Legalize

Posts Tagged ‘Philippines’

The confusion about whether or not marijuana is a dangerous drug is evident from the multiple policies many international countries have toward its possession and distribution. There are countries around the world that class marijuana as dangerous, but their policy must be strict to discourage smuggling, drug trade, and prevalence of use. Allegations that the United States has a large cash crop of marijuana are as fallacious as suppositions that hemp seeds are a source of nutrition. It is the case that countries with high incidences of drug smuggling and drug trafficking have more sharply defined punishment for marijuana crimes, to deter natives and visitors. Decriminalization of cannabis has taken place in many nations formerly intolerant of the drug.

Enforcement of drug possession and drug cultivation of marijuana are as severe as capital punishment in areas of the Far East and publicly vended material on the streets of the Netherlands when of age eighteen from special shops only.  Many countries act if cannabis possession or cultivation is found, yet most of these policies involve giving drugs to another person or cultivation of hemp or cannabis seeds for distribution to another. The United States can enforce a death sentence for certain extreme conspiracies to distribute smuggle and sell marijuana, but many consider this both unconstitutional and judicially unsound. China can apply a capital punishment law yet figures are not public. Poland won’t even let individuals give it away let alone possess it. New Zealand, which is a heavy using nation of cannabis, gets a stiff fine for those in possession of cannabis and dealership of marijuana is assumed unless the individual can prove otherwise. Germany tolerates a small legal cananbis ownership amount.

Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Phillippines have death penalties, although the Philippines abolished this practice in 2006. The complexity of the marijuana issue is reflected in the Uruguayan drug policy on cannabis; use is legal, it is distribution, cultivation, and traffic in marijuana as a commodity that is forbidden by law. This a spurious set of affairs, as where marijuana is legal is both the perfect place to traffic and distribute marijuana but also the perfect place to grow it. The United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia interdict hashish smuggling yet their cultures are renowned for hookah pipes. Portugal tolerates marijuana and hashish yet seeds and plants are assumed to be induces of trafficking and legally actionable. But Portugal enforces this only if over ten times a “daily amount” is found. Mexico has an unexpectedly lenient policy, tolerating up to five grams of personal marijuana material legal and further legal distribution in the works. On a related note, Mexican tourism has increased.

The decriminalization of marijuana can take some strange pathways. Turkey uses marijuana seeds as a spice (in bread, for example) and its production is regulated by the government. Yet possession of even small amounts of cannabis for use as a drug is illegal and subject to a fine. The so-called altar state of neutrality Switzerland classifies marijuana as an illegal narcotic. Spain allows therapeutic use yet cannabis ownership and distribution are punishable. In Sweden cannabis in any legal relationship from ownership to consumption is illegal, and they proffer drug tests to determine this. In Russia possession of small amounts is tolerated yet consumption and possession of sizable amounts indicating commerce are addressed with arrest, fines and imprisonment. Denmark and Canada support privately used marijuana in contrast with public laws, and Japan and Ireland share similar absolutism of intolerance of even small cannabis amounts.Belgium allows one plant and Bangladesh is a marijuana farming region.