an advantage, Sensible B.C. 
is asking supporters to register online so that they can be easily 
contacted once the campaign begins to collect signatures.

There has been debate about whether or not B.C. has the capacity to 
decriminalize cannabis without the federal government's support. In a 
recent exchange with Cannabis Culture's Jeremiah Vandermeer, B.C.'s 
Minister of Justice and Attorney General Shirley Bond responded, 
"Police are constitutionally required to enforce the rule of law. 
Until and unless Canadian law is changed, the production, sale and 
use of marijuana is currently illegal (controlled federal 
legislation), and our police have a responsibility to enforce 
criminal laws for the good of all British Columbians."

However, by approving the sensible policing act as an initiative, 
Elections B.C. indicated that they felt it fell within provincial 
jurisdiction. In response to a question from a member of the audience 
about the controversy, Larsen said, "Stephen Harper could sue British 
Columbia, go to court and fight us. I say, bring it on."

In order for any initiative to collect the required number of 
signatures, the proponents need a sizeable volunteer base. Sam 
Vekemans, the local volunteer co-ordinator for Sensible B.C., asked 
that anyone interested in volunteering like the Facebook page 
Sensible BC - Victoria to stay updated.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom