The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Deputy Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

ATTORNEY Wayne Munroe, QC, has accused the Minnis administration of “dishonesty” as it tackles marijuana reform, insisting the government wants to garner political support and restrict cultivators and suppliers of the the drug.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis said Bahamian marijuana users should not be criminalised as he voiced support for the release of those convicted for having small amounts of the drug. But Mr Munroe said this issue “doesn’t exist”, adding the prime minister appeared to be pushing an agenda.

Dr Minnis has also said the former Progressive Liberal Party government did nothing to push the country toward marijuana decriminalisation.

“The PLP did engage in this matter because it was the PLP that appointed Simeon Hall (now Bahamas National Marijuana Commission co-chairman). So this whole ball was put in motion by the PLP,” Mr Munroe said in an interview with The Tribune.

“Now when they came to power they clearly came with an agenda to do something and I don’t want to claim to be a prophet, but it’s probably an agenda to limit the number of persons in the medical marijuana field and then just to play on the rest of it for political gain.

“It’s clear to me that what happened under this Free National Movement, which would not happen under the PLP, is the commission went forward without any clue as to what the law is because medicinal marijuana has always been legal in the Bahamas and under the Dangerous Drugs Act. I have on a number of occasions set out the provisions for what make it so, but this continues to persist.

“So if they are trying to say this is something new when it clearly exists, it’s because they want to change what happens now and that’s a wide number of people who could (be treated) with medicinal marijuana. Under the PLP, the commission would have been properly briefed on what the law is. The law is that medicinal marijuana is legal,” he argued.

Regarding Dr Minnis’ support for the release of those now in prison for small amounts of marijuana, Mr Munroe questioned the level of impact this would have if enacted.

“This thing about setting them free, that’s a part of in my mind, the agenda as well. I don’t know of anyone who is in prison for simple possession of a small quantity of marijuana. In my experience in the last year or so people have been awarded fines for being in possession of 50 lbs of marijuana and not sent to jail. Mind you there are very large fines, but then it’s a large quantity of marijuana.

“I have known from the time I came back from law school in 1990, if you were caught with a small amount. . . and you pleaded guilty you would get a conditional discharge. The change in view was the person before the court needed help and not punishment so you would get a conditional discharge conditioned on you attending drug treatment and passing drug tests. It was usually for a period of six to twelve months. If you successfully complete the treatment they probably wouldn’t take it back up.

“You come back and got an absolute discharge, not only do you not go to jail, you don’t have a criminal record at all. If you don’t complete you pay a fine and end up with a conviction and after five years if you are an adult it’s automatically expunged. If you are a minor after two and a half years you get your record expunged. That is what the law is at current.

“But you hear this releasing people for small possession (but) the law never criminalised them from 1990. The law sought to treat them.”

He also said: “So this release them from jail is based off of people going to jail. Now who is in jail are people who are convicted of possession with intent to supply – trafficking — and there is no plan to decriminalise trafficking in drugs because they didn’t decriminalise it in Jamaica either.”

In a BNMC report that leaked last month, it was noted that 4,280 people were arrested for possession of marijuana from 2014 to 2018. However, there were less people arrested for possession with intent to supply with 2,452 cases registered.

The amount of drugs confiscated from each person arrested was not provided in the early version of the report.

“I don’t want to appear to be a prophet but I wouldn’t be surprised if they say we are going to legalise medicinal marijuana and we’re going to restrict the number of people who can cultivate it and supply it,” Mr Munroe said. “Because now every doctor can deal with it and every pharmacist can deal with it.

“They know about these things. They are not being dumb they are being dishonest. This is the narrative that they are trying to run to lead to their result.”