Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/852418
16 YANNICK PACE LAST week, Uruguayan pharmacies started selling cannabis to registered consumers – the culmination of a three-year reform which started in 2013, when the country became the first in the world to legalise the recreational use, sale and cultivation of the plant. Uruguay is not alone. Since 2012, eight US states have passed laws legalising the rec- reational use of cannabis. In Spain, despite the plant's illegal status, growing and con- sumption is permitted in smoking clubs, which have increased from 40 to roughly 700 since 2010. Canada has also committed itself to reforming its laws to allow recrea- tional use by 2018. In Malta, the government has signalled its intention to reconsider the country's posi- tion on weed, having promised in the La- bour Party manifesto for the last general election a 'national debate' on recreational use – a proposal which was also echoed by the Nationalists. Nationwide opinion on the matter is broadly split between those who feel the move would represent a threat to pub- lic health and who fear the government is steaming ahead with yet another liberal leap forward, and those who are adamant the plant poses no threat whatsoever and should be available to whoever wants it. According to the latest country report on Malta published by the European Monitor- ing Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), 4.3% of adults aged between 18 and 65 reported using cannabis in their lifetime, while a 2014 MaltaToday survey found that one in five people knew some- one who was a weed smoker. The same EMCDDA reported the authorities to have seized up to 70kg of cannabis resin and 4kg of herbal cannabis in 2015, with a street value upwards of €600,000 and presumably only a fraction of the total trafficked that year. What is cannabis? The cannabis plant contains molecules known as cannabinoids which act on the brain by altering chemical messengers. It can be consumed either by smoking, or through edibles – food items like cakes, among other methods. The main active cannabinoid in cannabis is THC, the substance which brings about the drug's effects, which include a height- ened appetite and sense of taste, laughter and a general feeling of well-being, relaxa- tion and introspective thought. The drug is also associated with paranoia, anxiety and increased irritability. In addition to these effects, consumption of cannabis is also associated with short- term impairment of mental abilities such as memory, attention and concentration, as well as motor skills. Proponents of legalisation often argue that these effects are harmless if the user is sitting comfortably in their own home, however there is no guarantee that they will remain there, and studies have shown that when driving under the influence, users generally perform significantly worse than their sober counterparts. When it comes to analysing its long-term effects, the picture is less clear. Like any other pleasure-giving substance, cannabis can be addictive, while numerous studies have found that the drug negatively impacts the brain development of young users, es- pecially those who consume cannabis regu- larly. National debate to be held in the coming months When Prime Minister Joseph Muscat an- nounced his new cabinet just over a month ago, he said that parliamentary secretary Julia Farrugia Portelli would be tasked with continuing the reform of the country's drugs law. In 2015, the government decriminalised the possession of up to 3g of weed intended for personal use, and the possession of up to one plant, again with no intention to traffic. While a welcome development, those on the pro-weed side have argued that the sys- tem still contains some grey areas. For in- stance, while cultivation no longer carries a mandatory jail sentence – it is not clear whether the harvest from that plant would be deemed to constitute 'personal use', since it would be well over the 3g limit. Sandra Scicluna, a criminologist at the university of Malta, noted that since de- criminalisation there had been an increase in reported use of cannabis in a survey of 15- and 16-year-old students, adding that since the reform decriminalised consump- tion and not trafficking its end result was increasing crime. Another commonly flagged issue is the fact that while possession is no longer a criminal offence, users are still being forced to trans- act with a dealer who is effectively commit- ting a criminal offence, meaning that while the user is not committing a crime, they are to an extent fuelling criminal activity. Moreover, the police are still permitted to detain those caught in possession of canna- bis for their personal consumption, much like they would a criminal. Scicluna explained that while big-time dealers tend to traffic whatever is on the market, smaller traffickers usually sell one type of drug, often having a regular client-base. Asked whether cannabis users and those using harder drugs tended to fit similar profiles, Scicluna said it made more sense to consider the level of addiction, rather than the type of drug. "A recreational user will have a differ- ent profile than an addict would," she said. "Once an addiction develops, the personal- ity changes and the person becomes driven by the drug they are taking." A spokeswoman for Farrugia Portelli told MaltaToday that the parliamentary secre- tary's "job" at this stage was to "organise a platform for a national debate and to make sure that all stakeholders are on board". "The debate should help us to comprehen- sively understand the implications of legal- ising recreational cannabis, and should the reform go through, it must be in a way that is harm-reductive," she added. She confirmed that the national debate was "months away" and that Farrugia Por- telli had already met with a "number of stakeholders having various views". maltatoday, SUNDAY, 23 JULY 2017 News Next on the contentious agenda of policy-making: legalising pot... Parliamentary Secretary Julia Farrugia (left) has been tasked by Joseph Muscat to oversee the forthcoming debate on drugs' reform. PHOTO: James Bianchi