Sir - A supposed argument for decriminalisation of cannabis is that it will take money away from gangs that control most of the cannabis trade. Unfortunately, in every society there is always going to be a percentage of people who want to rebel against the law and languish in the criminal element, whatever that may be, and these people usually decide to join or have contact with gangs or similar groups. This may be a controversial viewpoint, but cannabis helps keep these groups pacified, and decriminalisation would potentially encourage these people to diversify and capitalise on other areas like harder drugs, prostitution, and other organised crime. [continues 53 words]
NELSON -- Police say they have caught a "major" cannabis supplier after swooping on four Nelson schools. Police with a sniffer dog searched Nelson College, Nelson College for Girls, Waimea College, and Motueka High School on Friday after principals expressed concern at the effects of cannabis on students. Three students aged 14 to 16 found with cannabis at Motueka High School, 54km north-west of Nelson, were referred to the Nelson police youth section. Nelson College spoke to one of its boarders after cannabis traces were found in a locker. [continues 52 words]
LONDON -- Jack Straw wears wire-rimmed glasses and red suspenders, and likes to roll up his shirt sleeves. Late for an appointment, he is genuinely apologetic. He certainly doesn't look anything like Ghenghis Khan. But Britain's home secretary has become the bete noire of Britain's liberals and large chunks of the Labour Party's traditional supporters, who are furious over a whole range of law-and-order policies that Mr. Straw calls "moderate and sensible" but which others consider draconian. [continues 1147 words]
MENAR, India -- Beside a thick carpet of plants cloaked in white flowers, Laxmi Lal Lohar sits cross-legged in the dirt, scraping brown gunk off his palms into a plastic pail. If all goes well -- and he prays and burns incense each morning so it will -- the stuff in the pail will earn him a lot more than the wheat, cauliflower and tomatoes he normally grows. Opium does tend to pay better. Mr. Lohar isn't doing anything illegal. He is one of 159,000 peasant farmers licensed by the Indian government this year to grow opium poppies and help meet rising international demand for strong painkillers. [continues 2026 words]
The war began on the Big Island as a clandestine police operation called Green Harvest. In the years since, battles have spread throughout the Islands and shaped both politics and police work. To be sure, Operation Green Harvest succeeded in driving some big operators out of business and reversing a perception of lawlessness, especially on the Big Island. But acres of land once filled with marijuana plants the size of Christmas trees merely gave way to countless plots of tiny plants, tended by small-time dealers who learned the hard way how to evade drug enforcement helicopters. [continues 3277 words]
